Life, 1903-12-31 · page 20 of 21
Life — December 31, 1903 — page 20: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **beer advertisement**, not a cartoon or satire. It presents a testimonial letter from Prof. Dr. Hans Vogel, a Bavarian brewing scientist, endorsing Schlitz as the finest American beer he's ever tasted. The appeal is to **Old World authority and purity standards**. By 1903, German/Bavarian beer was considered the gold standard globally. Schlitz leverages this by securing praise from an official German government scientist at a prestigious brewing academy, claiming legitimacy through European expertise rather than American marketing alone. The ad emphasizes **scientific cleanliness and rigorous production methods**—deep wells for pure water, filtered air cooling, extended fermentation—addressing contemporary concerns about contamination and pasteurization flavor (considered inferior to European lager methods). The tagline "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous" reflects Milwaukee's real identity as an American beer hub, here validated by European authority.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Schilitz Beer Receives World’s Highest Endorsement European government scientist awards Schlitz the highest honor. From Weihenstephan, Bavaria, the most renowned school of brewing in the world, comes this triumph for Schlitz. The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous pronounced best American beer by the’ Bavarian Government’s famous scientist, Prof. Dr. Hans Vogel, Director of the Scientific Station for the Art of Brewing, subventioned by the Royal Bavarian Govern- ment. Bavaria is the cradle of the art of brewing. We spend fortunes on clean liness. We clean every tub, every boil- ing vat, tank or barrel, every pipe and pump, every time we use it. We bore wells down 1400 feet to rock for pure water. We cool the beer in filtered air, We filter the beer by machinery. We store Schlitz beer for months in refrigerating rooms, until it is well fermented — until it cannot cause biliousness. ScIENTIFIC STATION FOR THE ART or BREWING WEIHENSTEPHAN, neax FREISING (Subventioned by the Royat Bavarian Gov't) PROF. DR. HANS VOGEL ACADEMICAL DIRECTOR WEIHENSTEPHAN, Nov. 22, 1903. Schlitz Brewing Co., Milwaukee, U.S. A. Through the courtesy of Commerzienrath (Counsellor of Commerce) Dr. Datterer, I have received several bottles of your beer. I have not only partaken of same, but have also made a searching chemical analysis, the result of which I enclose. The analysis, as a matter of course, can give no idea of an important feature, the flavor of the’ beer. I frequently receive samples of American beers for analy- zation, but I can truthfully say without flattering, that I never drank a better American beer than yours. The beer tasted full (round) and fresh, and no trace of the usual disagreeable pasteurization flavor was discernible. e Once more permit me express ny recreates | é The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famou comicbooks.com