House drink: An old brewery tradition

History and background
The house drink tradition goes back to the time of Hammurabi 3600 years ago. In breweries, the house drink was used to quench the thirst of the hard-working brewers. To control consumption, there were special beer tokens and dispensing points. The house drink was also intended to cover the employees' private needs. Pilsner was drunk at work, and Helles was served as a house drink.
In winegrowing families, pomace wine from the second or third pressing was drunk as a house drink. This inferior "wine for the house" was not allowed to be sold. Mineral water producers also provided a house drink for locals.

Legal regulations
In Germany, home-brewed beer is exempt from beer tax. However, it counts as a non-cash benefit towards taxable income - up to an allowance of 1080 euros. Collective agreements in the brewing industry ensure that each employee is entitled to at least 36 liters of house drinks. In Austria, the wine drink disappeared from the wine law after the glycol wine scandal. In Switzerland, there was a house drink of 4 liters per day and employee until the 1970s.

Criticism and outlook
The distribution of alcohol in the workplace came under criticism at the end of the 20th century. Nevertheless, in 2010, 4 million liters of beer were still given to brewery workers as a house drink. The German government's drug commissioner predicts the end of alcohol as a wage component within 10 years.
Hoose drinks have a long tradition, but are increasingly being called into question. It has changed from being a thirst quencher at work to being taken home. Alcohol is now usually banned in the workplace. The future of the house drink as an employee benefit is uncertain.