Document: Ordinance fixing the price of good New Netherland beer

The director general and council of New Netherland, having considered on the one side the great, excessive and immoderate profit that the brewers demand for their brewed beers, and on the other side the repeated complaints referred by the inhabitants of this province to the brewers, that, upon the imposition or increase of any taxes, they are making their beers increasingly thinner and poorer, and still demand the same price; indeed, more than before when the grain was more expensive and more scarce than it is now, which tends to the great prejudice of the inhabitants, and only to enrich a few.

Therefore, the aforesaid director general and council do hereby command and order that all brewers within this province, or those who make business of brewing, and transport or sell their beers to others, shall be allowed to sell a gauged tun of good New Netherland beer for no more than twenty guilders, or accept any more, for which they shall be bound to brew good beer no worse than has been brewed up until now.

Thus done at Fortress Amsterdam in New Netherland, the 29th of November 1655.[1]