Back to Bamberg

Final day: woke up feeling pretty fresh (good thing we left those Brauerei Hoenig bottles undisturbed in the fridge...and waiting for the next guests of the Ferienwohnung). Cleaned up, checked out, and went to fetch the car for the trip down to Munich. Really hated to leave Bamberg, and we're going to try now to make this an annual (or possibly bi-annual) trip, as this journey exceeded all of our (admittedly high) expectations. There's simply no other place like Bamberg on Earth, and anyone who tries to tell you that there is a town or city whose beer culture permeates daily life the way it does in Bamberg is mistaken. From the fields of grain you walk and/or drive past to the huge 19th century maltings on either side of the tracks as you approach the city by train to the smell of decoction mashes pouring down otherwise nondescript side streets as you walk to the baker or butcher to do your daily shopping, no place lives and breathes beer like Bamberg.

Anyhow, we hopped in the car, headed out of town toward the Autobahn, and drove south, past the felled trees between Bamberg and Baiersdorf...past Hirschaid with its wonderful Brauerei Kraus. Past Buttenheim and its world-class Bierkeller, along by Forchheim and Erlangen and Nuernberg and down, down further south past Ingolstadt and, finally, into the Hallertau, where we'd make a quick stop at the Hopfenmuseum in Wolnzach. Wolnzach is a quaint place, and the museum is even quainter still. Still, it's lovely to be able to pull off the Autobahn for a bit and to hit up a place like this. We walked through the modern building (trailed by a group of U.S. tourists) and learned, among other things, that Bamberg was once home to some of the wealthiest hops merchants in all of Bavaria. Also got to dig my hands into a basketful of Hallertau hops and have them emerge covered in yellow/orange hop oils. Good stuff.

Grabbed a couple of filled rolls (ham, lettuce, and tomato) from the bakery/butcher across the street from the museum, and headed back toward Munich. On my last trip to Bavaria, I actually preferred Munich to Bamberg, but this time the opposite was the case. Bamberg seemed just like the home I left some 15 years ago. At any rate, we pushed through a traffic jam and made it back to the hotel and the city mid-afternoon. From there we set off to get some gifts for the family...and bide our time before hitting Augustiner (first the Bierhalle, then the Keller) yet again. And, yet again, the slow rain managed to keep the crowds away for a time. Then, around 8:30 p.m., the sun again began to show itself, and the neighborhoods around the Augustinerkeller began to awake and emerge, and we witnessed neighbors greet each other as they arrived for an evening beer and perhaps a bit of food. As for us, we ordered a pair of air-cured sausages each (Pfefferbeisser and Landjaeger) and some fresh Bretzn. Oh, and a couple of Mass....

We settled in as only settling in is possible at a Bavarian Biergarten, and ended up chatting with a couple of locals. Much to our surprise, they insisted on buying us a couple of Mass and having us there for the night as their guests. Was a great time just sitting and chatting with them, in old-school fashion. No discussions about IBUs or ABV or even about the 100 liter wooden barrels from which the beer was being served. No, just good friendly talk about everything and nothing in particular...what beer talk should be. Around 11:00 p.m. or so it was time to head out. We took a taxi to the train station and headed back from there. I couldn't resist stopping at the same kiosk where, in 1990, I had first set foot on German soil and ordered a Weisswurstfruehstueck at 10:00 a.m. We stood, ate a Kaesekrainer sausage, drank some Augustiner Helles from the bottle, and watched the trains arrive and depart before walking the block or so back to the hotel for our final night.

Next morning was a blur, with a breakfast of rolls and meat and cheese, a quick drive to the airport, and a final Weisswurstfruestueck at the airport gate while waiting for the flight. Then it was wheels-up and an uneventful, if surprisingly quick, trip back to the U.S. (yes, I did have a few Bitburger on the plane...). All in all, a memorable trip. Hope to make it back soon. Any of you heading there in the near future, I wish you well. Enjoy, and Prost!

 

I've heard this about the Zoiglstuben. Would you say the Kommunbrauhaeuser in Franconia are the same as Zoiglstuben, or is there something in the Oberpfalz places that truly distinguish them?