Bavarian Hopfenland and Wolnzach - introduction

After hosting the German Beer Tournament, Frau A and I wanted to learn and experience more about the brewing art.  So we planned a weekend in the Hallertau region of Germany, which produces one-quarter of the world's hops.

"Hallertau" lies in Northern Bavaria.  It's a bit like "Franconia" -- not defined by municipal boundaries, but rather by common history and culture.  Hallertau includes parts of 3 districts and it lies 1.5 - 3 hours from Munich.

The earliest documents available show hops being cultivated in the Hallertau region since 736.  They were only "medicinal" at this time because hops' use in brewing beer started around 1079.  Today Germany is the world's #1, producing over 34,000 metric tonnes of hops each year (80% thereof are grown in Hallertau).

"Hallertauer hops" are one of the original four "noble" hops varieties (low in bitterness, high in aroma).
However, this type has been replaced by "Hersbrucker" because the former were highly susceptable to disease.

Interestingly, some towns here are also main figures in production of German white asparagus (Schrobenhausen, Abensberg).  Others are more known for being on the shores of the Donau river (Neustadt/Vohburg an der Donau).  We decided to stay in Wolnzach because it was centrally positioned for the excursions we had planned...
and it's home to the German Hops Museum (of course, this will be addressed in detail in another blog post).

We've taken the autobahn north from Munich many times, and always see this sign on the road side...

...and this weekend we finally took one of the exits to "Hopfenland".  You can see some hops fields from the autobahn, but once you get onto the local roads you really start to get a sense of their size and scope.  In the second photo below you'll notice that it was harvest time - we saw tractors loaded with hops bines running all weekend:  

Note:  "hops bine" was not a typo in the previous sentence.  Hops are bines, not vines because they climb using stems and stiff, downward facing hairs/bristles (rather than vines, which climb using curling tendrils and suckers).

The weekend started well:  we photographed a small hops processing barn right across from the hotel.
Tall hops bines were hung onto a conveyor, which fed them into a machine that separates the flowers.
Only female plants are grown, to prevent fertilization - the flowers' resin is useful, but seeds are not.

Here's a video of the machine in action - halfway through it zooms in on the "picked" flowers coming out:

More on hops farming and processing in some following posts...

Wolnzach, our base for exploration that weekend, is a town of 11,000 inhabitants.  It is also called Markt Wolnzach, because its roots (as early as the year 814) start with an important crossroads and market there.
Interestingly, the German Rail System does not go here directly -- you would have to take a bus from a nearby town.  Due to hops farming expansion and newer small industrial firms, Wolnzach has grown 50% since 1987.

Translation: Welcome to the Hops Metropolis of Wolnzach

The new rathaus (town hall) was completed in 1880.  It was built with areas to weigh, inspect, and seal hops: 

The Saint Laurentius church had its foundations laid in the year 800 and was expanded slightly in 1080.
In 1717 it got a new altar & pulpit, then in 1912 was rennovated to its current size and "new baroque" style: 

We were looking for lunch on Saturday, and found the perfect spot at the old post office - a biergarten.
Makes sense - traditionally there was an inn and restaurant at this center of activity, right on the town square:

We joined some locals in the shade.  The biergarten serves Augustiner, so we shared a helles and a dunkles. 

Later that afternoon, we wanted some eis (ice cream)... the local place on the Marienplatz had 5 menus (4 for ice cream, 1 for coffee)!  Also, typically German, it had abundant flowers around the outdoor seating area:

On the walk back to the hotel, we saw yet another hops processing barn in action - right there in town!
Rather than using large central processing centers (probably like the U.S. has) Germany has hundreds of small, independent facilities.  Many are located right near the fields, while others are in the town center like this one. 

That explains why we saw tractors loaded with hops bines moving constantly through town, past the church:

We took the rental car on a number of hops excursions, like the already-posted hops wreath-making. 
We'll post the other stories soon, but you should know we traveled in style:  upgraded to a BMW 535i!
(Photo below is Frau enjoying the sun, with an empty/just-harvested hops field in the background.) 

Coming next:  walk through hops fields, the Hops Museum, and visits to a micro- and medium-size brewery...

Travels in Beer - Spain

We ended our recent hiking trip through the Pyrennees with some tapas and Spanish beer at our hotel in Barcelona.

Since our hotel was located around the corner from the Damm brewery, it was only fitting that we tried two of their offerings.

We had seen Estrella Damm often (on all of the umbrellas and chairs at many cafes!) but had never heard of the AK Damm.  Since our waitress couldn't tell us anything about the differences, we decided to try one of each. 

Herr J had the standard Estrella Damm, which is pretty similar to other mass-produced lagers.  While it was a notch above Budweiser in taste, it's pretty much Spain's Bud (or Budvar, if we want to stay in Europe).  A reliably decent beer that you can get everywhere.

Interesting we make the comparison...Damm actually is Spain's licensed producer of Budweiser.  While they are not owned by InBev, they are in a partnership (to produce Bud). 

The S.A. Damm brewery has been in Barcelona for around 130 years, and is one of Spain's largest producers.  They have a pretty wide variety in the beer assortment.  We definitely see some German influence, as they include Märzen, Kellerbier, weissbier, and Bock styles, as well as a Radler! Given that Spain is the land of tinto de verano (red wine + sprite as a summer drink), it's only fitting that they have radlers....

The A.K. Damm, on the other hand, was a bit more interesting. We had no idea what to expect, but were pleasantly surprised by its smooth, light taste and almost a tingle on the tongue. While it was light and crisp, it also had some of the caramel notes of a darker, maltier beer. And it was not clear, but had no sediment.  We really weren't sure where to classify this beer, but it's probably closest to a helles, with a little more malt.  Part of me felt it leaned toward a weissbier, but it clearly was not one.   

The bottle describes the beer as being brewed according to the Alsatian method, and combining German character with French refinement.  Named after the Damm founder August Kuentzmann Damm, it was released in 2001 to celebrate the brewery's 125th anniversary.  It uses the original beer recipe that he brought with him when he moved from Strasbourg to Barcelona in 1876.

We're not quite sure what the Alsatian method is, but it appears to be brewed according to reinheitsgebot standards and is called a "pure malt beer" that uses the barley and hops from the Alsace.  Alsace is France's main beer brewing and hops-growing region, with a strong German influence. We could definitely enjoy this beer with a nice flammkuchen!

While we quite enjoyed its light and unique taste, this beer does not get good reviews on most beer rating sites.  We suspect that this is driven by one of two factors:

1) Preference - it seems the typical person who rates beers on these sites prefers a strong hoppy or dark or bitter beer.  The smoother, sweeter beers generally are not well-rated.

2) The Hofbräu Effect - We coined this term during our beer tournament.  When asked what they think about Hofbräu beer, most Munich residents gave a thumbs down. But in blind tastings, it was well-liked. (The same was true for Löwenbräu).  So, we suspect this beer lost several points just for being a Spanish beer and would have fared better in blind tastings.

While we're the first to admit that we're biased towards Helles and less hoppy beers, we really enjoyed this one and will definitely order it again next time we're in Spain.  

And as a bonus, we're now inspired to go visit the Alsace and check out their beers! 

Trachten goes mainstream

A decado ago, only real locals and diehards wore traditional dress.

Nowdays, trachten is chic and you'll see many young people wearing it - not only at Oktoberfest, but to beergartens, summer festivals, bachelor(ette) parties (polterabend), and FC Bayern games (lederhosen bottoms, no suspenders, and an FC Bayern jersey are the outfit for the cool Bavarian guys).

Even Ken and Barbie are in on the trend!

Vogue Germany ran a ten-page trachten special promotion spread by Munich department store Loden Frey in its magazine, covering more than just the normal dirndl and lederhosen wear (Frau A wants those boots and the red jacket!).

And if a good classic pair of deer-skin lederhosen aren't quite enough for you, there are some designer alternatives...Hugo Boss has lederhosen for the modern brand-conscious man.

"Only" 399 euros for the shorts and 499 euros for the dirndl...Of course you'll also need the shoes, which run almost the same price as the trachten.

Even Tommy Hilfiger has lederhosen, albeit for children.

For the more sporty, but still fashion-conscious man, Adidas offers Bayern Munich lederhosen! 

  

But it doesn't end with lederhosen and dirndls...These days there are trachten accessories - either to personalize your trachten, or to wear as a little bit of kitchy Bavarian fun (instead of the full costume).

Here are some typical acessories, which now also come in fashion versions for big prices.  We'll cover trachten trends in a separate post, but in addition to the standard 3 piece dirndl (dress, blouse, apron), dirndl shoes, dirndl purses, and dirndl jewelry are almost obligatory. That's even before we get into the super trendy hats, stockings, sweaters, and hairstyles!  (these beer mug ballerina flats are cute, but are going to cost you 170 euro! Frau A is thinking "craft project")

     

And what if you want to add some trachten to your casual style? well, luckily there are bathing suits! 

Finally, Austrian store Tu Felix Austria takes trachten-inspired casualwear to a new level, with men's underwear and sports lines (and funny, obviously photoshopped photos of models in the Alps).

  

And some pretty cute onesies to start the little ones off on the right foot!

Schnapps Tasting - Lantenhammer

Thanks to Torsten's suggestion (and to our supermarket having sample-sized bottles), last night we tested some of Lantenhammer's schnapps assortment.

I had seen these before and always was intrigued by the flavors. The Gansloser hazelnut schnapps we tried on Valentine's Day was quite good, so I figured the walnut (Walnuss) would be interesting too. And I've loved the smell of bergamot (kaffir lime) since we used the leaves and limes in cooking school in Bangkok. Intoxicatingly citrusy!

There are so many schnapps on the market here that it's tough to know which ones are really good and worth buying.  So we were really happy to have someone we trust's recommendation to try one.

For a full disclaimer (because it's all about individual taste)....we're generally not huge fans of the really fruity schnapps (blueberry, for example) or of some of the herbal (kräuter) schnapps. That being said, I think there are ones out there we would like if we tasted enough of them. The traditional pear (Williamsbirne) schnapps can be quite good, and I love cherry anything.

The Lantenhammer LineupOverall, we liked every one of the Lantenhammer schnapps shown here. All were extremely smooth and drinkable, with mostly subtle tastes and alcohol. Not that they're weak....the alcohol contents range form 18-30%. But you have less of an overpowering alcohol taste or smell than you find with some liqueurs.

What were our favorites? Herr J's favorites were the lime (limonen) or the rose (rosen); whereas his least favorite was the nutty walnut.  I would agree with him on the rose, and that the lime was incredibly drinkable, but I did enjoy the walnut. And to be honest, all 5 of them.  However, I'm much more a fan of nutty tastes than he is. 

A quick review:

Apricot (Marillen) - Incredibly smooth, with a golden color and not so strong smell.  This one reminded us a little of Andechs' wonderful honey schnapps, though a slightly different taste and a bit thinner.  It does not at all taste strongly of apricots...it's a light, sweet taste that was difficult to identify and much more subtle than most apricot schnapps.

Lime (Limonen) - Pale yellow, with the strongest scent of the five. Though it was more of a lime than an alcohol scent - it was not so strong at all. And frighteningly smooth going down...you have to be careful of how good this one tastes!

Rose (Rosen) - With a slightly pink tinge and an equally subtle scent, this one was smooth and sweet and light.  It's a very light schnapps and one that most everyone will enjoy.

Bergamot (Bergamotte) - This one was clear, with a light citrusy scent.  While we definitely tasted some alcohol in this one, it was not overpowering (as some schnapps can be). It tasted quite like a not so sweet version of a lemon drop shot (vodka + lemon + sugar rimmed glass).  We really enjoyed the light flavor of this one, without a lot of sweetness. 

Walnut (Walnuss) - An amber colored liquid, this one was stronger in both alcohol and flavor.  It definitley had a nutty walnut taste, but was not overpowering either. I really enjoyed it, but it's something that may not appeal to someone who doesn't like nuts. 

As a whole, these are the perfect schnapps to start with (or to serve to guests) when you don't enjoy the hardcore herbal or strongly alcoholic schnapps.  Part of it is probably their subtlety in not overflavoring; part is that these have lower alcohol content.  Most schnapps are in the 40% (or at least above 30%) range. These are much lower and therefore smoother.  But still very enjoyable for an after-dinner drink!

On their website, Lantenhammer also recommends something potentially sacriligeous in the schnapps world....that these are great liqueurs for mixing drinks. I could definitely think of some tasty martini-style drinks to make with these!

Interestingly Lantenhammer is owned by the same group as is the Slyrs whisky distillerie. They also make the König Ludwig brands of schnapps and two lines of more traditiona schnapps (the fruity Fruchtbrandliquer and the traditionally strong Edelbrände). Those two focus on the more traditional pear, apricot, and raspberry flavors, and are positioned a bit above König Ludwig's price point.  So it makes sense that Lantenhammer includes a completely different flavor selection in the ones we tried than with other lines. A bit more modern taste and packaging, it seems.

We'll give some of the other schnapps a try soon, but again we have to keep recommending the products produced by the Slyrs and Lantenhammer groups!

Have you seen... [non-Newtonian fluids]

It's great when nature throws us a curveball.  (E.g., most liquids contract when frozen, but water expands).

Most fluids are "Newtonian", meaning that they continue to behave basically the same way no matter how they are being manipulated (stirred, shaken, flowing in pipes, etc.).  It will always act like we expect it to.

A non-Newtonian fluid, however, can demonstrate unexpected viscosity in certain situations.
Everyday substances found in ketchup, custard, paint, and shampoo can result in non-Newtonian fluids.  In the first video, a simple starch solution on a loudspeaker cone shows how unusually the fluid behaves when disturbed.

Many liquid polymers are non-Newtonian, and also exhibit the Weissenberg effect.  Without going into detail, this effect is that the fluid is not thrown off a spinning rod, but drawn into and across the rod (in this case, going up)!

The Kaye effect is another fluid phenomenon.  In this case, when a viscous fluid like shampoo is poured onto another liquid, something about the surface tension and interaction create a second stream coming up.  Interesting...

Hopfenland - making a hops wreath

Frau A and I spent a weekend in September in Hallertau - during the harvest, but before Oktoberfest.

One activity in this Bavarian Hopfenland ("Hops Country") was at a local farm -- making hops wreathes.  Frau A really likes arts & crafts... but it turned out that I was the only male there, the first in 4 years, and the second ever!
(In any case, it was a nice warm-up for Oktoberfest, to get up & close with the hops themselves.)

A small group of "Hops Ambassadors" (mostly farmers' wives, I think) organize "Hops Experience" events:

We drove 20 min. to a nearby town called Weichenried to meet Frau Sedlmayr - in front of their hops barn!
No dirndl today (photo below)... it's harvest time.  The wreath-making was just a one-afternoon diversion.
We were asked to bring our own garden shears, but for €10 the "raw material" was included with her instructions.

Lying on the ground was the raw material for making our hops wreathes, huge vines just in from the fields.
(The crafts leader, Frau Sedlmayr, is in the background.)  They just separated these vines from the rest,
and had a harvest machine running in the barn on all others, separating the flowers for processing.

We got a peek inside the barn, and they already had huge stacks of picked/cleaned hops ready to ship:

After about a dozen people showed up, our hostess instructed us on how to make a hops wreath.

Equipment / preparation:  Garden shears and a roll of wire.

Setp 1:  Cut a length of hops vine for the desired size of wreath.

Step 2:  Remove one of the three intertwined stalks from the vine.  Only two are needed (three are too thick).

Step 3:  From the supply of hops, cut off small bunches, leaving maybe 1 inch of stalk.  Don't underestimate this task - the farmer's wife told us we would need a huge pile and she was right!  By far, we spent the most time finding, cutting, and preparing bunches.  (Notice the large pile of vines on the flatbed trailer in Step 4's photo...)

Note:  Some people want all leaves removed, others like to keep a few leaves in the bunches.  Artist's choice!

 

Step 4:  Take your prepared bunch with stalks close together...

... and set it closely against the vine.  The stalks should face the same direction each time, away from the prior bunch.  This is so you have access to the stalks -- wrapping the wire around them 3 times to secure to the vine.

Repeat steps 3-5 until you have a dense, secure wreath assembled!

You can adorn your wreath with flowers, ribbons, sections of hops vine, or other tidbits / trinkets.

"Hopfenkranzebindung" was a lot of fun, even for a guy!  You leave smelling completely of hops, which is no bad thing.  It's great to get out into real Bavarian farmland, meet the locals, and be part of tradition.

English Garden - on the Kleinhesseloher See

We take a lot of walks in the English Garden, but when friends came to visit recently we tried something new.
After walking by it many times, we finally rented a boat and went onto the Kleinhesseloher See (Lake).

Our prior post here has a Google map, but for reference the boathouse lies just north (left) of the Seehaus.
The biergarden to the right of the Seehaus is big -- perhaps a football field long with seats for 2500 people!

Moving left to right in the photo above:  kids in front of the Seehaus ready to launch radio-controlled boats... 

...in the middle, people enjoying the sunshine with a mass of beer, and swan/ducks hoping for handouts...

...and on the far right, picnic tables with the Sckell Säule (pillar) in the background.

The Sckell Säule is a monument to one of the lake's designers/creators, Friedrich Ludwig von Sckell.
Skell was the second designer, and expanded the lake to its current size of 86,000 square meters. 

Some people didn't even bother with finding a table at the biergarten and just found a place on the grass:

We took a paddleboat.  I sat in back - no pedaling!  Here we are going around one of the lake's three islands:

Our boat was square but could hold 6 people.  Others chose paddleboats that look like small motorboats...

...or chose a rowboat to get an upper body workout too (well, possibly just relax like these three):

Of course the fastest things on the lake were the waterfowl:

The "motorboat" styled paddleboats have a cover that can be raised and lowered:

These kids couldn't decided if they wanted the cover up or down, but definitely wanted to dip their feet in!

This girl had the same idea - sit on the side and splash around.

We headed back to shore after a half hour, then passed the Chinese Tower on the way back for a photo:

It was a great day.  Thanks L and M for visiting!  (and thanks for doing the pedaling for me)