The Humble German Jewish Immigrant History Behind the Famous Old Bay Seasoning
Tom Blank of Weird History Food dove deep into the humble beginnings of Old Bay Seasoning, noting that its creator, Gustav Brunn was a German Jewish immigrant.
While Old Bay is a product of the United States, it has its roots in World War II era Germany.
Brunn, who owned a own spice importing company in Germany, was swept up after Kristallnacht (Night of the Broken Glass) and was sent to Buchenwald concentration camp. He was able to negotiate his freedom and came to the United States, specifically to Maryland, in 1939. He made sure to bring a spice grinder with him on the long journey.
While the Brunns brought very little with them on their journey to the States, one thing Brunn made sure to pack was his personal spice grinder. He had been a spice merchant before World WarII, though back then he mostly sold them to German sausage makers, and so he was determined to grind out a new spice-centric career here in America.
Brunn immediately found a job with McCormick spice company, only to be fired because of his religion. Undeterred he create his bespoke spice that has proved to be difficult to replicate.
Brunn's creation really was a unique blend of spices. While the entirety of the recipe remains a secret,... It may have been created especially for the ample amount of seafood which washed up on the shores of Maryland. But as it turned out, Old Bay was good for just about anything ...Other companies, including Brunn's old rival McCormick, started to sell their own variation of Old Bay. And yet, none of these knockoffs could quite capture the herbaceous flavor profile of the original.
Ironically, the Brunn family sold Old Bay to McCormick in 1990, where they changed the container but not the recipe.
After watching his small business grow into a national treasure, Gustav Brun passed away in 1985 at an impressive 92 years old. Five years after that, in 1990, Old Bay was officially sold to McCormick. After so many years of coveting Old Bay, McCormick took its ownership very seriously.
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The post The Humble German Jewish Immigrant History Behind the Famous Old Bay Seasoning was originally published on Laughing Squid.