Bavaria Fully Abolishes the Summer Brewing Ban

In 1868, Bavaria fully abolished the general summer brewing ban that had restricted commercial brewing to the cold season between Michaelmas, September 29, and St. George’s Day, April 23. Enforcement of the old restriction had already been increasingly relaxed during the preceding decades, and some breweries with suitably cooled cellars had received permission to brew year-round. The complete abolition in 1868 formally ended the seasonal rule introduced in the sixteenth century. The change formed part of Bavaria’s broader transition from seasonal brewing to year-round lager production. Natural ice, improved cellars, and increasingly controlled fermentation had already weakened the practical necessity of the ban, while mechanical refrigeration later made continuous bottom-fermented brewing far more reliable. Its abolition marked the end of the legal framework behind the traditional Märzen brewing cycle, in which beer brewed near the close of the permitted season had to remain drinkable throughout the summer.