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GREAT HEART
BREWING CO

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Full Glasses, Full Hearts

When John’s great-great-grandfather took over his father-in-law’s brewery in the 1860s he knew the origin of each ingredient, from the spring-fed water and artisan brewer’s yeast, to the farmers who cultivated his hops and grains. The beer styles were new to the booming town on the banks of the Mississippi, but they were ancient favorites of his German immigrant patrons.

After a decade working his way up in the craft beer industry starting out cleaning kegs and sweeping floors, John traveled to Bavaria to study brewing—carrying on his family’s tradition by becoming a sixth-generation brewmaster.

 

While in Munich completing his master brewer education, he met Helena and fell in love.

Helena grew up around her family’s restaurant in Lucerne, Switzerland and visiting the hop farms of Bavaria alongside her father—who like her grandfather spent his entire life in the German hop industry. 

Following in her family’s footsteps of hospitality and harvest, her love for beer grew from experiencing first-hand the long days of labor and old-world traditions of the Bavarian hop farmers.

 

John and Helena source noble hops from farms Helena’s family has worked with for generations in Bavaria and Bohemia. They carefully select for quality, flavor and sustainability before brewing each beer by hand in small batches.

 

Great Heart was born from a love of beer and the spirit of these family traditions that inspired John and Helena’s dream of starting their own brewery—a welcoming neighborhood bierhall with fresh, farm-to-table food and a focus on European-style lagers and ales.

In German, “gemütlichkeit” means warmth, friendliness and good cheer and “stammtisch” is a communal table where groups of regulars gather. At Great Heart, every table is a stammtisch and we welcome each visitor as a regular. 

Welcome To Great Heart

John and Helena
Valentine

TRADITIONAL

EUROPEAN
STYLE

ALES & LAGERS

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