Franconian Beer Message Board
Reinheitsgebot (Deutsche CAMRA) |
| Posted by Barry on 2010-10-01 01:32:04 |
| I'm no expert on German beer in general but, apart from Bayern, have been to Xanten (pretty abysmal), Trier (even worse), Krefeld (one decent brau pub) and Koln, where I think the Kolsch is a much over-hyped and overpriced commodity (€2+ for less than 33cl of average beer). Our the way back from Bamberg was via Altenburg (an experience in itself), where we sampled the local offering. I'd simply say, if you're thinking of going, don't bother - the only thing of note are the beer mats, probably the 'sauciest' that I've seen (you can get a flavour on their website). I agree with JosB about the R/bot - actually pretty pointless when a large dose of CO2 is added at the dispense. But I'm not so sure about the experimentation side of things. There's a lot of talk in beer enthusiast circles about brewers trying new recipes and experimental beers, etc. I've nothing against the concept, and I suppose that new breweries have to make their mark somehow, but, when I go into a Holts pub in Manchester, all I want to find is their traditional mild and bitter up to standard. Likewise Fuller's London Pride, Taylor's Landlord, Bateman's XXXB, etc., etc. If they want to dabble on the side with some new ideas, ok, but the important thing is the quality of their traditional beers. I've come to the conclusion that beer drinking in Germany (even Bayern) is just a different thing from the UK (and Ireland, to some extent). The German pub experience very often involves eating a full meal and this is something quite different from UK practice. Up to 30 or 40 years ago, it was almost impossible to get food in British pubs (except those in city centres that specifically catered for the lunchtime trade). People (mainly men) went in pubs to drink beer, thus the quality had to be right or they went somewhere else. Even today, the majority of pubs really are drinking establishments with food as an added attraction. It seems to me that the opposite is true in Germany. During our last visit, I actually wondered why the hell places like Hohn and Drei Kronen in Memmelsdorf and Hartmann's in Wurzgau bother to brew beer. These are essentially hotels/restaurants whose major trade is selling food and accommodation. I suppose that we must congratulate them for maintaining their brewing traditions but I wonder for how long they will persist. |
| Followups: |
 Reinheitsgebot (Deutsche CAMRA) by Uncle Jimbo on 2010-10-01 05:13:09 |
| Reinheitsgebot (Deutsche CAMRA) by Gerhard Schoolmann on 2010-10-01 06:01:07 |
| Reinheitsgebot (Deutsche CAMRA) by Barry on 2010-10-01 11:16:11 |
| Reinheitsgebot (Deutsche CAMRA) by Mark Andersen on 2010-10-01 11:32:06 |
| Reinheitsgebot (Deutsche CAMRA) by john ratcliffe on 2010-10-02 07:20:21 |
| Reinheitsgebot (Deutsche CAMRA) by Barry on 2010-10-02 12:14:10 |
| Kölsch prices in Cologne by DonS on 2010-10-02 16:01:06 |
| Kölsch prices in Cologne by Mike Knies on 2010-10-02 20:25:02 |
| How far from Bamberg. by Fred Waltman on 2010-10-05 08:05:00 |