Beer

Winter has settled in firmly now, but for most mornings in recent weeks the air smelled of yeast, like all of Munich’s breweries were doing a big push for the dark and chilly days ahead.

Bavaria is largely considered to be the home of German beer, for good reason. Nearly half of all German breweries are in Bavaria, and the Reinheitsgebot (so-called German Beer Purity Law) originated here.

April 2016 was the 500^th anniversary of the law,
which spread from Bavaria to all of Germany

The Reinheitsgebot limited the ingredients of beer-making to barley, hops, and water (yeast was added later once its role was understood). The original goals of the law were to regulate beer prices and reserve wheat and rye for use by bakers.

Recent challenges have led to some exceptions, but for the most part, anything labeled as “beer” and produced in Germany must abide by this law. 

And Germans love their beer! (Although as of 2015 they were fourth in the world in per capita beer consumption, behind the Czech Republic, the Seychelles [!] and Austria.)

One thing I noticed immediately when we moved to Munich was that nearly on par with the love of beer is the love of the Biergarten. They are literally everywhere. In fact, the larger of the two parks closest to us has two.

This website has
a map of  100+ of the
city's beer gardens.

Many Biergärten still follow the original tradition, in that you’re allowed to bring in your own food, even if they serve food there. (But before you pack your picnic, make sure you’re visiting a Biergarten and not a Wirtshaus, which is an inn, guest house, or restaurant that serves food as part of their operation!)

These days there are six major breweries in Munich: Augustiner (est. 1328), Löwenbräu (est. 1383), Spaten (est. 1397), Hacker-Pschorr (est.1417), Hofbräu (est.1589), and Paulaner (est.1634). I haven’t done any brewery tours in Germany because I’ve done so many in the U.S., and the basic process is the same.

But I did visit the Beer & Oktoberfest Museum recently, thinking I’d gain some unique historical or cultural insight. Instead, I got a useless summary of beer production in Bavaria, a gallery honoring “beer barons” of the past, and two-and-a-half floors of Oktoberfest memorabilia. At least the museum itself is in the oldest house in Munich, so there’s that.

More than 2,500 people attended the craft beer festival in May

Earlier this year, NPR did a story on beer in America, which noted the monumental influence of German immigrants on the making of beer. More than a century later, the craft beer movement has been continually innovating on that process to take beer in new directions.

As the world grows smaller and beer competition grows larger, the options here may expand significantly. That's good news for a tepid fan of beer like me.

A handful of craft breweries exist in Munich, and this spring we went to Munich’s second annual craft beer festival, with vendors from all over the world catering to a very eager audience.

At the Hofbräuhaus , regulars keep their mugs
in special lockers, with their own sink to rinse them out

Last year’s anniversary of the Reinheitsgebot has prompted some to question if, after half a millennium of restriction, innovation in German beer has stagnated, and the adherence to “purity” will be its ruin.

Given its popularity at home and abroad, I think it’s too soon to start sounding any death knells for German beer. Besides, if history shows us anything, it’s that a surge in innovation is usually followed by a surge of nostalgia.

As for me, I’ll save the beer and Radler (my go-to drink--a mix of beer and lemonade) for warm spring weather. 

We’re about to enter Christmas market season, and I hear Glühwein calling my name…