MBAA TQ https://doi.org/10.1094/TQ-55-4-1223-01 |
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Horst Dornbusch. Cerevisia Communications, West Newbury, MA, U.S.A.
AbstractThe German
Reinheitsgebot is held up as the gold standard for beer brewing quality, but not many people, especially non-Germans, know what it actually says. This article describes the history of the
Reinheitsgebot, the effects on beers and brewing throughout the centuries, and its effects on beer today. Of course, it has been interpreted and amended several times over the past couple hundred years. The most significant restrictions are the prohibition of rice, corn, and millet from being used as part of the mash and the restriction of brewing sugars (adjuncts) to ales as opposed to lagers. Therefore, all lagers must be made from barley malt only, while all wheat beers (and rye beers, too) must be ales; and beers with rice, corn, or millet adjuncts are completely verboten, regardless of the fermentation regimen. Ironically, the prohibition on using wheat was circumvented only a few years after the proclamation's debut, and it fueled a dispute that lasted nearly 100 years. The only current prohibition for hops is for the use of hop extracts after the boil; dry hopping is fully permitted as of 2012. The reality is that today, there are few restrictions for the modern craft brewer in Germany versus the rest of the world.
