Expert list on beer and the German Reinheitsgebot

The Egyptians made their own, different version by fermenting half baked bread with water, the Romans considered called it the drink of the barbarians, and the Celts were already brewing it more than 2,500 years ago: beer! Until the middle of the 16th century numerous ways to make it existed.

Only the Reinheitsgebot of 23 April 1516 regulated beer brewing in Germany. And until today it does not only mandate the bitter flavor but has also become an internationally renowned trade mark. Experts of the University of Hohenheim explain what the Reinheitsgebot is, for which other things hops can be used, and how important the trade mark “Deutsches Reinheitsgebot” really is.

The German Reinheitsgebot as a quality label

Image: University if Hohenheim | Marijan Murat

German beer is good beer! The high quality of German beer labels is internationally well known, which is to a great extend because of the Reinheitsgebot, says Prof. Dr Verena Hüttl-Maack, Director of the Department of Marketing and Consumer Behavior of the University of Hohenheim. The Reinheitsgebot as a quality label is also a benchmark for consumers in Germany.

Contact: Prof. Dr. Verena Hüttl-Maack, Department Business Administration: Marketing and Consumer Behavior, +49711 459 24760, E-mail

Precision breeding for hops

Image: University if Hohenheim | Astrid Untermann

Modern hops types have to fulfill high requirements: They have to be rich in fruity aromas for the rapidly growing craft beer market and resistant to parasites while simultaneously harvesting high yields - despite climate change. That is why there is an acute need to continue breeding the hops plants that have been used for millennia.

Researchers at the University of Hohenheim are using the most recent technologies and methods of compositional analysis, sequencing, biostatistics, and bioinformatics: They want to determine yields, quality, and resistance of the hops already in the germination phase in order to pick the most promising plants for development as early as possible. For this project, Prof. Dr. Jens Wünsche and Dr. Michael Hagemann (Department Specialty Crops), Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Piepho (Department Biostatistics), and Prof. Dr. Gerd Weber (em.) of the University of Hohenheim are working together with additional partners on decoding gene sequences in order to construct a genetic map. This code is to serve as the basis for establishing precise breeding of hops.

Contact:
Dr. Michael Helmut Hagemann, Department of Crop Physiology of Specialty Crops, +49 (0)711 459 22352, E-mail
Prof. Dr. Hans Peter-Piepho, Department of Biostatistics, +49 (0)711 459 22386, E-mail
Prof. Dr. Gerd Weber (em.), Institute of Plant Breeding, Seed Science and Population Genetics, +49 (0)711 459 23503, E-mail

Beer made out of old types of wheat

Image: University if Hohenheim | Oskar Eyb

Attractive raw materials for attractive beers: The old wheat types einkorn, emmer, and spelt cannot only be used to make healthy and delicious bread. In particular the malty sweet Emmerbeer enjoys ever more popularity. PD Dr. Friedrich Longin from the State Plant Breeding Institute of the University of Hohenheim explains why not only beer but also food, such as bread and cookies, made out of these old types of wheat are something very special.

Contact: PD Dr. Friedrich Longin, State Breeding Institute – Wheat Department, +49 711 459 23846, E-mail

The beer of the Celts

The Celts were among the earliest cultures to brew their own beer out of barley some 2,500 years ago. Dr. Hans-Peter Stika from the University of Hohenheim's Department General Botany examines plant remains at archaeological sites. Some finds give conclusions on beer brewing. In experiments he reconstructs the original natural brewing technique and brews the “Steinbier” (literally “stone beer”) himself in order to get the original taste. During this process, the archaeobotanist examines the differences between Celtic beer and our modern beer. For this, he takes a closer look at findings of a site in Berlin, which include remains of a medieval mix beer made of barley, rye, and oat as well as remains of a possible hops cultivation site located in the present capital.

Contact: Dr. rer. nat. Hans-Peter Stika, Department of General Botany, 711 459 23851, E-mail

Beer ingredients and health

Beer is associated with many negative as well as positive qualities. Time and again you can read in the press that it is good for your health, helps with heart problems, insomnia, and constipation. Critics however say that beer is bad for your health, can be addictive, and leads to the typical beer belly. But how good or bad is it really for your health? Which phytonutrients does the drink contain? Which effects do hops components have for example? The nutritional scientist Prof. Dr. Jan Frank can help with these questions.

Contact: Prof. Dr. Jan Frank, Department of Biofunctionality and Food Security, +49 711 459 24459, E-mail

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