Beer Gardens and German Hospitality – Munich

There is a term in German that I cannot even pronounce – Deutsche Gastfreundlichkeit – which means in its simplest form – German hospitality. Or to be more precise – I will provide you with wonderful hospitality now which hopefully will be paid back at a later date to the same level. Or at least that is how I understood it.

My good friends and hosts for 5 days in Munich, Germany, Tina and Uli showed me that kind of German hospitality. Room to stay in, guided walking tours around Munich (Uli should go into that type of business because he knew everything about the city – dates, kings, famous events, on and on), dinners, suggestions on where to go and what to see and time on the computer helping me local the best and most economical tours. And they also showed me and explained to me that most Munich of all traditions – the Beer Hall.

I arrived in Munich after 9 days of semi-cold and rain in Reykjavik to bright sunshine and warm temperatures. After they met my train from the airport and took me to their home in bright leafy section of Munich, it was off to my first experience in their city – a beer garden. And not the giant, tourist one in the middle of Munich, the Hofbrauhaus, but a local small neighborhood one run by Augustine, one of the oldest breweries in Munich. And according to Uli, the best one. Here with a large mug of locally brewed beer (a liter or for the faint of heart, a half liter) , a large German pretzel, sweet kraut, and large sausage with brown German mustard, Uli told me the history of Biergartens and why they play such an important part of Munich history and social life.

Munich has been a trading city since the early 1200 as a stop on the salt-trade crossroads. It started as a trading post near a monastery of monks – Munchen in German (Munich in English). By the 1400’s Munich was a booming trading city because of the salt and had also developed a reputation for its beer. By the 1500’s, more than 30 breweries run by holy (drunk) monks were pumping out their magic beverage. The monks had a special license from the local Duke of Munich (who would in 300 years would become a king of Bavaria). The monks stored their beer in underground storage cellars and then grew Chestnut trees over the storage rooms to keep the beer cool in the summer. This is a tradition to this day that beer gardens are all in the shade of Chestnut trees. In the shade of the trees, the monks put up tables to sell their beers in the summer and the beer garden was born. A place where all the people of Munich no matter how rich or poor, common or important would all gather together and drink and socialize. A true democratic touch in a time of royalty and serfs, and a beginning middle class.

Beer gardens were also responsible for the oldest food law in the world. In 1487, Bavaria passed the German Beer Purity Law. It establishes that all beer must consist of only 3 elements, Barley, Hops and water. That law still exists today although brewers are trying to add new things to find new favors for possible new customers, but why was this such a big in the 1400’s? Because beer in those days was considered food. If you were a poor worker in the fields harvesting at lunch you wouldn’t have a burger and fries – you really had nothing so no big lunch for you at Micky D’s. But you might have a glass of thick dark beer which would have all the nutrients that you need to keep working. If you needed to think and use your head, lighter beers were developed or you cut your beer with water or possibly a fruit juice like lemonade.

All the things that you see in a Budweiser commercial – large horses pulling a heavy wagon of wooden barrels of beer – all of those are traditions that were developed in Munich over five hundred years ago. Large horses were specially bred to pull the heavy wagons, the barrels were made by the monks and later by other crafts persons to store the beer and so on.

The next day, Tina and Uli took me into the city center for a personal walking tour of Munich’s extremely long and interesting history and of course, we stopped at the world famous Hofbrauhaus. It was starting to cloud up and it was the afternoon, so the place was not as rowdy as advertised. We had the surliest waiter ever but we did get the large liters of beer calls a “mahs”. Uli got the light beer (not really light in calories just in color) called a “helles” and I got an amazing dark beer which is called a “dunkles”. We had a light lunch, but nothing there is really light, all German sausages and traditional German dishes like roasted Pig Knuckle. This time I got real sour kraut, and I must say the sweet kraut was my favorite.

And now dear reader, your very logical question is why is this the most famous beer garden in the world? Because this was the personal brewery of the ruling family of Munich, the Wittelsbachs. You will notice the crown over the front door as you enter the Hofbrauhaus. Built by the royal family in 1583 to brew the court beer (hof brau). When the brewery moved to a new location in 1880, a 5000 seat beer garden was built here and it has been packed every since.

Check out the really quirky gift shop for some amazing weird gifts, and the slogan on the ceiling over the oompah bandstand which reads, “Durst ist schlimmer als Heimweh” or “Thirst is worst than homesickness”. That says it all!

Thanks to Tina and Uli for the Deutsche Gastfreundlichkeit, and Enjoy!!