I've seen a few beers advertised as being made in accordance with "Reinheitsgebot." What is it and what does it mean?

Reinheitsgebot, otherwise known as the "German Purity Law of 1516," literally translates to "purity requirement."

The law was enacted by the Bavarian Duke, Wilhelm IV, for a number of reasons, one of which was enforcing a standard of beer quality throughout the kingdom of Bavaria.

One of the primary motives for the law was to ensure that wheat and rye, important ingredients for bread making -- which were in short supply at the time -- were not used for brewing.

Additional elements of the decree set affordable beer prices, but the document is now primarily known for its restriction that enforced using only the basic ingredients of brewing.

The most celebrated clause of the short decree sets forth the only three ingredients that were permissible for brewing.

The law states "...that no longer any materials for beer brewing will be used other than barley, hops and water.

Whoever shall knowingly break these laws or does not adhere to them, will be sentenced by the superior court to immediately remove the keg of beer."

One interesting note is that yeast is not included in the list.

At the time of the decree, yeast was not known to be the instrument responsible for the fermentation.

Brewers simply knew that one needed to allow the beer to be exposed to air or add a portion of the previous brew to induce the vital force of fermentation. No one had any idea that the previous batch and air carried the yeast that enabled fermentation. The Twentieth century saw some modifications made to the Reinheitsgebot, including the official addition of yeast as the fourth allowable ingredient for lager beers.

An additional change also allows top fermenting beers, known as ales, to use any malted grain, such as wheat, for brewing.

Amazingly a form of this law is still enforced in Germany today, known as "The Provisional German Beer Law," and has been tested by the courts on more than one occasion.

Five centuries later, it no longer carries as much authority as it once did, but its impact on the German brewing industry is still extremely evident. Today any ingredients may be used, but the product simply cannot be labeled "beer" unless it meets the law's requirements.

The Germany Purity Law of 1516 brought a strict standard to brewing and continues to uphold the integrity of the world's most famous beer producing country, but its limitations inhibit the creativity available to brewers.

The Reinheitsgebot pledge certainly assures purity but does not guarantee quality. It also limits the uniqueness of the brew as many spices, herbs and flavors can certainly be used effectively to make a great beer. Sadly, as with most pledges these days, the only thing it implies is a good marketing department.

I always thought Yuengling was a small regional brew. I traveled to Florida and saw it there, is it national?

D.G. Yuengling and Sons has experienced a tremendous amount of recent success. They are America's Oldest Brewery and have been brewing in Pottsville, Penn., since 1829. Yet, the middle of the twentieth century brought hard times for small brewers, and Yuengling was no exception. They were close to closing their doors forever on more than one occasion.

The 1976 bi-centennial celebration of our country brought them some recognition and a boost but the real uproar came when Richard Yuengling Jr. took the reigns in the early 80s.

More willing to take chances and modernize than this father, the younger Yuengling immediately set about expanding the company's beer portfolio. At the time, the brewery depended primarily on its Yuengling Premium but also sold Porter and Ale. The younger Yuengling introduced a mix of porter and premium called Black & Tan in 1986 and rolled out Premium Light that same year.

It was their new product of 1987 that would ignite phenomenal growth for Yuengling. Traditional Lager, an old recipe, was placed into production and sent Yuengling scurrying to keep up with demand for the amber colored beer. Production has grown from 100,000 barrels in the 1980s to approaching two million this year.

Yuengling is in ten states, primarily East Coast, and operates three breweries. They have the original plant in downtown Pottsville and a new brewery built just down the road in 2001. In addition, they purchased an old Stroh brewery in Tampa in 1999. Yuengling is now the nation's fourth largest brewer, but they still consider themselves a local brewery as more than half of their beer is sold right here in Pennsylvania. So to answer the question -- are they national? Not yet.

Chris Straub is a senior majoring in chemical engineering and is a Daily Collegian columnist. He is also the great-great grandson of the founder of Straub beer. His e-mail address is cts150@psu.edu.