Beer is more than 90 per cent water. So it's no surprise that the water used in brewing is subject to strict regulations. The Bitburger Brewery originally used pure surface water taken from the surrounding springs and wells, in keeping with the practices of the time. The first deep well (100 metres) was dug on the brewery grounds in 1909. Since then the company has drawn its own water supply from the Bitburger Triassic trough, stretching over 750 square kilometres between the Nims and Kyll rivers. The benefits are enormous; shell lime and sandstone layers, millions of years old, have created the perfect geological straining system beneath the earth's surface to strain the surface water seeping into the edges of the trough.
The Bitburger wells carry naturally purified ground water to the surface from the deepest rock layers. The water is free from nitrates and germs and the mineral composition is excellent, making it the perfect choice for brewing. The brewery's eighth and most recent well, dug in 2002, bears testimony to this. From a drilling depth of 282 metres, the well pumps 150 cubic metres of the purest brewing water to the surface every hour.