Emma Ea Ambrose

eambrose@jconline.com

Thieme & Wagner Brewery's name may sound familiar to connoisseurs of beer or students of history.

Thieme & Wagner Brewing Co. was a Lafayette brewery, founded in the 1860s. The company, which closed for prohibition in 1918 and was eventually sold and reopened as Lafayette Brewing Inc., remained active until 1952. If that name sounds familiar, you're probably thinking of Lafayette Brewing Co., another brewery that opened its doors in 1993.

Now, Brian Thieme is resurrecting the company, which will open this summer at 652 Main St. Thieme, and his brother John, said they are the fifth generation in the Thieme family involved with the beer and liquor service industry. Even his son works for People's Brewing Co.

"It's my family history," Thieme said.

Thieme & Wagner will be a brewpub, well, a brewpub and museum. There are plans to decorate the space with pictures and artifacts from the old Thieme & Wagner Brewery, as well as pictures of historic Lafayette.

Additionally, Thieme said, they have a full liquor license, permitting the pub to serve wine, beer and liquor. Light fare also will be available, but Thieme & Wagner's won't have a full kitchen. "A lot of people have lost sight of how Lafayette started," Thieme said, "Hopefully, people can come in and just go back in time a little bit."

"We're not really keen on the food part of it," said Thieme "... We just want people to come in and have a few drinks."

Thieme & Wagner won't brew its own beer — at least initially. Instead, it'll offer brews from Indiana and the Midwest. Thieme said the idea for the brewpub began when he tasted one of his son's brews and thought there should be a place downtown serving quality local and regional beers.

As the business grows, however, Thieme said his family might seek to contract with a local facility to produce a Thieme & Wagner brew. He also suggested the possibility of a Thieme & Wagner brewing location elsewhere to supply the downtown location.

If all goes according to plan, Thieme said Thieme & Wagner will open sometime in June.

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