Munich has always been one of my favourite cities. Giant Bavarian pretzels, Bratwürst sausages and of course, the city’s fantastic traditional German beer. What’s not to love?
Last weekend was my second visit to the Bavarian capital in recent years; the first was for its famous Oktoberfest and the second, just two weekends ago, was for the Champions League Final. Both presented obvious opportunities for sampling Munich’s finest beers from their ‘Big Six’ breweries in the city’s famous beer gardens.
From the world-famous fine bitter lager Hofbräu, to the less-well known but equally enjoyable sweet lager, Paulaner pale, Munich offers a range of beers to suit any palate:
Hofbräu
Hofbräu is the beer that made Munich’s Hofbräuhaus famous. Fine, but with a bitter taste that is unusual for a lager, drinking Hofbräu in the grounds of the brewers famous ‘Haus’ is an enjoyable experience, and probably the closest you can get to experiencing Oktoberfest, if its autumn dates don’t suit your travelling plans.
Paulaner
Regarded by many to be Munich’s second best beer, Paulaner is cloudy to the eye, fruity and creamy in taste, and with what some have described as an ‘elastoplast aroma’. It wasn’t something that quite appealed to me but is likely suit those who prefer British beer to their lager.
Augustinerbräu
Augustinerbräu is renowned for brewing, in the opinion of the locals, Munich’s best beer, and who am I to argue? With 5.6% alcohol by volume, this fine beer has a light, clean, hops-filled taste dissimilar to the other beers I tried. This beverage is great for summer afternoons in beer gardens all over the globe, or, of course, in a tent at Oktoberfest, although I’m sure it’d be equally fine on draught at the Courtyard…
Löwenbräu
Arguably the most famous Munich beer in terms of world-wide exports, Löwenbräu was a natural choice following a student budget accommodating 18-hour coach journey across Europe, consisting of sipping warm cans of Fosters. Golden, grainy and refreshing, it does everything that an advert for the Australian ‘Amber Nectar’ would claim to do, complemented by a sweet, malty aftertaste.
Hacker-Pschorr
Hacker-Pschorr and Spaten are the two final beers of the ‘Big Six’, which I sadly missed the chance to taste. Hacker-Pschorr is part of the Paulaner brand but maintains a level of independence. It is described as being similar to its sister beer, but with vivid taste composed mostly of nuts, malts, caramel and a hint of toffee.
Spaten
Spaten is the final of the six and the least well-known. In fact, many Munich residents are unaware of its existence, despite it being the brewer of the first Oktoberfest beer. Similar to Hacker-Pschorr, Spaten is now owned by Löwenbräu, but also maintains a level of independence in terms of brewing. The descriptions of it match it as a richer and bitterer tasting version of Löwenbräu.
Munich therefore offers an ultimate paradise for any beer drinker. As the image to the right shows: how can you argue with a litre of strong, German beer accompanied by a giant salted pretzel and German sausage?
This year’s Oktoberfest runs from 22nd September – 7th October, with the huge festival being attended by around 6.4 million people each year. Each festival, over 7 million litres of beer is sold, including all six of those listed here. For something a bit different to your standard student holiday, I would highly recommend it. Just remember to pack some spending money as steins (1 litre glasses) of beer at the festival this year will set you back around £8.