Einbecker Brewery

The region of Lower Saxony and the town of Einbeck in particular dominated the European beer market during the fourteenth century, when the Hanseatic League helped distribute Einbeck's bock beer throughout Northern Europe.^[3] The Einbecker Brewery is the only remaining brewery from that tradition,^[4] and was already in operation in 1378: the first city record in Einbeck that mentions beer dates from 28 April 1378, and refers to the sale of two casks of beer ("Einbecker") to the town of Celle, some 130 kilometres (80 mi) away.^[5] The brewery claims the tradition with the inscription "without Einbeck there would be no bock" (ohne Einbeck gäb's kein Bockbier) above its door.^[3] Notable drinkers of Einbecker include, reportedly, Martin Luther, who was given a cask of it before the 1521 trial where he was to be excommunicated,^[6] and supposedly praised it in a two-line doggerel verse.^[7] Luther was also gifted a barrel of Einbecker in June 1525 by the city of Wittenberg on the occasion of his marriage to Katherine von Bora.

Einbeck’s dominance lasted until the Thirty Years' War.^[8] Brewing rights in Einbeck were owned by the city, and brewing operations were consolidated in 1794 in a publicly owned city brewery, from then on the sole brewery in the city.^[9] Its beer was first bottled in 1884, in the "distinctive low-shouldered bottle" that the company still uses.^[4]

The brewery, which had taken over two other regional breweries (Göttinger Brauhaus and Kassel's Martini Brauerei, in 1988 and 1997),^[2] merged into the brewing consortium Brau und Brunnen.^[9][4] In 2010, Einbecker produced 850,000 hectolitres (22 million US gallons) hectoliters per year and employed 200 people.^[9]

 

Einbecker Brewery produces three "original" bocks,^[10] but its best-selling beer is a pilsner, Brauherren Pils.^[2] Like the Czech beer Pilsner Urquell, Einbecker is considered "original" enough to warrant the designation Ur, or "original," which it carries in all of its bocks.^[11] In 2018, the brewery offers five bocks (two seasonal) and eight other kinds (inc. one seasonal).

round the year:

• Ur-Bock-Hell, a golden bock, 6.5%
• Ur-Bock-Dunkel, a dark bock, 6.5%
• Ainpöckisch Bier 1378, an unfiltered bock, 6.7%. (This is an attempted recreation of the 14th century hit, promoted as "Martin Luthers most beloved beer".)

seasonal:

• Mai-Ur-Bock, a Maibock, 6.5% (available in May only)
• Winter-Bock, a doppelbock, 7.5% and the strongest they brew (available November/December only)

• Brauherren Pils, 4.8% (also in a non*-alcohol version. *Means less than 0.5%)
• Premium Pils, 4.9%

• Dunkel, a dark malty lager, 5.3%.
• Landbier Spezial, an amber lager with noted hops, 5.2%
• Weihnachtsbier, an amber lager, 5.3%. This X-mas beer is available in December only.
• Kellerbier, an amber lager, unfiltered, 4.8%.
• Radler, the Brauherren Pils above mixed with citrus juices, 2.5%.

Notes

Bibliography

• Jackson, Michael (1997). The Simon Schuster Pocket Guide to Beer (6 ed.). Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9780684843810. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
• Eichhorn, Peter (2011). Von Ale bis Zwickel: Das ABC des Bieres. Explorise Grebennikov. p. 59. ISBN 9783941784130. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
• O'Brien, Christopher Mark (2006). Fermenting revolution: how to drink beer and save the world. New Society. ISBN 9780865715561. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
• Oliver, Garrett (2005). The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780060005719. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
• Oliver, Garrett; Colicchio, Tom (2011). The Oxford Companion to Beer. Oxford UP. ISBN 9780195367133. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
• Schlüter, Hermann (1910). The brewing industry and the brewery workers' movement in America. International Union of United Brewery Workmen of America. p. 20. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
• Voigt, Andreas (2010). Weserbergland. DuMont. ISBN 9783770192564. Retrieved 24 March 2012.

• Official website
• Documents and clippings about Einbecker Brewery in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW