In 1861, with the outbreak of the Civil War, Portner traveled south to Alexandria, Virginia, where he bought a grocery store with his friend Frederick Recker.

The first Board of Directors included himself as President, Paul Muhlhauser as Vice-President, Charles A. Strangmann as Secretary & Treasurer, C. G. Herbort, and B. Edward J. Eils.

Ultimately the brewery closed when Prohibition took effect in Virginia in 1916 and bottling plants including the one at 515 North Washington Street were shuttered.

When they had visited in the past, Portner's wife had said that the land, with its view of the Bull Run Mountains, reminded her of her homeland in Switzerland, and that she loved it.

He partnered with Washington, D.C. winemaker Christian Xander to produce wine from his grapes, which won a gold medal at the Paris Exposition of 1900.

He had the house moved and, working with prominent Washington, D.C. architect Gustav Friebus, Portner designed a new home that would combine elements of his favorite European mansions.

Built between 1892 and 1894 at a cost of $150,000, Annaburg was a three-story, thirty-five room architectural gem, complete with indoor plumbing, electricity, and porches that wrapped around three sides.

It also featured climate control system which combined two of Portner's brewery inventions, making it what is believed to be the first house in the country to have air-conditioning.

As the stress of his multiple businesses mounted, as well as combating the ever-growing anti-saloon sentiment throughout the country, Portner found himself gradually weaker and in ill health.