Brewing in the Erlangen-Höchstadt district looks back on a long and significant tradition that is closely linked to communal brewing, hop growing and the storage cellars in the Aisch Valley. 

The first documented references date back to the 14th century: in 1382, the Herzogenaurach town regulations governed brewing, in 1398 communal brewing was mentioned in Erlangen’s town charter, and around 1410 the citizens of Höchstadt were granted brewing rights.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, there were numerous small home breweries in the district, some with centuries of tradition. Towards the end of the 19th century, however, there was a sharp decline: industrialisation, the First World War and the end of communal brewing led to the disappearance of many small breweries that were unable to withstand competition from larger companies.

While there were still over 1,000 breweries in Franconia around 150 years ago, only around 300 are still active today.

Communal brewing in the district of Erlangen-Höchstadt has a long history dating back to the 13th/14th century. It was once widespread, and former communal breweries still exist in many places today, even though most of them have ceased operations.

Communal brewing originated from an old community law and was particularly widespread in Bavaria, especially in Upper Franconia and the Upper Palatinate. Home brewers joined together to form communal breweries for practical reasons, such as fire protection and increased efficiency. In addition, the agricultural conditions in the region were favourable for growing barley, which was best suited for beer production.
An important factor in the spread of communal brewing was the granting of brewing rights by the sovereigns in the course of town charters. These rights were inherited and are still valid in some cases today.

Until the introduction of freedom of trade in 1868, the development of home brewing ran parallel to the general brewing industry. Many of today’s and former breweries in the district originated from the old home brewing rights, which are still practised in parts of the region.