Every year the same rip-off at the Oktoberfest Wies'n. The Munich based non-for-profit association against fraudulent beer tapping has always a case in catching greedy keg keepers who regularly manage to "squeeze" 110 to 120 Mass steins from a 100 Liter keg. By extrapolation, it's an extra revenue of some 420.000 euros (or US-$ 483.000) for one Oktoberfest campaign and per festival tent.
The money making miracle and consumer rip-off is simple. Instead of receiving one liter of yummy, seasonal Oktoberfest beer, you get the average equivalent of measly 0.86 liter plus beer foam - you pay almost 10 euros for a Mass stein (glass) of one 1 liter. By this calculation, it is premeditated fraud in the range of 1.00 to 1.50 euro per Mass stein. The keg tenders just don't fill up the glasses to the legal limit.
And, what is the fuss about? Obviously - only Tibetan prayer-wheeling by a "do-gooder" organization that wants to protect the consumers, the cheerful beer-drinkers. But, nothing has really changed for years, except the annual publicizing of the rip-off, producing some customers' awareness.
Well, after a drinker's pressure-fueling of some 4 Mass, the guys would likely get dizzy by a less than 3.5 liter beer intake, thus paying 5 euros for expensive "quasi non-alcoholic" foam.
The scandal is that even the taxman gets a profit by this obviously fraudulent scheme, namely 19 percent V.A.T. which is included in the beer price of nearly 10 euros (making €1.60 of included taxes per Mass or some 67.000 euros of undeserved V.A.T. for the treasury per festival tent).
By this calculation, you see that greed is multilateral - the waitresses get more tip due to more rounds to carry, the keg tenders make 10 to 20 more steins per keg, the tent owner (in fact, the brewery owns the tents) is happy because of the turn-over and the taxman gets more revenue as well.
Sobering news, huh?
Instead of fining the breweries by double the profit they don't deserve by this obviously well-organized rip-off, the regulating authorities seem to be involved in the scheme by their inaction to enforce the law.
This 'traditional tourist trap' should really make you angry - because the same seasonally brewed Oktoberfest beer can be bought for €6.20 per Mass stein and filled to the legal limit at local pubs, even in the northernmost German federal state of Schleswig-Holstein.
OK, a North-Frisian pub doesn't deliver the special "gaudi" (fun) and atmosphere of a Bavarian Oktoberfest tent; at least you get a fair price for a beer volume that is not tapped by greedy people.