Oettinger Brewery

Out here in California, I am always looking for German import beers that I have not previously tried. While visiting the Old World Village in Huntington Beach this week, I saw that their deli shop was featuring beers from the Oettinger Brewery, which is located primarily in Oettingen, Bavaria. I picked up a can of what they call "Bavarian Helles". 

Also featured were other Oettinger products, including pils, special export, and "Thuringia beer". That caused me some confusion, and originally I thought Oettingen was in the state of Thuringia. It is not, but the Oettinger company also has breweries in Braunschweig and Mönchengladbach, as well as a now-closed brewery in Gotha-which is in Thuringia, part of the former East German DDR.

Oettingen

According to their advertising, Oettinger describes itself as "an affordable beer" available throughout Germany.

What I had was good. It was in a large can and was 4.7% alcohol. Maybe I should have gotten the export. It was 5.4%. Next time

Erlangen Bergkirchweih 2026 is Coming

As I often do around this time of year, I am announcing the soon-to-begin Erlangen beer fest (Bergkirchweih), which will run from May 21 to June 1, corresponding to Pentecost. This is the world's oldest beer fest, dating back to 1755.

I have picked out a couple of articles that describe the coming events. The first (in German)  is from the Erlanger Nachrichten (newspaper) and describes the beer being brewed for the event by the Nuremberg-based Tucher Brewery.

The  second article, from Pixelschmitt, is in English and is a guide to the events for visitors.

When I was stationed in Erlangen in the late 1960s, there were three breweries in existence: Erichbrau, Kitzmann, and Henniger. On my last visit in 2013, that list was down to two, Kitzmann and the recently re-established Steinbach. Since then, Kitzmann has been bought up by the Kulmbacher brewery which still produces the Kitzmann recipe out of Kulmbach. 

However, also in recent years, two new breweries have opened, one is the Weller brewery in the Thalermuehle area of Erlangen. The other is Entlas Keller, produced by a small restaurant of the same name, which is located on the festival grounds, but which remains open during the year. I have yet to try it.

I'm not sure exactly which beers will be featured this year outside of Tucher and Steinbach. I assume Entlas Keller will be serving their own beer. In recent years, the old Erichbrau recipe has also been available. I am guessing that the Kitzmann beer recipe will also be available from Kulmbach, which, like Nuremberg, is not too far away, though not as close as Nuremberg. My personal favorite is Kitzmann.

The Bergkirchweih is well worth a visit. There are attractions for all age groups.

Mannheim Beer? Eichbaum Helles

 In the world of German beer, Mannheim is not a place generally considered on a par with Munich, or even other beer cities like Dortmund.  Today, I experimented with a .5 liter can I picked up at the Old World Village store in Huntington Beach, California. Introducing Eichbaum Helles.

This product is produced by the Eichbaum Brewery of Mannheim. The alcohol content is 5.0%. It has a clean, crisp taste, and while it doesn't stand out (to my taste) among imported German beers, it is what I would expect-in other words, superior to American brews, especially the major brands.  

Like any good German brewery, Eichbaum has its own brauhaus/restaurant in Mannheim. 

As of last October, the brewery, which goes back to 1679, was faced with financial insolvency. Apparently, it is still holding on since its products are still on the US market.

Anyway, if you are tired of the usual Munich imports and want to experiment, it is worth a try.

My New Book

 

This is to announce to all my friends, enemies, and readers that I have just published my 4th book. Unlike my first three books, which had nothing to do with drugs, DEA, or law enforcement, this one is autobiographical. It is the story of my law enforcement career, beginning as a US Army military policeman in Germany in the 1960s, my 2-1/2 years as a US Customs agent, and my 22 years with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), lasting to 1995. It also has chapters about my experiences dealing with campus anti-Semitism issues when I was teaching at the University of California at Irvine from 1998-2016. In addition, there is a chapter dealing with militant Islam, based on my personal experiences from about 2006 to the present.

The book is available on Amazon, either in hardback, paperback, or E-copy (Kindle).

Bismarkhbrau From Eibau

 

We have previously written about various beers produced by the Eibau Brewery in Eibau, Germany on the German border with Poland. This is yet another Eibau Brewery product. It is called Bismarkhbrau -Das Pilsner. It is 4.8% alcohol, and I just picked up a 4-pack of tall cans at Total Wines and More. The cost is reasonable, I think about 12 dollars for 4 cans.

I am not sure why the variation in the spelling of the former German chancellor's name. 

Henninger Beer From Frankfurt (or Dortmund?)

 

I recently picked up a 4-pack of Henninger beer at Trader Joe's, for under $8. They are tall cans, 1 pint 9 ounces, and the alcohol content is 4.8%. Henniger is one of the major breweries in Frankfurt, at least it was, but looking at the can confused me.  According to information on the can, it was brewed and canned in  Dortmund, Germany, one of the country's largest beer-producing cities. Could it be that a Dortmund conglomerate had bought out Henninger? This has been happening in Germany over the past few decades, resulting in what many Germans call "industrial beer".

Henniger was established in Frankfurt in 1869, and in my past visits to Frankfurt, I was not excited about the beer-but that's just my taste. Going to Henninger's current website, I learned that, indeed, the company went bankrupt in 1996 and was sold to the Radeberger Group in 2001. Yet, the brewery still keeps its iconic Henninger Tower (Frankfurt) logo, and its Radeburger Group address is still in Frankfurt.

So what is with the Dortmund angle? I could write to them and ask, but why bother? Why don't you?  

Früh Kölsch From Cologne

Kölsch beer is a special type of German beer brewed in the city of Cologne. Rather than describe exactly what it is and how it is brewed, I will let you read about it here.

There are various breweries in Cologne that brew Kölsch. One of them that imports to the US is Früh Kölsch, by the Cölner Hofbräu brewery. Comparatively speaking, this is a fairly young brewery (1904).

The alcohol content is 4.8% and a 6-pack of bottles runs about $15 at Total Wines and More.