5 Breweries in 50 hours

Landing late on Friday, Jersey Bill fetched us from the Hartford, CT airport and whisked us downtown. T

he Residence Inn was directly connected to the City Steam Brew Pub. We quickly checked in and got seats in the pub. A huge bar with the beautiful backdrop of copper brew kettles starkly contrasted with loud, pounding music. We found a table in a quiet corner, near the fireplace and settled in for a few fresh beers. Starting with the Wheat beer, we were greeted by a banana taste with a horrible musty orange finish. The “Naughty Nurse,” their number one seller, was drinkable, but unremarkable. Our favorite was the Blonde Export Lager by far – this was a solid choice.  We also tried the Belgian style offering, Careless Love,  and the IPA – both were disappointing. The IPA was fully undrinkable – like hops in a blender with a bit of water – horrid, in fact. But the service was friendly – we tried hard to like this place, but, alas,  the beer disappointed.

Saturday morning we hit the

. We met three great people working there and the beer was much better, though not great. They are Connecticut’s largest brewery and are located in a non-descript industrial park. A young girl gave us a nice tour of the operation. What I didn’t like – they didn’t follow the Rheinheitsgebot with any of their beers and seemed to add a lot of CO2 to the process. On a good note, they had several lagers, not just Ales. Jersery Bill liked the beer more than me, so this one gets mixed review – but tops for friendliness.

Next stop was Brown University to watch my nephew, Evan, play hockey. Dartmouth came from behind and built a 2 goal lead. Unfortunately Brown stole the momentum toward the end of the 3rd and scores 2 goals in quick succession. Dartmouth regained their game in the OT and hammered them hard, but could not score. The game ended 5-5.

Afterward we checked into the Providence Rennaissance – an old Masonic Temple across from the Capital. A gorgeous place.

We taxied to Trinity Brewpub. The beer was very good – Jersey liked the Schwarzbier and I went after their many hoppy options.

The food was good and the atmosphere almost Germanic – especially in the basement with lots of people engaged in conversation at many tables. We spotted a Stormy Kromer in red and black plaid and had a nice conversation with the lad from Brooklyn. The beers were, across the board, all good. If you love hops, there are a lot of good choices here, but also several other good options.

Jumping a taxi, we hit Union Station Brewery. This is big, open space and not as cozy as Trinity, but Jersey liked this one a lot. They had an awesome Cask Ale – the best of our trip. We hit two more bars on our walk back to the hotel, but nothing remarkable.

On Sunday, we drove back towards Hartford and stopped off at a real gem in Willimantic. They were sold out of many beers, but had a diverse range. We met some great folks at the bar and sampled a lot of their beer. Nothing outstanding, but all were solidly enjoyable. The locals were all enjoying the last of the IPA, which sold out in just a few days. I got only one sip! The atmosphere was here  really nice – the building used to be a US Post Office. Big, airy and sunny, it’s a great place to enjoy some good beer. Their Stein Club was a neat idea – bring in your own glass, and get it filled for the same price as a regular pint.

With just 29 days until Starkbierfest, we had a good training session at a Munich pace – 5 breweries in 50 hours!

2010 Oktoberfest Motif

The new Oktoberfest 2010 motif has been chosen! Since 1952 the Munich sponsors a contest, offering the winner 2,500 Euros in prize money. Second places receives 1,250 and third walks away with 500.

This year’s jury voted for a creation from Nathalie Fumelli. She once studied graphic design at der Design-Schule München and in London.

Without further ado, the winner:

I like 2 and 3 a lot better than the winner, but I guess I’ll get used to it. Which one do you like?

Stammtisch

The German Stammtisch tradition sometimes trips up the unsuspecting tourist.  Picture yourself sitting comfortably at a nice table in a typical restaurant/pub. You’re enjoying some beer and a small snack with a couple of buddies. Suddenly, someone approaches your table and starts “hollering” at you while pointing vigorously at a sign that says “Stammtisch.” Thinking the waitress will take your side in this fracas, you signal her over only to find out she is giving you the bum’s rush to a different table. “Crazy, rude Germans,” you think to yourself.  Ah, but it is you, mein Freund, who are being the lout by your lack of understanding of the local tradition.

Almost every German Pub/Restaurant (Wirtschaft) has a table that is set aside for regular customers (Stammgäste). You will find a sign on or over the table indicating its status. Usually, this is the biggest table with the best location. If you are one of the regulars, you know you will always have a place in the Wirtschaft no matter how busy they are. And you know that some of your cronies will eventually show up, so there’s no worry about drinking or dining alone.  If no one is sitting at the Stammtisch, you may be able to sit there, but don’t be surprised if you are told to move. If one of the regulars comes to sit down, you should, out of respect, offer to vacate the table.  Most of the time, this sign of politeness and respect will be met with an offer for you to remain where you are.

In addition to the “regular” Stammtisch, there are other

Stammtische that meet on some kind of regular basis. This is often a club of some kind that may meet once a week or once a month on a certain schedule. In this case, a temporary sign will be placed on the table.  The place with the most Stammtische is the Hofbräuhaus in Munich. You can see the whole list by clicking on this link. In many larger places, like the Hofbräuhaus, or the Löwenbräukeller, the regulars are even

allowed to have their own beer mug kept at the establishment. There is a huge array of lockers, with keys, that house these beautiful beersteins. Next to the locker area is a convenient faucet for the guest to wash out his own glass.

Sometimes you can get lucky and strike up a conversation with someone at the Stammtisch, which might even get you invited to sit in one of the honored seats. I’ve had some great memories at various Stammtische:

Zunfthaus in Ulm: My friend Michael is a regular at this wonderful

Wirtschaft in Ulm’s Fisherman’s Quarter, along the Danube. Last summer, we camped out in this place for several days. We greatly enjoyed meeting all of Michael’s friends and the Zunfthaus’s friendly proprietor. Since the Zunfthaus is not tied to a specific brewery, we were able to enjoy Schneider Weisse, Augustiner, and even Andechs Doppelbock here. And the house special, only for insiders: Schwippschlapp - Schnapps with a big hunk of raw fish on the rim. OK, it wasn’t so great, but it was fun!

Kloster Andechs: Andechs is always a magical experience. In 2007, we met my good friend Karl and his friends there. After they gang from Böbing left, I fetched another Doppelbock. Right cross from the place the beer is poured, is the Andechs Stammtisch. The folks at the table looked pretty interesting and I was feeling pretty good, so I knocked on the end of the table – that’s the accepted custom when you would like to address the table. I asked if it was OK for my wife and I to sit with them. They were graciously accommodating and in no time they were sharing their food with us and we were having a great conversation. At the end of the evening, one of the ladies even gave us a ride down to the Herrsching S-Bahn station.

Weisses Brauhaus: I plan on applying for membership at this one. We have met so many of the regulars here

over the years, it is my absolute favorite place to visit when I am in Munich. Many of the regulars recognize us on sight and we are never alone when we wander into this place. They have a great Weisswurst breakfast, especially on Sunday morning after mass including live music.  The evenings in the Schwemme are also a ton of fun. Enjoying that great Schneider Weisse Weissbier – which the regulars do not accept on draft – they always ask for the bottle. We’ve seen it all here!

So the definition of Stammtisch is a a group of people that regularly meet in a pub. These are not organized meetings, just an informal group of friends who have gotten to know each other over the years.  I once met the Brewmaster of Paulaner and he told me that his Stammtisch was on Friday nights on the first floor of the Hobräuhaus. He was quite proud that his group of friends was an eclectic gang including a lawyer, construction workers and others.

The other great thing about these tables is the conversation. In the USA, we are often loathe to discuss religion and politics. In Germany, this is a favorite topic. People get very animated and quite passionate, but are anxious to hear your opinions. It feels great to have an open free-wheeling and meaningful discussion about weighty issues while throwing back the best beer in the world!Weisses Video

Beer Coasters from BayernTrips

I’m happy to announce our latest marketing piece: Beer Coasters!

If you are like me, I can’t stand being served a drink with a napkin. Worse yet is when the bartender, knowing how inadequate a napkin is, shakes some salt on the napkin. OK, it helps a bit, but it’s all pretty messy and lacks style. Why don’t bars on this side of the ocean so rarely use coasters?

So, we created our own coasters as a marketing device and we’d like to have your help in getting them placed into bars and restaurants with clientele likely to visit Bavaria some day. We will be sending our BayernTrips friends sample coasters very soon. If you think you know a bar or restaurant who serves German beer, German food, or even good craft beer, we’d love to give them our coasters, gratis. Just let me know the address of the place and we’ll send them bunches of our coasters – I’d just like to be sure that they’ll actually put them to use.

So what do the new BayernTrips Coasters look like?

We created a set of 4 coasters with 4 different photos of Bavarian Scenery. We have Neuschwanstein Castle, The Löwenbräu Team of horses, St. Bartholomä church on the Königsee near Berchtesgaden, and a shot of the the Ochsenbraterei Spaten Tent at Oktoberfest.The opposite side on each are all the same – Bavarian White & Blue with our logo and contact information on it. And, most importantly, these are high quality, regulation size, and are extra thick and absorbent.

We’d love to send you samples – just email me with your address!

20+C+M+B+10

Epiphany. The Day of the Three Kings is always on January 6 and today is a holiday in Germany.

Children dress up as the three kings who visited Jesus in the manger in Bethlehem. The kids knock on doors and offer to write a symbol of blessing over the top of people entry-way doors. In exchange, the “blesee”  is expected to give a small donation to the Sternsinger, an organization that does various charitable works around the world.

The formula is quite simple: the 20 and the 10 on either end signify the current year. The C+M+B stand for the names of the 3 wise men, Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar. I have also heard that C M B stands for the latin, “Christus Mansionem Benedicat” – basically, God Bless this House.

More on this theme:

German Wikipedia

English Wikipedia Article

From the Evangelisch (Protestant) Church (German)

Fitger’s Quickie

In Superior for a hockey tournament, I just had to make a quick trip over to Duluth for fresh beer. I have toured Fitger’s before and have always been disapointed with their lack of respect for the Rheinheitsgebot – the brewery is littered with chemicals, sugar and other unnatural beer making shortcuts.

Today, however, “Edelstoff” stood on the list. Lightly colored and richly smooth with almost no happiness. And, contrary to their other bee, no traces of additional CO2 – maybe a tad flat, but very tasty. I had a pint of that and followed it with an unremarkable witch maker ESB. I went back for a growler of Edelstoff. Apparently the brewer recently returned from Munich where he liberated the recipe for this libation – gut gemacht!

Shortly before our game, I dropped by the Thirsty Pagan for a Pagan IPA – not too bad of a beer and I went back for more after we won our game 6-1.

German New Year’s = Silvester

“Silvester” is what Germans call New Year’s Eve and it is celebrated with gusto!

Firstly, German curiously love the English short-film “Dinner for One.” It’s the same procedure every year as this film, unknown to Americans, is shown on virtually all TV channels.

After the show, it would typical to enjoy “Karpfen Blau” – carp (fish) prepared so as to appear almost lifelike/raw – head intact, eye staring up at you..pleading you to not eat him…It’s actually pretty good, but most Amis can’t get past the look.

A flaming “Feuerzangenbowle” is also a tradition. This Rum punch laced with burning sugar is a festive addition, based on the popular 1944 film.

The last Silvester I celebrated in Germany was in Füssen. A live band playing all those German party favorites, plus Glühwein, and crazy fireworks was an unforgettable experience. In the land of order and regulation, it was astonishing that any Tom, Dick or Hans could light off some major fireworks – often with the debris falling on your head and, yes, a wayward rocket here and there. All in orderly Germany – astonishing!

The name of the party in Füssen was the “Rutschparty.” Rutsch = Slide. The expression for wishing someone a “Happy New Year” is really cool: “Guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr” – Good slide into the New Year. Yeah, I’ve had nights like that…You?

Well, BayernTrips Friends – Vielen Dank für Eure Freundschaft. Knowing you and celebrating so many good times together has enriched my life. I can’t wait to see you again in 2010. Einen Guten Rutsch wünsch’  ich Euch!

- Scott Stephens

Christmas in Munich

Munich is bustling as Christmas approaches. Marienplatz is packed and the trams and subways are standing room only. With its many Christmas markets, Munich has something for everyone. The main market is located at Marienplatz in the heart of the city. This is people watching at it’s best. Another great treat is just down the street at Isartor.

The World’s Biggest Feuerzangenbowle - making this concoction is really fun – one of the key things is to douse a giant piece of sugar – shaped like a cone – in rum, light it on fire and wait for it to trickle into the punch.

At the other end of town, on Karlsplatz, families, children and couples are skating on a temporary ice rink. It takes the place of the fountain that is usually here an is done up in first class style. For the beginners, they have some fun skating aids for th kiddies to lean on and push around the ice – the ice is filled with cute polar bears and penguins!

There are many other markets including a Medieval -themed market near Odeonsplatz. There are so many of them including Sendlinger Tor, the courtyard of the Residenz, Schwabing, Prater Insel, and too many more to be named. For a complete list, have a look at Munich’s Municipal Website.

Another neat tradition is the Christmas Tram. For a few euros, you can jump on the tram for ride around the old town inside a decorated streetcar. At the same time, enjoying a Glühwein – see my previous post on that topic.

So what have Vonia and her group done on Friday and Saturday? Vonia was really happy to have Jens and Uli with along with her in Munich. On Friday morning, they all enjoyed a city tour with Juliet, a guide from Munich Walk Tours. One of the owners, Eric, is a friend of Simone and Oliver’s and a regular at the Weisses Brauhaus. Speaking of which, that’s where dinner was on Friday night. And Vonia got to see her old Schnupftabak friend there for a moment. Sadly, Simone and Oliver were out of town on Friday. Vonia also took the group out to Nymphenburg castle and to the carriage museum there. The closing dinner was at the Alter Wirt featuring organic Duck.

Tomorrow is the day when all our guests go their separate ways. It’s always so hard to say to good-bye to new friends – and to Bavaria!

Hopefully, you’ve enjoyed my posts about The Christmas Markets. I’d love to have you post comments on my blog!

A very Bavarian Day

If you have only one day in Bavaria, I’ve often heard it said that you should spend it at Andechs. The “Holy Mountain” as all the locals refer to it, is a Benedictine Monastery. With its beautiful rococo pilgrimage church set atop a small hill, you can look toward the Ammersee (Lake Ammer) or all the way to the Alps. Sitting on the balcony at Andechs, it’s hard not to feel God’s presence. And, once you taste the Doppelbock beer, it’s impossible not to feel God’s grace. Andechs brews its own beer, distills its own schnapps, and provides many of ts own other services: Butcher Shop, beekeeping, herbal garden, etc.

In the self-service Bräustuberl, pick up the excellent Schweinehaxe or Hax’n. The crispy skin goes great with the Doppelbock!

Kloster Andechs is also a great place to meet people. I have been many wonderful people here, shared many stories, and more than a beer or two. But, none of them compare to my good friends from Böbing. Here is where I met Father Sepp, Karl the Butcher, and the lovely ladies that take care of father. Ever since this fateful day, we have taken our groups to visit our friends in Böbing where they can sample the fresh Weisswurst from Karl and his brother at Sohmen Metzgerei and the fresh baked goods from their friend Sepp at the Bäckerei Tralmer. Our group stopped here this morning and tried the fresh Weisswurst at Sepp’s Cafe. After a few sausages and Weissbier, Sepp offered samples of fresh Christmas baked goods for everyone.

Close-by is the famous Wieskirche - an UNESCO World Heritage site. Built in the mid-1700’s after the miracle of the Scourged Savior, the Wieskirche was built in this meadow.

What was quite funny, is that Vonia had a new driver with her. He wasn’t familiar with our “off-the-beaten-track” destination and made a few wrong turns!

Arriving at the Alter Wirt in Munich/Grünwald in the afternoon, the group adjourned for a quick rest. In the evening, they were off to the world famous

Hofbräuhaus. Finding a table near the band, the unfortunately came face-to-face with that infamous Hofbräuhaus service. The sad fact is that the food at the Hofbräuhaus is only mediocre and the service can be downright horrible. Don’t get me wrong, I have had some great servers here too, but they seem to have more than a bad apple or two. With a seemingly never ending stream of tourists, they just don’t seem to care if you are all that happy. Not letting it get them down, Vonia took everyone to her favorite place near Marienplatz. Zum Spöckmeier. They enjoyed a round of Paulaner beer and a little more food before heading back to Alter Wirt.

On Friday, Jens and Uli will meet back up with the group and they will enjoy a tour of Munich’s Old Town with a guide from Munich Walks. Some have mentioned that they’d like to visit a brewery and we’ll see what we can cook up for them.

Füssen – more than Neuschwanstein

Füssen, located on the Austrian border at the foot of the Alps, is a hidden treasure. Many tourists come to Füssen, but yet never see it. How can that be? Because Füssen is located next to the number one tourist destination in Germany, Neuschwanstein. Most tourists pass through Füssen on their way to the famous castle: Mad King Ludwig’s Castle or Cinderella’s castle. By the way, the locals sort of bristle at hearing it described that way…

There are actually two castles here and we take our groups to visit both. While Neuschwanstein is a “must-see,” Hohenschwangau, establish by the Schwangau knights inthe middle ages, reduced to ruins by Napoleon and rebuilt by Maximilian II in the 1830’s, is a much more realistic to me.  Neuschwanstein, built well after the American Civil War is one man’s fantasy.

It was never finished, and Ludwig II only lived there for 162 days. In fact, the vast majority of rooms were never finished and even the keep was never built. But, both castles are well-worth a visit and worth the climb up.

The town of Füssen holds a special place in my heart. My wife and I honeymooned here long before we knew that our lives would be so entwined with this place. Both our sons have spent extended time here over many, many years. And, most special of all, we have so many terrific friends here.

Füssen and the surrounding areas was home to the Celts before it was “romanized” in 46-47AD. Directly on the Via Claudia, Füssen was a waypoint on the road to Rome. Many of these remnants can still be see today – whether its the foundation of Füssen’s High Castle, the Hohes Schl0ss, the baths at the foot of Tegelberg mountain, or the spa area of Bad Faulenbach, it’s not hard to find clues from the Roman period.

Beyond history, Füssen has some great shops with really friendly shopkeepers in the old town. I buy all of my Tracht – Lederhosen and such -

at Trachten Wulff. The ladies there now recognize me and are very helpful in finding what I need. The many butchers shops and bakeries, like Meister Eder – are excellent with a friendly staff. Grabbing a quick snack of Weisswurst inside the old Firehall is something I love to do. Oh yes, they also have 2 bookstores on the main drag, a shop that sells Cuban cigars, the lady that repairs my Lederhosen, and my bank – are all here.

Beyond the city are some great treats that many people miss: The ruins of Frauenstein zum Hohenschwangau, hiking to the Saletalm in Austria, jogging to the Alatsee, Käsespäztle at Tegelberg Mountain, visiting the castles in Reutte , or catching a game at the BLZ. I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention at least one late night out at Marion’s Moskito bar.

Vonia’s Day in Füssen

I know many of you are following this blog to hear what Vonia is up to. There was a glitch with the mini-bus we rented – with such a small group, Vonia had planned to drive them around Füssen herself. They rental agency – which is actually just a gas station in Ziegelwies at the old border couldn’t get her the car until noon. So, the group took taxis to the castles. Vonia visited Hohenschwangau with everyone at 10:00 AM and then took a taxi to pick up the minivan. In the meantime, our guests went up to Neuschwanstein. Vonia picked them up at the Maypole later without a problem and brought them into Füssen. She gave them an orientation tour of the old town and they all meandered and shopped in the old town. At supper time, Steffi’s Dad changed the menu on us. He insisted on cooking a

traditional German Christmas menu featuring Roasted Goose. We planned on going to a small church in Hopfensee and dinner wouldn’t be ready in time. So, the group had their soup and salad and then went to the church. The Rorate Mass was just 30 minutes and featured a short – very short – bit of yodeling. After the service, she drove everyone past the castle so they could see them all lit up.

Returning to Hotel Ruchti, Hermann had outdone himself and Vonia and our guests were treated to their roasted duck main course. For dessert, it was Kaiserschmarrn! It was a good example of the genuine hospitality found in Bavaria in general, and Hotel Ruchti in particular. After most everyone retired to bed, Vonia hung out in Steffi and Ingo’s apartment playing with the kids.

On Thursday, Kößler will drive them to Böbing where they’ll all have Karl’s Weisswurst at Sepp’s bakery. Then they see the Wieskirche, Kloster Andechs, check in at the Alter Wirt and then dinner at the Hofbräuhaus. Check back later to see some of the pictures Vonia took today – once she figures out how to send them. And, she plans on lighting a candle for Jersey Bill at Andechs in hopes of a speedy recovery from his accident – don’t worry he’s not that badly hurt. Knowing Bill on the other hand, I’ll asked Jerry to drink a doublebock for him and we’ll just skip the candle thing…

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• Recent Posts

  • 5 Breweries in 50 hours
  • 2010 Oktoberfest Motif
  • Stammtisch
  • Beer Coasters from BayernTrips
  • 20+C+M+B+10
  • Fitger’s Quickie
  • German New Year’s = Silvester
  • Christmas in Munich
  • A very Bavarian Day
  • Füssen – more than Neuschwanstein

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