diff --git a/Library/Homebrew/build_options.rb b/Library/Homebrew/build_options.rb
index a1069694e9..3bd78c8648 100644
--- a/Library/Homebrew/build_options.rb
+++ b/Library/Homebrew/build_options.rb
@@ -3,9 +3,10 @@ require 'options'
 # This class holds the build-time options defined for a Formula,
 # and provides named access to those options during install.
 class BuildOptions
-  attr_accessor :args
   include Enumerable
 
+  attr_accessor :args
+  attr_accessor :universal
   attr_reader :options
   protected :options
 
@@ -86,7 +87,7 @@ class BuildOptions
 
   # True if the user requested a universal build.
   def universal?
-    args.include?('--universal') && has_option?('universal')
+    universal || args.include?('--universal') && has_option?('universal')
   end
 
   # Request a 32-bit only build.
diff --git a/Library/Homebrew/formula.rb b/Library/Homebrew/formula.rb
index 35dc9a08d2..90ab6e66e7 100644
--- a/Library/Homebrew/formula.rb
+++ b/Library/Homebrew/formula.rb
@@ -777,6 +777,10 @@ class Formula
       @cc_failures << CompilerFailure.new(compiler, &block)
     end
 
+    def require_universal_deps
+      specs.each { |spec| spec.build.universal = true }
+    end
+
     def test &block
       return @test unless block_given?
       @test_defined = true