In 1817 Johann Peter Wallenborn set up a brewery in Bitburg to make top-fermented beer. In 1839 his widow, Anna Katharina, took over the business before her daughter, Elisabeth, married Ludwig Bertrand Simon in 1842 and Simon continued to run the company.

In 1871 their 24-year-old son Theobald Simon succeeded his father, investing in the expansion and modernization of the brewery. This included an ice-cooled artificial cellar designed to keep temperatures at the same low level, all the year round, making it possible to brew new bottom-fermented beers.
In 1883 Bitburger brewed its first Pils beer. The first Bitburger Export led to activities in nearby Luxembourg, where a representative office was set up in Echternach in 1886.

In 1907 the sons of Theobald Simon – Josef and Bertrand – became shareholders of the newly founded “Theobald Simon, Simonbräu, Bayerische Lagerbrauerei Bitburger OHG”.
In 1909 Bitburger first started selling their “Original Simonbräu German Pilsener”. The common term used today, Pils or Pilsener, was established after Bitburger won a legal battle against breweries based in Pilsen. In the same year, the first deep well came into operation. The outstanding quality of this water is still central to the distinctive taste of Bitburger. The company laboratory set up in 1921 reflected Bitburger’s respect for the quality of its products from a scientific point of view. The “Indulger”, the key visual used in many Bitburger adverts and posters, was created and first used in 1929.

In 1935 the two sons of Bertrand Simon – Theobald and Hanns – took over the company. Their brother joined them in 1941, thus continuing management of the brewery into the fifth generation.
In July 1944 the first bombs fell on Bitburg. By 26 December the whole town lay in ruins. Even the Bitburger brewery was almost completely destroyed.