German beer -- any recommendations?

[bridgehajen]

Hi there cmeister

I seek advice on German beer

I live in Denmark and, thus, every once in a while I drive across the border to shop a few things in Germany. Beer is usually on the list, partly because it is cheaper, partly because if I take it across the border, I am exempt from all "Pfand", both Danish and German. I usually go for a Danish brand because that's pretty much all they have right across the border. However, if I venture a bit further, into Flensburg, I guess they would have a larger variety.

Now, there is nothing wrong with Carlsberg and Tuborg, they are decent pilsener type beers for large scale consumption. Still, they are a monoculture.

Foreign beer is available in Denmark but at outrageous prices. For instance, a Leffe or a Hoegarden may be bought for one Euro in Belgium and for the equivalent of three euros in Denmark. This pattern applies to pretty much every foreign brand.

But an idea has hatched. Maybe I could save a bundle by buying some interesting beers the next time that I'm in Germany.

I thus ask the meister:

Which brands should I go for? And how are the prices of, say, Belgian or Czech beers in Germany?

[Casinomeister]

Hi bridgehajen,

And welcome to Bierland

Where I live, there are quite a few local breweries - I'd guess about 30-40 in a 45 km radius. So the grocery stores here are hard pressed to stock foreign beer. Even though I'm sort of close to the Czech border, I've only seen Pilsner Urqell - that's it, and maybe Budweiser.

As for pricing - it's much cheaper than what you're paying. Bier comes in 20 bottle cases - 1/2 liter each - 10 liter's total, and I pay between 6 to 12 Euros a case. So that's 30 to 60 cents a bottle.

Yes, life is good.

Which beer would I recommend? It depends on what you are looking for. Pilsners - I'd recomend the following:

EKU Kulmbacher Pils - it's local, but I think it has a good distribution. One of the best Pilsners on the planet IMO
Gampertbräu - excellent Pilsner and Hefe Wiessen - very local
Franken Bräu - excellent Pilsner - very local
Weismainer Pils and Hefe Weissen - very local but good distribution
Leikeim Pils - very local

As for Hefe Weissen, you can't go wrong with Erdinger Heffe Weissen. This is the best Hefe Weissen (a Bavarian specialty) ever. I hardly ever stray from this, but when I do I choose Gampertbräu.

Damn, I'm getting thirsty.

[bridgehajen]

Hi meister,

Thanks for the advice -- I'll keep my eye open for those beers the next time I go south. I suppose since some of the beers are Bavarian specialties they may be hard to come by in Schleswig-Holstein, which is pretty much as far away from Bavaria as one gets.

Anyway, there is bound to be some place in Flensburg where I can get it .. just need to figure out where.

I am familiar with Erdinger Weissbier, it's available even in DK, so that should be possible to find.

Mmmh .. weissbier!

Dang, I'm getting thirsty too, it's 9.30 in the morning and I'm at work

[kelvinlym]

Best I've ever sampled: Pilsner Urquell and Hofbräuhaus (helles Bier)

Recommended also: Beck's Gold

[thelawnet]

Originally Posted by casinomeister

Hi bridgehajen,

And welcome to Bierland

Where I live, there are quite a few local breweries - I'd guess about 30-40 in a 45 km radius. So the grocery stores here are hard pressed to stock foreign beer. Even though I'm sort of close to the Czech border, I've only seen Pilsner Urqell - that's it, and maybe Budweiser.

As for pricing - it's much cheaper than what you're paying. Bier comes in 20 bottle cases - 1/2 liter each - 10 liter's total, and I pay between 6 to 12 Euros a case. So that's 30 to 60 cents a bottle.

Yes, life is good.

Which beer would I recommend? It depends on what you are looking for. Pilsners - I'd recomend the following:

EKU Kulmbacher Pils - it's local, but I think it has a good distribution. One of the best Pilsners on the planet IMO
Gampertbräu - excellent Pilsner and Hefe Wiessen - very local
Franken Bräu - excellent Pilsner - very local
Weismainer Pils and Hefe Weissen - very local but good distribution
Leikeim Pils - very local

As for Hefe Weissen, you can't go wrong with Erdinger Heffe Weissen. This is the best Hefe Weissen (a Bavarian specialty) ever. I hardly ever stray from this, but when I do I choose Gampertbräu.

Damn, I'm getting thirsty.

Weissbier is gut.....

If you are going to get an Erdinger, I recommend the dunkel. It looks really stunning in an Erdinger glass, rich and chocolatey.

I like Paulaner on tap, Weihenstephan is pretty nice bottled, easy to drink almost like bananas.

[Casinomeister]

Originally Posted by thelawnet

Weissbier is gut.....

If you are going to get an Erdinger, I recommend the dunkel. It looks really stunning in an Erdinger glass, rich and chocolatey....

The dark is good for winter....

...and in the summer, when it's hot and sweaty - Radlers are good (beer and Limo combination).

[dominique]

I vote for the Erdinger Hefe Weisse - but I like the light.

I will drink the dark sometimes - but it seems to me to be very hearty - more like a meal than a drink.

Actually, that is how dark beer originated - or so the tale goes. A group of monks who had to fast for a period every year was experimenting with nutritional drinks. Dark Hefe Beer emerged as a favorite - heavy on malt, wheat and brewer's yeast - that'll be the complete vitamin B complex and all kinds of other nutritious gooddies.

Dark Hefe Weizen is good for you!

[thelawnet]

Originally Posted by dominique

I vote for the Erdinger Hefe Weisse - but I like the light.

I will drink the dark sometimes - but it seems to me to be very hearty - more like a meal than a drink.

Actually, that is how dark beer originated - or so the tale goes. A group of monks who had to fast for a period every year was experimenting with nutritional drinks. Dark Hefe Beer emerged as a favorite - heavy on malt, wheat and brewer's yeast - that'll be the complete vitamin B complex and all kinds of other nutritious gooddies.

Dark Hefe Weizen is good for you!

I hope by 'light' you don't mean Erdinger leicht?

Reduced alcohol, reduced calories, reduced taste.

But I'll drink to the dunkel being good for you...

BTW, as an aside anyone who likes weissbier, Erdinger has their fanshop, which delivers beer and other merchandise by mail.

I ordered four glasses and a few crates of Erdinger from them. One of the bottles arrived broken due to poor handling, and they sent me two free cases to compensate.

Now that's German service!

Here's the website: http://www.erdinger-fanshop.de/

Unfortunately they don't sell the regular or dunkel Erdinger on its own - you can either by the assorted selection of 6 (of which the alkoholfrei and leicht aren't all that nice) for 5.9 euros (which is pretty damn cheap), or the Exclusiv carton for 6.9 Euros, which includes a regular, a dunkel, and two of the gorgeous glasses. The glasses are 2.70 anyway, so it's 1.50 for two very nice bottles, so pretty good deal.

If you order enough it's actually cheaper than buying it from the shop here in the UK.

Postage is 13 Euros to UK, 5 within Germany, and 35 Euros to the USA for up to 31.5kg.

[dominique]

No, I mean "light" as in "hell", the color. For some reason in the States the equivalent of "leicht" would be (the misspelled) "lite".

Dang, now I want beer.

[kelvinlym]

I had a Günzburger Hefe Weizen yesterday.

Was great too.

There's a Bier Akademie where I live. Anyone dropping by here? We'll go sample some.