“I did nothing else with my life” other than brewing, Mr. Orlik, who is 53, said in a thick German accent. He stays busy producing a light, floral Kölsch and a dark brown Maerzen year-round, as well as a rotation of five seasonal brews.

Hurricane Katrina hit just about one week after Heiner Brau’s first bottles shipped in 2005, but the building managed to ride out the storm with little damage. That set Mr. Orlik on a path to becoming a kind of brewing caretaker for the area. He currently makes beers for local restaurants, as well as for the Big Easy Brewing Company, a Marrero, La., brewery whose plant was shuttered after Katrina.

I tasted a few of the excellent brews, then followed Mr. Orlik as he showed off the equipment and a small collection of antique brewing gear. Before we left, Jack Shugg, who runs Heiner Brau’s distribution, offered a rare treat — a taste of a creamy Zea Category 5 American Pale Ale — made for the Zea Rotisserie & Grill restaurant chain — straight from a tank, or as he said, just “released from captivity.”

Image The Jax Brewery on Decatur Street, which opened in 1890, became a mall in 1984. Credit... Cheryl Gerber for The New York Times

One of the biggest moments in Heiner Brau’s short life came in spring 2006 when it was asked to take on Dixie beer, the old local favorite.

Founded in the Mid-City neighborhood of New Orleans in 1907, the Dixie Brewing Company was still sputtering along when Katrina upended the city. Its old brick building on Tulane Avenue was left stewing in 10 feet of water, and when the flood finally receded, looters moved in to haul off anything of value, including a copper kettle 16 feet in diameter. The brewery these days, with its imposing metal dome, is nothing but a spooky shell.

Heiner Brau brewed for Dixie for about six months, but was ultimately unable to keep up with demand. Its beers, including the popular Blackened Voodoo Lager, are currently shipped around the country from the Minhas Craft Brewery in Monroe, Wis. Dixie’s owners, Joe and Kendra Bruno, are eager for it to return to production in its original home. “We believe that it belongs there,” Ms. Bruno said recently by phone.