Mine's a Kölsch... in Cologne, Berlin or Hamburg!

In a planned break from tradition, the unspeakable may be about to happen.

Purists in the Rheinland city will be weeping into their traditional fruity ale if plans by a number of Cologne's breweries go ahead to market the beer across the country. Wars have been fought for less

Bidding to shake up the provincial powerbrokers, the privately owned Gaffel family brewery and the Kölner Verbund Brauerei, makers of the Spion brand, are drawing up marketing campaigns to infiltrate such bastions of beer drinking loyalty as the Hefeweizen stronghold of Bavaria and the Kindl-favoured bars of Berlin.

Putting Cologne in the boozing hall of fame

Kölsch is a top-fermented ale, golden in colour and crystal clear with a hint of graininess and fruit in the aroma. It has a light to medium body that is soft, clean, and, to many, very drinkable.

Those who have experienced and have found it to their taste will understand why the people of Cologne have been such keen defenders of it. It is as much part of the local landscape as the impressive Dom cathedral and the annual madness that is February's Karneval festival.

Kölsch is the speciality brewing style that has made the city famous in boozing circles. Located in the northwest part of Germany, Cologne has more breweries than any other city in the world.

So it is definitely beer central, and most of Cologne's breweries brew nothing but Kölsch.

Even in beer drinking, rules still apply

The rules concerning the brewing of the beer state that it can only be brewed within a 20 mile radius of Cologne.

The Kölsch Convention, signed in 1985, protects the definition of the beer and designates the shape of a glass and the region in which the beer may be produced.

The Pocket Guide to Beer informs connoisseurs that Kölsch would be "widely imitated. . .if it were not protected by its appellation Kölschbier (the beer of Cologne). Except in cases of lengthy precedent, a beer may not label itself Kölsch unless it is made in the Cologne metropolitan area."

Local strategy updated in assault on national market

Gaffel's marketing manager, Georg Schäfer, reiterates the point but highlights recent problems concerning a wider mark.

"We pursue a local strategy, but we want stronger engagements with bigger cities," he told the wire service dpa. "Gaffel has seen in the last years that its publicity has hardly made an impact. That's going to change."

Cue an aggressive but subtle marketing campaign.

Gaffel intends to improve on its current output, which topped 500,000 hectolitres (11 million gallons) last year, by targeting the sensibilities of German beer drinkers.

While many will have brand loyalty to their local brew, Gaffel aims to play the family business card to attract a wider market of consumers and seduce them with tales of tradition and history. The hope is that an affinity will be found.

Together with fellow premium Kölsch brewers Früh and Reissdorf, Gaffel contributes to the 1.3 million hectolitres (28.6 million gallons) of the beer that is produced a year, around 50 per cent of the entire German Kölsch market.

A wave of Kölsch to flood German beer market?

If the popular beer areas of Germany feel less than threatened by a family brewery with expansion ideas, a bigger ally is championing the Kölsch invasion. Sion beer is about to go national under the guidance of Cologne-based conglomerate Kölner Verband.

A company that has absorbed many smaller, provincial labels, Kölner Verband is heading into the market with dogged determination.

The holder of a 30 percent share of the Kölsch market, the big beer player has Berlin and Hamburg in its sight with a campaign aimed at getting Sion on the map along with its other popular brands, Gilden and Küppers.

"Sion has the potential to the pull our brands across a wider regional and national market," Udo Hopf, the head of the brewery company, told dpa.

Kölsch. Coming to a bar near you. Wherever you may be.