The Plan for 2027

 The Missus and I will be back in Germany in May next year. For me, it will be the first time back in Europe since 2013. We will spend 4 days in Lisbon, 5 days in Palermo, 3 days in Berlin, 2 days in Dresden, 5 days in Quedlinburg, and 3 days in Erlangen.

In terms of beer, I will be taking a little notepad and pen so I can do some reporting for this blog when I get back. Having visited Berlin and Dresden previously, I am familiar with Berliner Kindl and Schultheiss (Berlin), and Radeberger, the East German beer brand I drank when I was in Dresden in the 1990 after the reunification.

In Quedlinburg, in the Harz Mountains, we will be sampling new Eastern German beers, not just in Quedlinburg, but in other towns we will be visiting in places like Wernigerode, Magdeburg, and Halberstadt. In Quedlinburg, there is a hotel/restaurant/brewery called Hotel Brauhaus Luedde. We are not staying there, but we will check out the restaurant for sure.

Our final stop will be in Erlangen, but we will also be visiting Fuerth and Nuremberg, which are nearby. All the breweries I knew from my army days in Erlangen are gone (Erich, Henniger, and Kitzmann) and have been replaced by Steinbach and Weller. I plan to visit the Weller restaurant/brewery, which is a recent addition. I also plan to visit the Gruener brewery/restaurant in Fuerth because in the 1960s, Gruener beer was one of my favorites. I was mistakenly under the impression it had been bought out by one of the larger breweries, but it is still around. 

 

One thing is for sure: For some time, I have been saying that the German imports have improved so much that they are close to the actual taste of Germany. I may come back with a different opinion.