Year of the Beer Garden

In 2012 Germany will celebrate the 300th birthday of Frederick the Great. It started on January 2 with a commemorative stamp of 55 cents, the domestic postage for letters, i.e., the most common value. Many books were already written about the Prussian king in 2011, so they were ready for last year's Christmas Season.

What Schiller once wrote about Wallenstein: Von der Parteien Gunst und Hass verwirrt, schwankt sein Charakterbild in der Geschichte (His character sketch alternates, is perturbed by favor and hatred of opposing camps) he could have written about Frederick. Some consider the inventor of the pre-emptive war as one of the greatest warmongers in history, chasing his infantrymen into enemy fire, shouting, "You dogs, do you want to live forever?" 

For others, he

 

- is the enlightened monarch who made Prussia one of the Great Powers of his time, 

- practiced religious tolerance, 

- became in later years Alter Fritz, the first servant of his crippled people, and 

- assured his country's provisions by introducing the potato as a staple food. 

When Schiller was asked to write a hymn of praise about Frederick, he said: I cannot grow fond of this guy (Ich kann diesen Charakter nicht liebgewinnen), and neither can I.

Let us instead switch to the Year of the Beer Garden. 

Precisely 200 years ago, on January 4, 1812, King Max I of Bavaria (Where else?) decreed that breweries were allowed to serve their beer on top of their beer cellars. How come?

In those times, cooling equipment did not exist. So during the winter, brewers cut out thick ice plates from the frozen Upper Bavarian lakes, transported them to Munich, and stored them with the beer in deeply dug cellars near their breweries. To avoid the sun heating up the top of those caves, the brewers planted chestnut trees on top, providing some shade.

During the summer season, people came to the caves and bought their cold beer in pitchers. However, some of them could not wait to drink the brew at home but settled underneath the chestnut trees, emptying the pitcher with some food they had brought. 

This habit did not please the nearby innkeepers. Starting in 1791, a protracted legal and sometimes physical battle (Willst raufi?) between them and the breweries resulted. 

It was not until 1812 that King Max gave those breweries the right to sell their beer in their chestnut-shadowed gardens, provided guests were allowed to bring their own food.

Empty steins made from glass in the beer garden of the Münchener Hofbräu brewery after 11 p. m. (drink up time).
Note the two soft drink bottles being tolerated in Bavaria.
(Photo dpa)

I shall also test whether the latter rule is valid in Baden-Württemberg during the coming summer holidays at Toni's beautiful chestnut garden* taking along my homemade Brotzeit.
*Also, on Facebook

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