Days of the Beer, August 2

The beer for today is Cannabia. You can't get this beer in the U.S. (at least not legally).

On August 2, 1937, the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 was passed. This law made marijuana and all its by-products illegal.

The Marihuana Tax Act was one of the first stepping stones (stoned) that led to the criminalization of cannabis. The act itself didn't criminalize the possession or use of pot, but it put a tax of a dolla on someone who dealt commercially in cannabis, hemp or marijuana. There was a penalty of $2000 and five years' imprisonment for violation of the rules of the law. Ultimately, this law made it to difficult for anyone to deal in pot until World War 2, when Hemp was needed for the U.S. to win the war.

The act was found unconstitutional in 1969, since a person seeking the tax stamp would have to incriminate themselves. It was replaced in 1970 by the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970.

As for the beer, to over-simplify; hemp has historically been used in beer instead of hops when it was available. Germany disallowed it's use in 1516, with the Reinheitsgebot. The other spices and herbs used in beer would have supported the Catholic Church, as the Martin Luther's Reformation was gaining strength, the German nobility would have wanted to remove any revenue stream going to the Catholic's so they outlawed the use of "gruit" (herb mixture) and left only the use of hops.

According to the Brewer:

The use of Hemp Flowers (among other entheogenic plants) in Beer was a common thing in whole Europe before the year 1512, when the so called "beer purity law" appeared in Germany. This purity law is perhaps the first anti drug law of the menkind... Hemp is an emparented plant with hops. Hemp flowers have more than 140 different aromatic compounds. Many of them are found in hops too and many others that are not produced by hops but fits perfect with hops together. This all different essential oils that results in the unmistakeable hemp flower aroma of Cannabia. Cannabia contains more hemp flowers than hops flowers. The production of Cannabía was autorized in '96 by the Berliner authoritys. For more on this beer visit: http://www.dupetit.de/english/framer.htm

So, if you are in Germany or some other country where this beer is legal; go out and find you a beer made with Marihuana, and celebrate the erosion of American liberties.