Steinbier
Steinbier is a beer specialty in which the wort is boiled by adding heated stones during the brewing process . It has been brewed this way for centuries. Since the brew pans for boiling the brew were made of wood in the past and therefore could not be heated directly, the beer brewing process was the only way to heat the brew in wooden vessels.
history
Steinbier was the predominant beer type in Carinthia and Scandinavia until the early 20th century . Since in Carinthia in the 19th century Steinbier was produced and drunk almost "exclusively in places inhabited by Windischen ", R. Waizer suggested the very daring assumption that it was from the Wends (or Windischen) when they immigrated to Carinthia Land was brought. Vinzenz Hartmann states in his study “Das Keutschachtal in Kärnten” that the distribution of this beer in the 19th century was almost exclusively limited to the Slavic regions of Central Carinthia and was the only type of beer produced in the country in the first half of the 18th century was. More recent literature has shown that Steinbier was originally also brewed in the German-speaking parts of Carinthia. Steinbier was also brewed in the parts of Upper Styria bordering Carinthia.
Since oats were used for the brewing process instead of barley , it was an oat beer that is currently still produced in large quantities in Scandinavia. It mousse strongly, but never cleared up completely, which is why it was drunk from clay jugs. The oat malt was later replaced by barley malt and more recently by a mixture of barley and wheat malt. Franz Sartori noted in 1811 that it was always a relatively unhygienic brewing process, which was partly due to the natural stones used.
Around the middle of the 18th century the Austrian government intended to limit the consumption of Steinbier in favor of Pfannenbier or even to stop the production of it entirely. For this purpose, in a letter dated December 8, 1767, the kk mitteren Kreyß-Amt in the Hereditary Duchy of Carinthia zu Klagenfurt asked Primus Felician Kerkho, attorney for the Viktring monastery, to submit an expert opinion as to whether the brewing of Steinbier had not been completely stopped, hence “the exercise Sothaner tanning which subjects of the pen “salva justitia” could be deprived of and people could get used to the pan beer, and finally to state what an “Accis” they would pay for it and what it was. A detailed and steadfast report should be submitted with the "imprint" of an expert opinion including the prevailing motives.
However, Primus Felician Kerkho came to the conclusion that this step was not to be advocated from a social as well as an economic point of view, since the Steinbier was the only drink of a "normal" farmer besides water, it was very cheap (which is why there was great demand) , the grains represented an excellent fertilizer and food additive for the animals and because instead of "more valuable" grain only oats were used. In addition, a change in the brewing process would only have been possible at considerable expense on the part of the farmers and the Steinbier was healthier than "normal" beer.
While the Steinbier was initially only widespread among the farmers, it enjoyed growing popularity among the urban population due to the inflationary years [from] 1815 to 1818 , due to its relatively low price. Steinbier was highly regarded at this time, especially among the Slovenian minority of Carinthia, and much more popular than any brandy .
At the beginning of the 19th century, entire hiking trains were made on Sundays in summer and winter from the city to the Steinbier hostels in the neighborhood. An official of the then district government in Klagenfurt reported that he had repeatedly asked for a vacation of several days in early summer to give Mr. Koritniak (Steinbier variant with at least 9 ° original wort ), his dear friend (the Steinbier) and relatives on the Radsberge visit and organize internal relationships.
Apart from the comment by Franz Sartori, the stone beer in Carinthia was praised almost exclusively for its “healthy, nutritious, thirst-quenching and strengthening” properties. Hartmann specified this and stated that this is due to "[...] the incomplete fermentation and the resulting higher content of suspended yeast that has not been sold [which is] exerted on the organism and which [this] is due to the." Brewed unfamiliar, sometimes expressed in a somewhat drastic way. It is therefore the rule for real Steinbier drinkers ("Lepperers") to have a drink or a few glasses of distilled water after the drink they drink as required or on their mood, whereby the juniper schnapps is usually given preference because of its medicinal properties ".
The Steinbierbrauverfahren almost completely disappeared at the beginning of the 20th century, as the easier to make pan beer and brandies of all kinds became increasingly popular. However, this production method has never been abandoned, so that it has experienced a small renaissance in the last few decades and the process is being used again by some breweries.
Manufacturing
For production, stones of a special type of granite ( microdiorite ) are heated over a wood fire to around 800 ° C in a steel basket and then left with the basket in the mash , also wort , to bring it to a boil. Part of the malt sugar dissolved in the wort caramelises on the hot stones and forms a fine layer. After cooling, the brewer's yeast is added to the wort to initiate fermentation. After the main fermentation is complete, the resulting green beer is poured into the fermentation vat together with the steel basket with the caramel-coated stones . There, the sugar caramelized on the stones is dissolved again and serves the yeast as a nutrient during secondary fermentation . The caramelized sugar leads to the typical, smoky taste of stein beer. Depending on how the stones were heated and the type of malting , soot could get into the brew, cf. Smoked beer . As an original type of beer, it is top-fermented . No value was placed on storage, which is different today.
distribution
Steinbier is particularly popular in Baden-Württemberg and Franconia . Since 2007 the family brewery Leikeim from Altenkunstadt has been brewing Steinbier again as one of the few European breweries. Steinbier has been brewed again in Salzburg since 2009 and served in the Urbankeller. Stones from the Kapuzinerberg , Salzburg's local mountain, are used in the process. At the BierIG Award 2009, the Steinbier reached 1st place.
See also
literature
- Raimund Dürnwirth: About Steinbier . In: Carinthia I. , 95 (1905), pp. 10-19.
swell
- ↑ a b Information brochure about the company and the individual beers of the Leikeim brewery
- ↑ Tradition and innovation at schleppe.de (Schleppe Brewery) , accessed on August 3, 2010
- ↑ Rud. Waizer: cultural images and sketches from Carinthia. (New series.) Klagenfurt 1890, p. 130 f.
- ↑ R. Dürnwirth, from beer stein, in: I. Carinthia releases of history-association 95. Jg for Carinthia (Klagenfurt, 1905), pp 10-19.
- ↑ Franz Pichler, Das Steinbierbrauen in der Steiermark, in: Zeitschrift des Historisches Verein für Steiermark, Volume 53 (1962), p. 155
- ^ Franz Sartori: Latest journey through Austria above and below the Enns, Salzburg, Berchtesgaden, Carinthia and Steyermark. Vienna 1811. II. B.
- ↑ HKM, Carinthia No. 31 (1822), from: Vom Steinbier
- ↑ a b R., Carinthia No. 68 (1851), from: Vom Steinbier
- ↑ R. Dürnwirth: Vom Steinbier
- ↑ Steinbier. Retrieved January 15, 2010 .
- ↑ Steinbier - The Taste ( Memento of the original from March 23, 2010 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. from urbankeller.com, accessed August 3, 2010
