In 1881, Carl von Linde himself equipped the brewery with one of his refrigeration machines, allowing for a boom of bottom-fermented beer.

Although World War I led to a crash in beer production, the brewery was equipped with its own railway connection in 1917.

On its grounds, DAB erected a new modern brewery, finished in 1983, at the time the largest of the Ruhr area.

Dortmunder Hansa refers to a number of beers, popular due in part to low price.

Before changing its name to Dortmunder Hansa, the beer was brewed in the same location, then called the Borussia Brewery.