# Legal concerns

Fermentation is fun, but as soon as (alcoholic) drinks are produced,
there's laws to adhere to.  Wikipedia [1] has a useful table on the
legality of homebrewing (low alcohol percentage,
beer/mead/wine/cider/...) and home distillation (high alcohol
percentage, vodka/rum/gin/...).  In nearly all cases homebrewing is
permitted and home distillation is strictly forbidden, with the
common-wealth and slavic countries being notable exceptions of the
latter.  Commercial production generally requires licenses.  So, as
tempting as it is to forego the purchase of alcohol in favor of DIY,
it's not that simple.

## German laws

Germany has special laws requiring homebrewers to report yearly to
their local customs office.  If the production exceeds 200 liters or
is done for show (at fairs, feasts, schools, ...) or commercial
purposes, this must be reported to the customs office and taxation
applies depending on the gravity of the wort [2].

Home distillation for personal use is strictly forbidden, even when
using small-scale distillery equipment [3].  The only exception may be
granted for land owners performing distillery of their own produce
[4], with distillery being handled by a third party.

## What does that mean for this gopherhole?

My main interest is kvass [5] which is considered non-alcoholic by
slavic standards.  It's a completely different beast from beer, but
the same brewing lessons apply to it, so I've reported to my customs
office just in case.  In case I actually end up doing wine or (fruit)
beer, this will come in handy.  Assuming I drink 0.4l of Kvass every
day of the warmer half of the year, that makes 180*0.4=72l.  This is
safely under the threshold.  Even if I should exceed it, there will be
either no tax to pay (if it's alcohol-free) or the amount of taxes is
miniscule (0.44€ for each 100l per degree Plato).  The main cost is
having to fill out tax declaration forms :>

Home distillation is not an option.  It's kind of unfortunate to
relinquish that slavic tradition, but on the upside this improves
overall safety standards (no more risk of going blind).  Not all is
lost though, liqeurs can still be made by soaking fruit in
store-bought vodka/rum/gin.

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homebrewing#Legality
[2]:https://www.zoll.de/DE/Privatpersonen/Alkohol-Kaffee-Tabak-Kraftstoffe-Strom-im-Haushalt/Brauen-Brennen-Roesten/Bier/bier_node.html
[3]: https://www.zoll.de/DE/Privatpersonen/Alkohol-Kaffee-Tabak-Kraftstoffe-Strom-im-Haushalt/Brauen-Brennen-Roesten/Alkoholerzeugnisse/Herstellung-Alkohol/herstellung-alkohol_node.html
[4]: https://www.zoll.de/DE/Privatpersonen/Alkohol-Kaffee-Tabak-Kraftstoffe-Strom-im-Haushalt/Brauen-Brennen-Roesten/Alkoholerzeugnisse/Alkoholerzeugung-durch-Stoffbesitzer/alkoholerzeugung_node.html
[5]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kvass

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