Region & History

What is Spalter hop? An aroma hop from the area around the town of Spalt in the Roth district, south of Nuremberg on the edge of the Franconian Lake District. It has climbed trellises there for centuries, and according to tradition, it displaced winegrowing in many places during the Middle Ages.

In 1538, Prince-Bishop Philipp von Pappenheim of Eichstätt granted the town a seal for its hops. According to the region, it's considered the oldest quality seal for hops anywhere. Buyers could rely on it to confirm that the goods truly came from Spalt and were sound.

Today the EU takes on this role. Spalt Spalter has held Protected Designation of Origin status, or PDO, since 2012. That's a rarity, because no beer designation itself carries this strict mark — only the weaker PGI applies there. So what's protected here is the ingredient, not the drink. The area covers the sealed districts of Spalt and Kinding.

Stadtbrauerei Spalt was formed in 1879, when several small breweries merged. The town traces its roots back to the Lammsbrauerei, founded in 1540 and for a long time the last private brewery in town. Since 2006, it has styled itself as Germany's last municipal brewery. According to the brewery, its owners are the town's roughly 5,100 residents, with the mayor running operations.

How hops and beer belong together is shown vividly at HopfenBierGut, the brewery's visitor experience, tracing the journey from cone to glass. A town owning its own brewery has become very rare in Germany.