The family-owned Dinkelacker Brauerei Beteiligung and Radeberger Gruppe, Germany's largest brewing group, have agreed to establish a joint venture named Stuttgarter Brauereien. Both partners will hold 50 percent of the new company, which will assume responsibility for brewing, bottling and distributing their Stuttgart beer portfolios. Radeberger will contribute its subsidiary Stuttgarter Hofbräu to the venture, while Dinkelacker will contribute its operational brewing and distribution business, leasing its Tübinger Straße brewery site to the new entity.
The transaction remains subject to approval by the German Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt).
The most significant operational consequence will be the consolidation of production at the existing Dinkelacker-Schwaben Bräu brewery on Tübinger Straße in central Stuttgart. Both breweries will initially continue operating independently, but production of the Stuttgarter Hofbräu brands will gradually move from the company's traditional site on Böblinger Straße. The relocation is scheduled for completion by the end of 2028, after which the Hofbräu brewery will cease production at its present location. The partners expect the consolidation to improve capacity utilization, reduce costs, simplify logistics and eliminate unnecessary transportation between the two sites. It will also release a substantial inner-city property for potential redevelopment, although no specific plans for the site have been announced.
The economic rationale becomes particularly evident when examining the production figures. According to industry insiders quoted by INSIDE Getränke, both breweries recorded exactly the same beer output in 2025, producing 430,000 hl each. Combined production would therefore amount to approximately 860,000 hl annually. The Dinkelacker brewery was originally designed for a capacity exceeding one million hl but has experienced declining production volumes for many years. Based on these figures, its current capacity utilization is below 43 percent. Transferring Hofbräu's production to the site could almost double utilization to just under 86 percent, assuming the combined volumes remain stable and the original brewing capacity is still available. The merger would thus allow the partners to make substantially better use of existing infrastructure without constructing a new brewery. The figures also underline that the consolidation is primarily driven by efficiency considerations rather than expectations of market growth.
Despite the production merger, the partners intend to preserve the identities, recipes and established market positions of their respective beer brands. These include Dinkelacker, Schwaben Bräu, Wulle, Sanwald and Cluss on the Dinkelacker side, alongside Stuttgarter Hofbräu and its Käpsele beer range. The companies have assured consumers that the brands will continue to be brewed according to their traditional recipes, maintaining their individual flavor profiles and regional market presence. Both breweries are closely associated with Stuttgart's beer culture, particularly the Cannstatter Volksfest and other major regional events.
The agreement marks another important chapter in the ownership history of Stuttgart's brewing industry. Carl Dinkelacker established his brewery in 1888, while the origins of Schwaben Bräu date back to 1878. The two companies merged in 1996 and subsequently became part of the international brewing group InBev. In 2007, Wolfgang Dinkelacker, a descendant of the founder, bought the brewery back from InBev, restoring family ownership and operational independence. The latest agreement therefore represents a significant strategic shift for a company that deliberately returned to private family ownership almost two decades ago.
Stuttgarter Hofbräu has a similarly long history. Its official origins date to 1872, when two breweries merged to form the Württembergisch-Hohenzollersche Brauereigesellschaft. In 1883, the company became an official supplier to the royal court of Württemberg. It joined Radeberger in 2005—before becoming a wholly owned subsidiary in 2010—and has since operated as part of the brewing division of the family-controlled Dr. August Oetker. Radeberger's portfolio also includes nationally recognized brands such as Radeberger Pilsner, Jever and Schöfferhofer, along with numerous regional beer brands.
he newly established company will be led by Kristof Schimmele and Thomas Mathar. Schimmele will oversee sales, marketing, finance and administration, while Mathar will be responsible for production, logistics, information technology, purchasing and human resources. Schimmele previously served as sales director at Brauerei Gebr. Maisel in Bayreuth before leaving the company in March 2026. Christian Dinkelacker, managing partner of Dinkelacker-Schwaben Bräu, and Guido Mockel, spokesperson for Radeberger's management, will join the joint venture's advisory board.
The restructuring raises questions about the future of approximately 300 employees. Dinkelacker currently employs just under 200 people, while Stuttgarter Hofbräu has slightly more than 100. According to a Dinkelacker spokesperson, compulsory redundancies are not planned. The partners expect the increased production volume at the Tübinger Straße facility to create additional staffing requirements and anticipate that a substantial proportion of the existing workforce can continue working for the new company. However, no binding figures concerning future employment levels have been disclosed.
The consolidation will also involve a management transition at Stuttgarter Hofbräu. Its longstanding managing director Martin Alber has welcomed the merger and confirmed that he intends to remain with the brewery until summer 2027 to assist with the transition. He will subsequently assume other management responsibilities within Radeberger. Alber emphasized that Stuttgarter Hofbräu's revenue had not declined despite the challenging conditions in the German beer market. Nevertheless, he considers the partnership necessary to provide a sustainable future for the company's brands and employees.
The decision comes against the backdrop of a prolonged structural contraction in Germany's brewing industry. According to the German Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), German breweries and beer warehouses sold approximately 78 million hl of beer in 2025, representing a 6.0 percent decline compared with the previous year. This was the lowest annual volume recorded since the statistical series began in 1993 and the first time sales had fallen below 80 million hl. The figures exclude alcohol-free beer and malt beverages. Compared with 2015, recorded beer sales have declined by 18.9 percent, reflecting long-term changes in consumer behavior and a shrinking market for traditional alcoholic beer.
The situation in Baden-Württemberg has been particularly challenging. Regional beer sales declined from approximately 5.7 million hl in 2023 to slightly more than 4.9 million hl in 2025, a decrease of around 14 percent in just two years. The economic pressure on regional breweries was recently illustrated by the collapse of Privatbrauerei Eichbaum in nearby Mannheim, where production ended on September 30, 2026 following failed restructuring efforts. The historic brand rights were acquired by Park & Bellheimer ahead of the shutdown, separating the future of the beer brand from its original production facility (inside.beer, 10.09.2026).
Against this background, the Stuttgart joint venture represents an alternative to the outright closure of regional brewing businesses. Rather than abandoning established brands or transferring their production to distant facilities, the partners aim to combine their volumes within a single local brewery. This should improve the economics of production while preserving the regional identities of their products. Christian Dinkelacker described the initiative as a means of protecting Stuttgart's brewing traditions from the accelerating structural changes affecting the German beer industry. Guido Mockel similarly emphasized that the agreement is intended to provide the financial strength and investment capacity required to maintain the combined brand portfolio over the longer term.
