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| German beer is highly diverse
and an important part of Germany's culture. There are around
1300 breweries in Germany, more than in any other country.
The German beer market is a bit sheltered from the rest of
the world beer market by the German brewers' adherence to
the Bavarian Reinheitsgebot (purity requirement)
dating from 1516. In 1810, Munich Oktoberfestbier was
served for the first time. It all began with the wedding
of the Bavarian crown prince Ludwig (later known as King
Ludwig I) to princess Therese from Saxony-Hildburghausen
(hence the name of the Theresienwiese or Therese’s
green) on October 12, 1810. Five days later, the National
Guard organized a large public horse race to ensure that
the Bavarian folk could also partake in the wedding celebration.
It was decided that the festival should be repeated at the
same time the following year, which marked the birth of the “October-Festivals”. |
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