Kölsch (beer)

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Freshly tapped Kölsch
Nostalgia cartoon

Kölsch is a light, clear (filtered) and top-fermented full beer with an average original wort of 11.3 ° P and an average alcohol content of 4.8%. The Kölsch Convention of 1985 regulates which beer can be called Kölsch .

prehistory

The Cologne Brewery Office as the representative of Cologne brewers has existed since 1250. The Cologne brewing cooperation was established in 1396 and signed the Verbundbrief , which secured Cologne as the first German city a democratic constitution. The guild of Cologne brewers with the associated St. Peter of Milan Brotherhood , which also regards the year 1396 of the signing of the Verbundbrief as the year of its own foundation, is represented with its own seal on this document. The beer brewed at the time was flavored with green wheat and without hops and fermented spontaneously . The Archbishop of Cologne had the monopoly on Grut and therefore banned the brewing and import of hop beer in 1381. At the beginning of the 15th century, hops found their way into the Cologne brewing trade. In 1438 there were 21 breweries in Cologne, and three types of beer were served in the “Zum Leisten” brewery on the Eigelstein, the Grut, the Hopfen and the Keutebier (with a wheat portion ). In 1494, 64 breweries in Cologne produced around 65,000 hectoliters of Keutebier. Since at least 1698, the brewing authority has required every new master to take an oath not to brew a so-called doll beer, a bottom-fermented beer that has been mixed with intoxicating herbs such as henbane . Despite the ban, this beer was very popular with the people of Cologne and they got it right outside the city gates on Kurkölnischer soil. The city fathers were particularly concerned about the city officials, who, despite the strictest prohibitions, “come every day [...] and drink that great beer”.

During the Middle Ages and the early modern period , Cologne beer brewers had a secure income. Because the brewers' guild was wary of the fact that not too many brewers settled in Cologne. Illegal brewers (called "Heckenzäpper") could only sell their beer in front of the city gates and on "floating taberns". The number of Cologne brewers remained constant for almost 300 years; in 1500 there were 80 brewers.

Advertisement from the Sünner brewery from 1921

Up until the second half of the 19th century, there were around 100 home breweries in Cologne, most of which brewed top-fermented beers. Depending on the weather and the season, for example, there was “Märzer” in spring, “Stecken” in summer and the bottom-fermented Kölsche Knupp . In 1794 French revolutionary troops marched into the city and brought freedom of trade , which went hand in hand with the abolition of the guild system. At the beginning of the 19th century, inventions and discoveries also indicated upheavals for the brewing industry. The invention of the steam engine and the first cooling machine in 1873 had a pioneering effect on the brewing process. Due to the steady influx of workers as a result of rapidly growing factories, beer sales rose, so that the industrialization of breweries soon led to the death of traditional home breweries. In addition, the nationwide introduction of machine-made beer bottles was promoted and a deposit system was introduced. To avoid copying and panhandling, it became customary to have the name of the brewery embossed on the glass. At that time, the small in-house breweries were still brewing the forerunner of today's Kölsch, the cloudy and unfiltered Wieß ( German for  "white" ).

History of Kölsch

The first Kölsch in today's sense has been brewing the Sünner brewery since 1906 , which first advertised the light, top-fermented beer in 1918 with the term “Kölsch”. The Second World War brought a turning point in beer consumption. In 1946 there were only two breweries left in Cologne, namely Dom and Sünner. The ingredients malt and yeast were either not available, or only in poor quality, or illegally. The first pure top-fermenting brewer's yeast had to be procured from Copenhagen through relationships with Hans Sion from the Carlsberg brewery . After that, the number of Kölsch breweries grew again to 24. It was also Sion who promoted the Kölsch brand in Cologne as early as 1945. In 1960 around 500,000 hectoliters of Kölsch were brewed in Cologne. In 1963 the Cologne Regional Court decided that Kölsch not only identifies the type of beer, but also the region of origin. Only in July 1977 this judgment was confirmed by the Cologne Higher Regional Court , with the result that Kölsch may not be produced outside the region. On March 6, 1986, the breweries signed a voluntary agreement drawn up by the Cologne Brewery Association, the 16-paragraph Kölsch Convention . After that, this beer specialty may only be produced in Cologne and the surrounding area. The top-fermented, light, highly fermented, hoppy, clear (clear) full beer may only be served in the Kölner Stange . Wakes up a committee on compliance with the Convention, in disputes decided by a court of arbitration. On January 29, 1986, the Kölsch Convention was recognized by the Federal Cartel Office .

Between 2011 and 2014, the Federal Cartel Office investigated several Kölsch breweries on suspicion of price fixing . This suspicion was confirmed until April 2014, when the Federal Cartel Office imposed fines of 338 million euros on the breweries Gaffel, Früh and Zunft. These price agreements also affected Pils breweries ( Carlsberg and Radeberger ), so that the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court, which is responsible for cartel cases, separated the proceedings in June 2019 because the facts were different. A decision is still pending.

The so-called "Kölsch Card", a prepaid card for Kölsch , has been available in Cologne since September 2014 . With this card, the end consumer buys the right to pay 22 glasses of Kölsch or a selection of soft drinks cashless at affiliated restaurants for € 25. This corresponds to a gross price of € 1.14 per Kölsch or soft drink served. The Kölsch-Card was criticized by the Gaffel brewery shortly after its appearance, as it would make it difficult in the long term to "maintain an economical price for Kölsch."

Kölsch in the EU and outside

The EU seal protected geographical indication according to Regulation (EEC) No. 628/2008 of the European Commission

On November 25, 1997, Kölsch was included as a beer specialty by the EU in the group of protected regional specialties . This protection applies in the EU member states . This made Kölsch (at the same time as Rieser Weizenbier from the Nördlinger Ries ) the first alcoholic drink with a content, production and origin guarantee. If Kölsch is brewed within the EU by breweries outside the Kölsch Convention, the brew is given a different name, such as Bönsch in Bonn or Mölmsch in Mülheim.

Outside the EU, Kölsch is produced by breweries in various countries. The American World Beer Cup competition has a “German-Style Kölsch / Cologne-Style Kölsch” category. In the colony of Blumenau , founded by German immigrants in the south of Brazil, the Eisenbahn Kölsch is brewed among other things .

Legal issues

Brewmaster Hans Sion recognized as early as 1945 that uniform rules were required for the manufacture and sale of the various Kölsch brands. Over the course of time, the number of Kölsch brands produced in the Cologne region increased to 23. This makes Cologne one of the most important beer cities in Germany. Sion is considered the initiator of the Kölsch Convention. The trigger for the unification interests, however, were legal stipulations outside of Cologne. Already in the agreement between the Federal Republic of Germany and France of March 8, 1960 in its "Appendix A" Kölsch is listed as a geographical designation of origin for German beer. In addition, several court rulings attracted attention.

In 1963 the Cologne Regional Court determined that Kölsch not only refers to the type of beer, but also to the area of ​​its origin. In 1970 the Federal Court of Justice confirmed that the word "Kölsch" for beer was also a generic name . He did not object to the fact that Kölsch was also a geographical designation of origin. It could very well be that a designation of origin also refers to certain properties of the goods in question. However, he did not consider it justifiable to call it obvious that, in the opinion of consumers, Kölsch should be made in the city of Cologne.

In 1980 the Cologne Higher Regional Court confirmed the protected geographical designation of origin. The pale, top-fermented beer called Kölsch represents both a geographical and a generic name. As early as 1981, the Cologne Brewery Association decided to have a convention drawn up and enforced the formulated convention among all members. On March 6, 1986, the board members of the 24 Kölsch breweries solemnly signed the Kölsch Convention in the ballroom of the Excelsior Hotel Ernst , an important document for Cologne and Kölsch.

Kölsch culture

Kölsch bar from Zunft-Kölsch
Kölsch glass holder of the Cologne fools guild

Kölsch is traditionally drunk from a slim, cylindrical, relatively thin-walled glass with a capacity of 0.2 liters, known locally as a Kölsch glass or bar . The relatively small capacity goes back to earlier drinking habits. It no longer corresponds to the wishes of all local operators, as it requires significantly more time and personnel than would be required for larger drinking vessels. That is why larger bars with a capacity of up to 0.5 liters are often used in outdoor catering and in less traditional restaurants.

However, larger than 0.2 liter glasses are frowned upon among connoisseurs, among other things because, unlike other beers, Kölsch quickly disguises after pouring, i.e. it loses its fresh taste and head . Occasionally in traditional pubs you can also find half a Kölsch, which is served in a bar with only 0.1 liter content, the Stössje . In some breweries, a 10-liter keg, the Pittermännchen, can be ordered to the table for yourself to tap . Like most beers, especially the top-fermented ones, the Kölsch only develops its full range of flavors from a certain temperature, which is why it is served at eight to ten degrees.

The waiter is called Köbes in Cologne breweries . He has also been using the wreath for serving since the end of the 19th century - a container for up to 18 sticks with two handles in the middle - one on top and one in the bottom. The Kölsch vom Zappes is tapped from the barrel . In traditional breweries, wooden barrels, which have otherwise become rare, are still used. From them, without the usual tapping systems operated with pressurized gas, only a tap is tapped in before. In most breweries and in many Cologne pubs it is customary for every guest who has completely emptied their Kölsch glass to be brought another Kölsch without being asked until they put a beer mat on the glass or ask for the bill.

Manufacturing

Kölsch is brewed with barley malt , hops and water. Some brewers add a small amount of wheat malt. Most of the hops for Kölsch come from the Lower Rhine, from the Kerpen and Düren area and from Hallertau and Tettnang on Lake Constance. While most top-fermented beers are fermented at temperatures around 20 ° C, in most Kölsch breweries this is done much cooler, at around 14-16 ° C.

How

Wieß ( German  "white" ) is the predecessor of Kölsch. It is also brewed top-fermented, but in contrast to Kölsch it is unfiltered and naturally cloudy. The filtration of beer only became possible with the industrialization of the brewing process. As with Kölsch, barley is used as a malt grain. In Cologne the naturally cloudy, top-fermented beer was drunk as "wijss beer" in Cologne breweries until the middle of the 19th century. Wieß is not drunk from Cologne sticks, but from glasses that hold between 0.3 and 0.5 liters. Today Wiess is brewed again in Cologne, for example by the private brewery Gaffel, which only serves Wiess in the catering trade.

Kölsch brands

Bottles from Reissdorf, Früh, Gilden and Gaffel.
Kölsch wreath "Gaffel-Kölsch"

There is a large but decreasing variety of Kölsch. Of the original 100 or so Kölsch brands, 26 still existed in 2008, although some only came onto the market in the last two decades. The number of Kölsch breweries fell steadily. The Europe-wide concentration of the brewery industry did not bypass Cologne either, so that a few large breweries each produce several types of Kölsch. There are also smaller breweries, some of which still have traditional home breweries, which mostly brew their respective special varieties and sometimes market them in affiliated inns. Some Kölsch brands are produced as contract brews by other breweries.

Kölsch breweries are:

Hellers
Päffgen
Mills
guild
  • Brewery Chamber of Horrors
Sünner
Trusted Simon Koelsch
Colonius
  • Bischoff private brewery
Bishop Koelsch
Guard
Citizen
Haus Kölscher brewing tradition, Kölsch brands of the Radeberger Group
Guilds
Sion
Cologne Cathedral
Advice
Giesler
grenadier
Hansa
Küppers
Sester
Ganser
Peters Kölsch

statistics

In 2010, the market leader Pils had a share of the total beer output in NRW of 75.45%, followed by Kölsch with a market share of 13.65%, while Altbier had a share of 8.71%. In absolute figures, the output of Kölsch in 2008 was 2.18 million hectoliters, while Altbier sold 1.9 million hectoliters. In relation to the market share in the respective region of origin, Kölsch has an estimated market share of 80% in the catering trade and more than 50% in retail in the Cologne city area.

Outside of the region, high Kölsch sales are recorded in Berlin (including the Kölsch pub Permanent Representation ). In the USA alone, Gaffel Kölsch is offered in 500 restaurants and pubs, 80 of which are in New York City , like the Loreley since 2003 . Eric Asimov, the renowned gastro critic of the New York Times , named Kölsch the “Beer of Summer 2011”.

Related beers

The Kölsch is a relative of the top-fermented Altbier . In contrast to Kölsch, this is usually, but not always, made using darker malts and often tastes much tart. Its main distribution area is further north on the Lower Rhine. A top-fermented beer, also closely related to Kölsch, was brewed in Aachen until recently , the most famous being the Degraa brewery, which closed in 1989 .

In Bonn , which does not belong to the communities of the Kölsch Convention, the Bönnsch is produced and served, which is more like a Wieß. Lately it has also been offered filtered and is therefore more like a Kölsch. However, the Kölsch is also more widespread here, the sales border of which runs around Linz on the Rhine .

Under the name Echt Mölmsch and Jubiläums Mölmsch , the Berg-Brauerei Mann from Mülheim brewed a light top-fermented full beer until 1995. The Mölmsch corresponded to the Kölsch, according to the Kölsch Convention it was not allowed to be called that, as it was brewed in Mülheim an der Ruhr .

The Steffens brewery from Bornheim (formerly Kasbach-Ohlenberg near Linz am Rhein) offers Steffi, a top-fermented beer that corresponds to a Kölsch.

The Krefeld brewery Gleumes has Gleumes Hell in its bar, a top-fermented light beer that is slightly darker than Kölsch.

Since the end of 2001, following an internal dispute within the family, a sprout of the Kölsch brewing family Päffgen has been brewing a light, top-fermented beer a little east outside of Lohmar in the Bergisches Land , which is marketed regionally under the name Pfaffenbier , including in the Zum Pfaffen brewery on Heumarkt in Cologne's old town.

literature

  • Heribert Sinz: 1000 years of Kölsch beer. A chronicle for beer lovers . Cologne 1971.
  • Detlef Rick, Janus Fröhlich: Kölsch culture . Emons, Cologne 2005, ISBN 3-89705-377-2 .
  • If looks could drink. The first 14 years of the Früh Kölsch campaign . Emons, Cologne 2005, ISBN 3-89705-410-8 .

Web links

Commons : Kölsch  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Kölsch brauer-bund.de
  2. ↑ a b c Beer in Cologne before 1800 , Cologne Brewery Association
  3. ^ Wolfgang Veit: Rhein: Between Cologne and Mainz , 2008, p. 24 f.
  4. ↑ Chronik Verlag, Chronik Köln , 1997, p. 288
  5. ↑ Interview with Hans Sion at Kölner Brauereiverband (search term yeast) (accessed May 2015)
  6. ↑ OLG Cologne, decision to take evidence of July 8, 1977, Az .: 6 U 17/77
  7. ↑ Cartel Office examines price agreement - Kölsch raid makes brewers look old , Express.de of December 16, 2011, price agreement: Kölsch raid makes brewers look old
  8. ↑ FOCUS MONEY ONLINE from April 27, 2018, beer cartel: Trial against Kölsch brewers will not come until 2019
  9. ↑ koelsch-card.de Kölsch-Card.de , accessed on November 14, 2019
  10. ^ Cologne's first cash card for Kölsch . Express.de of September 2, 2014
  11. ↑ Regulation at eur-lex.europa.eu (PDF)
  12. ↑ Kölsch brands ( Memento of the original from December 3, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Kölner Brauereiverband eV @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.koelner-brauerei-verband.de
  13. ^ Agreement of March 8, 1960 between the Federal Republic of Germany and the French Republic on the protection of indications of source, designations of origin and other geographical names, Federal Law Gazette 1960 II p. 22; printed in Bundestag printed paper 3/2061
  14. ^ Regional Court of Cologne, Az .: 24 O 53/62
  15. ^ BGH, judgment of May 22, 1970, Az .: I ZR 125/68 = GRUR 1970, 517
  16. ↑ OLG Cologne, WRP 1981, 160, 162
  17. ↑ Koelsch-net.de , under further information
  18. ^ DIE ZEIT (archive): Kölner Wieß . In: The time . May 20, 1983, ISSN  0044-2070 ( zeit.de [accessed on March 3, 2020]).
  19. ↑ Gaffel Wiess. Particularities. Retrieved March 3, 2020 .
  20. ↑ Brauereiverband NRW, beer types at the total output 2011 ( Memento from July 27, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
  21. ↑ The Kölsch no longer flows so smoothly . In: Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger , February 3, 2009
  22. ↑ Jan: Visiting the first Craft Beer Festival Cologne. In: Veedelsgedanken. June 26, 2019, accessed on June 27, 2019 (German).
  23. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from February 14, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.loreleynyc.com
  24. ^ A Summer Beer Worth the Fuss , The New York Times, June 27, 2011
  25. ↑ Ingo Eisner: Max Päffgen brews on the Lohmarer Klasberg. In: General-Anzeiger (Bonn) . May 18, 2004, accessed June 25, 2017 .