Rothaus Eiszäpfle

To come up with a name for our Zäpfle bottle version of our Märzen Export, we went back to the history of this variety of beer.

Before refrigerators and ice machines existed, the last batches of bottom-fermented beer could only be brewed in March (März) at the latest. It was then cooled with naturally forming ice. To harvest the ice, two processes were commonly implemented. Large blocks of ice were frequently cut from the ice sheets of ponds that were frozen over. They were then stored in the cellars of breweries. The second process is what gave Eiszäpfle (or icicle in English) its name. Large wooden scaffolding was sprayed with water so that icicles would form on the beams. These could then be knocked off and used to cool the beer.

Our Märzen Export also used to be cooled in this way. Today we commemorate this laborious process with the name Eiszäpfle. The name, however, is also intended to inspire a thirst in summer months for this refreshing and aromatic Märzen Export beer, as well as provide comforting pleasure in winter when the icicles hang down outside from the edges of roofs.