Law of Purity

Bavarian Beer Purity Law from 1516

Duke Wilhelm IV enacted the Purity Law of 1516 which stated that the only ingredients allowed in beer making were barley, hops and water. This is the oldest law governing Food and Beverage. It was issued to achieve the following goals:

To prohibit the use of Bread making cereal grains (Wheat, Spelt and Rye) to make beer, in order to prevent famine in years of poor harvests. Note: Only Barley was allowed.
To protect the health of beer drinkers by prohibiting the then customary use of health threatening bittering and seasoning agents. Note: Only Hops were permitted.
Note: Yeast was not included because it had not yet been discovered!

Today's Purity law has undergone some amendments:

It is specifically stated that only malted cereal grains are to be used. Corn and Rice are not considered cereal grains.
Malting is the process of artificially germinating the cereal grain in order to modify and softened the grain.
Malted Wheat, Spelt and Rye are allowed but only if top fermenting ale yeast is used. For bottom fermenting lagers barley (malted) is still the only cereal grain allowed.
Concentrated Hop extract is allowed but only before and during wort boiling. The use of pre-isomerized hops, which requires no boiling to add bitterness, is not allowed.
Brewing water must be potable.
Clarifying agents for wort and beer must be completely removable and removed from the finished beer. These agents must not alter the taste or carry any health hazards.
Altering the pH of Mash and Wort may be achieved only with the naturally occurring lactic acid bacteria on the malt. This can be achieved by using "sour malt" or by breeding these bacteria and adding the resulting lactic acid. The primary fermentation of top fermenting beers must be done with 100% top fermenting yeast. The secondary fermentation may be brought about by adding 15% (of the total amount of wort) of a bottom fermenting beer which is actively fermenting (krausening) or 0.1% of a bottom fermenting yeast.

While we do charge more than one pfenning for our beer, the bottom line is that we adhere to the Purity Law of 1516 by only using water, malted barley, yeast, and hops. Moreover, we only use the best ingredients and are committed to brewing the best beer possible. The following is a translation of the Bavarian Law of Purity:

"How beer should be served and brewed in summer and winter in the principality"

"Herewith, we decree, order, express and wish, together with the Privy Council, that from this day forth everywhere in the Principality of Bavaria, in the countryside as in the towns and marketplaces, wherever no other specific ordinance applies, from St. Michael's Day until St. George's Day a measure or head of beer shall not be sold for more than one pfennig Munich currency and from St. George's Day until St. Michael's Day a measure shall not be sold for more than two pfennigs of the same currency, nor a head for more than three haller. Violators of this decree shall be punished as prescribed below. Whoever should brew a beer other than Maerzen, is forbidden, under any circumstances, to serve or sell a measure for more than one pfennig. We especially wish that, from this point on and everywhere in the countryside as well as in the towns and marketplaces, nothing is to be added to or used in beer other than barley, hops and water. Whosoever knowingly disobeys this decree will be severely punished by the court having jurisdiction over him by having his barrel of beer confiscated whenever this offense occurs. Whenever an innkeeper buys beer at the prescribed price from any brewery in the countryside as well as in the towns and marketplaces, he is allowed to resell it privately to the lowly peasantry for one haller more than the price of the measure or head of beer stipulated above."

(Translator's note: "measure" and "head" were units of volume and "pfennig" and "haller" were monetary units in use at that time. "Maerzen" was a somewhat stronger beer brewed in late winter, which is still brewed today.)

Best served in a room temperature glass with a 2" head...releases flavor...less filling