The home stretch

This Oktoberfest business is seriously exhausting! I've spent 6 of the past 11 days at the Wies'n, and I'm planning to go at least one more time. I'm going to need a vacation once this is all over.

The other night we had dinner at the Käfer tent, one of the smaller tents at the Wies'n. Käfer is a well-known gourmet shop and restaurant in Munich, and the fare at their Oktoberfest tent is similarly pricey and delicious. Despite the fancy-schmanciness of the tent, the evening still involved plenty of giant steins of beer and dancing on the benches to ridiculous live music.

Apparently my bedirndled friends and I were looking particularly adorable all sitting in a row, because strangers kept coming by and taking our pictures. It was kind of like being extremely minor celebrities.

What else? My least favorite day was last Saturday, the most crowded day of "Italian weekend". Normally I would have never attempted to go on the busiest day of Oktoberfest, but we had friends in town just for the weekend and gosh darn it I was determined to get them into a tent. We woke up ridiculously early and were standing in line waiting outside the Löwenbräu* tent at 8:30 AM. The doors finally opened at 8:45 (after the lion let out a big roar), and we scrambled to find a spot for our group. We were downing our first liter of beer before 9:30. Breakfast of champions. The atmosphere couldn't have been more different than that at the Käfer tent. The crowds were insane. I headed home rather early, but not before our fancy Maβ-holding contest.


It's not like I've been drinking non-stop this whole time... I've also gone on a couple rides here and there. There are three roller coasters and a dozen or so other rides interspersed between the stands selling sausages and gingerbread hearts on strings. Who decided that big, stomach-churning rides would go well with giant steins of beer?



Overall I'm enjoying Oktoberfest more than I expected to. I mean, not the puke in random doorways all over the city, or the roving bands of drunken tourists, but the rest of it has proven to be pretty darn fun. Who would have thought?

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* I know what you're thinking, but here in Germany Löwenbräu is not the same cheap crappy beer that it is in the US. I have no idea why that is.

Oktoberfest advice: avoid these common injuries!

As fun as Oktoberfest is, there are still some dangers lurking, particularly where beer steins are involved. This friend (who will remain somewhat anonymous) demonstrates a couple common Oktoberfest injuries for us. See this vertical welt on her forehead?


Here she reenacts how she got it:

My advice: don't do this.

Injury number two: blisters from repeatedly lifting a Maβ beer stein.

My advice: um, bring weightlifting gloves?



Anyone else sustaining any Oktoberfest injuries?

Oktoberfest waitresses demonstrating their mad skillz

The waitresses at the Wies'n must start training months in advance for all this beer-carrying.


Looks like seven liters... not bad.






Eight! Even better.

One waiter, too:


Pretty impressive, no?

Breathalyzer, Oktoberfest style

This Fräulein was administering breathalyzer tests to the guys at the table behind us in the Hippodrom, but not for the usual reasons. They weren't interested in finding out whether they were fit to drive (the Premier of Bavaria has already educated them about that). Instead, they were receiving certificates proudly boasting the blood alcohol level they had achieved.

In other Oktoberfest news, there's a dirndl-gate! And it has nothing to do with a boob popping out. As if that weren't enough, lederhosen have their own scandal going on. Who knew old-timey clothing could be so controversial?

Two days down, 14 more to go

Greetings from Oktoberfest 2008! We are still alive and well. The city is awash with drunken tourists and locals alike, most of them wearing some kind of tracht, or at least funny hats (note to self: take more photos of funny hats). Many precious memories are in the making here, I tell you, and we are only one weekend in to this 16-day festival. I'd like to take this opportunity to remind Headbang8 about our mutual agreement to not post embarrassing photos of each other.


The Hippodrom - supposedly the young, hip, flirty tent with a high number of celebrity sightings. We did see some guys being followed around by video cameras and a boom mic, but alas none of us were able to recognize them.


The Weinzelt (wine tent - no maβes here!)


The Ochsenbraterei (ox roaster). This was our third tent of the day yesterday. I hardly have any pictures from inside. Probably better that way.


If you want an animal roasted on a spit, Oktoberfest is the place for you!


The pregnant chick stole our beers!


One popular festival song here in Germany is about playing cowboys and Indians (which I for one take offense to - how dare the Germans appropriate our cultural heritage! WE come from the land of cowboys and Indians, that's OUR childhood game, dammit!). Anyway, the song comes with a choreography kind of like the Macarena, except with lassos. Really, I am not making this up.


Our neighbors from the next table over get a little fresh with our kilt-wearing Scot.


I was all set to declare the Weinzelt the most sophisticated tent, and then the band came out wearing giant condom suits. Why yes, those are enormous hairy balls that jiggle when they move their legs. Thanks for asking.

More to come!

Oktoberfest: O'zapft is!

You'll be pleased to know that the beer was paraded in and arrived safely at the Wies'n. The first keg was successfully tapped by the mayor at the stroke of noon.



Here we go!

Cologne: a city full of beer pansies?

While I admit that nearly 8 months in Munich has possibly skewed my perception a bit on such things... doesn't 2 dl (less than 7 oz) seem a little too small to be considered a 'beer'? (Note the fork I placed in the photo to the left, so you can appreciate just how ridiculously diminutive the beer is.)

Right, so I spent a few hours in Cologne last week. I haven't been outside of Bavaria (yet inside Germany) very many times in the past few months, so I was on the lookout for regional differences. The one that kept striking me over and over: the itty bitty beers everyone was drinking. I mean, I am the first to admit that a Maβ* of beer is excessive, but Munich's standard restaurant-sized beer, half a liter, seems to be about right.

In Cologne, these delicate little beer thimbles are transported in their own little carriers by the waiter. Each kranz ('wreath') carries 11 itty-bitty beers. If you were to pour all 11 of them all into proper beer-drinking vessels, you would have just over two Munich-sized beers. Clearly the Oktoberfest tents will not be importing waiters from Cologne.

The one benefit of such teeny-tiny beers, I suppose, is that there isn't a chance for the beer to get even a little bit warm before you are done with it. And I am a firm believer that pale-urine-colored beers should be drunk as cold as possible (if they are going to be consumed at all). Not that Kölsch is all that bad, as far as pale-urine-colored beers go. It's just that, well, it's nice to have a choice of other-colored beers, too, you know? When you walk into a Munich brewery (or basically any Munich establishment that serves beverages), you generally have four beer choices: a helles, a dunkeles, a weiβbier, and a dunkeles weiβbier. It's not an NYC beer bar, but it will do.

Not so at Früh**, Cologne's premiere brewery-restaurant. Kölsch was basically it. Two deciliters of it. To look on the bright side yet again, at least my waiter was right there with a fresh beer every time I finished mine (which occurred every two minutes or so). And when the waiter has to come around so often, that makes the service somewhat better than it is in a typical Munich joint.

* A Maβ of beer is one liter, and is the standard size available in a Munich beer garden. In many cases, nothing smaller is available (unless you are drinking weiβbier).
** Incidentally, 'früh' means 'early' in German, leading me briefly to the hypothesis that 2 dl of beer was meant to be a breakfast portion. That might make sense...

Big pfun at the Pfarrfest

Last week we went to a Pfarrfest at a small parish church in Munich. A multi-generational crowd was gathered for food, drink, socializing and music. The preist worked the crowd, greeting everyone and making them feel welcome (upon learning I was from the US, he even broke out with a couple words of English). Dessert consisted of various baked goods prepared by the parishioners. This annual party had all the feel of a church celebration in a small American town, with two significant differences:

1) Lots of oompah music, and

2) Nuns drinking beer by the liter.

I'm really, really sorry for not snagging a photo of #2.

Non-alcoholic beer is fun!

See, it says so right on the bottle.

Finally, a stock market that can hold my interest

Home again after a lovely Easter weekend in Berlin. One of our stops this trip was the Brokers Bierbörse, a relatively normal bar with a small twist - beer prices vary over the course of the evening based on demand. Prices are displayed on flatscreen TVs around the bar, and you pay the price listed at the time you place your order.

The highlight of the evening, naturally, was the market crash.

Munich: where the beer is strong and the men wear Lederhosen

You didn't really think the city of Munich was going to make us wait until autumn for a beer festival, did you?

The Starkbierfest, or Strong Beer Festival, take place every year for a few weeks during Lent. Drinking beer doesn't count as breaking a fast, you see, so rumor has it that the monks invented this weighty beer as a form of nourishment to consume when they were fasting for Lent. The 'strong' in the beer's name is supposed to refer more to its gravity than its alcohol content, but at around 8% it's not the weakest beer out there, either.

Various local breweries open their banquet halls for the Starkbierfest, but the only one we've been to so far is the one at the Paulaner brewery. Some friends had a table reservation for Saturday, and naturally we took them up on this offer to get to know the local culture a bit more intimately.

In order to claim a reserved table on the weekend, you have to arrive by 2pm. The entire scene at this hour was entirely civilized - just like at a large restaurant which seats 2,000 people. There was live music, heavy German food, and, of course, a lot of Starkbier, served in liter krugs.

A couple hours later, the band changed from one with a tuba to one with guitars, and the audience started showing signs of life. Slowly, at first - only a couple lone dancers popped up at a table here and there. A couple popular songs were played which got the whole room singing along. And then, all of a sudden, it seemed like everyone was dancing on the benches. Everyone.

The band took breaks from time to time, during which some revelers took the opportunity to power-nap.


The crowd got bigger and bigger, and we had to get a little defensive of our prized seats whenever someone in our party got up. I can't really blame people for trying to poach a table spot - those krugs were heavy. Not exactly something I'd want to drink out of while standing around mingling.

Speaking of drinking beer, naturally we did a lot of this, but I have to admit I only had one Starkbier before switching to the Helles. Starkbier is fine in small doses, but it's too sweet for my tastes.

There seemed to be more people wearing Lederhosen and Dirndls than not, making me wonder if we're going to have to break down and get our own Bavarian clothing to wear to such events. What do you think?

Beer superlatives

Finish this phrase: "Gut, besser, ____" ("Good, better, ____")

I've always been under the impression that the correct answer was, of course, "Paulaner". So why is it that I keep seeing these commercials for Gösser, a little-known Austrian beer?



I was starting to think I was going a bit crazy, but recently a German friend confirmed it, Paulaner really is the one who originated the slogan in connection to beer advertising:



So what's up with that, Gösser? Why are you stealing Paulaner's slogan? And more importantly, why do I have nothing better to blog about than beer commercials? I need to get out more.

Bozeman, Montana: me likey

Still in Montana, having a fabulous time. We spent a day in Bozeman, which I found to be an absolutely charming little town. Not to outdo the NYT guy, but we covered quite a lot of ground during our short visit:

• Lunch at Pickle Barrel, a famous Montana chain of sandwich shops. I kind of liked the lack of options offered - only one kind of bread, no design-your-own million options, just "do you want everything on that or not?" My cheese and veggie sandwich was delightful.
  
  
• Wandering Main Street, browsing some stores and art galleries, and admiring the octopus-like Christmas decorations. While tempted by the delightful assortment of guns and hunting supplies on offer, we managed to resist making any purchases.
  
  
• Coffee at The Leaf and Bean. Comfy little espresso bar with an extensive tea selection, fresh juices, and cute gifts.
  
  
• The Museum of the Rockies, a short, snowy car ride from Main Street. Dinosaurs, bats, Native Americans, and Ansel Adams photographs. Lots of fun.
  
  
• Drinks at Montana Ale Works, a great bar, restaurant, and pool hall on Main Street. Loved the extensive beer menu. And since it was happy hour, pints of yummy local ales were $2.50. Which is about, what, a euro these days?
  
  
• Dinner and more drinks at Plonk. My friend Peter (who lives in Bozeman) described this place as the hippest spot in Montana, and I believe he could be right. My fresh basil ginger martini-like thing (I forget the name of the drink) was awesome. The food was fabulous, too.
  

What Europe needs more of: microbrews

Sure, plenty of good beers come from Europe. But my favorites tend to be ales, and the continent just doesn't make many of those (this is one of the reasons I'm sad we won't be moving to Ireland).

But here in the northwest United States, microbrews are everywhere. The variety is staggering. And delightful. Bars with 30+ beers on tap are common, and the best part is that if you don't know what you want, the bartenders tend to be very knowledgeable about the differences between, say, the 5 brown ales on tap. Sweet.

The grocery stores also have some lovely variety, but without the accompanying helpful personnel. Leaving outsiders like me to choose based on label alone... which is why so many brands distinguish themselves with memorable ale names such as Moose Drool or Yellow Snow. Good stuff.

Doing Dublin

We spent a little time in Dublin at the beginning and end of our trip to Ireland, split up that way so we could take advantage of the direct flights between Dublin and Zurich on Aer Lingus. It was one of my first experiences with European discount airlines (since most don’t fly out of Zurich), and overall I have to say they seemed to have their act together. Everything costs extra: from checked luggage, to advance seat assignments, to beverages and snacks on board the plane. But I found myself not really minding all that, especially since the plane was new and clean and more or less on time. Direct flights make me happy.

Shortly after we arrived we met up with Beth for dinner in the Temple Bar area of Dublin. Temple Bar is the main touristy nightlife district, and was hopping even on a Monday evening. It was great to meet Beth in person, and a fabulous start to our trip. After dinner, I wandered off to find a pint of Guinness, since, well, that’s what you’re supposed to do on your first trip to Ireland, right?

Since we only had one full day for sightseeing in Dublin (and since we hadn’t bothered to figure out what we wanted to see ahead of time), we opted for the hop on – hop off tourist bus. This is the kind of thing we usually avoid, but it turned out to serve our purposes quite well. The drivers provided cheerful, kitschy live commentary (and how can you not love those accents?). We “hopped off” to visit Dublinia, an interactive exhibit about life in medieval Dublin, where we learned fun facts such as that Vikings never actually wore horned helmets (although that didn’t stop them from being sold by the boatload in the gift shop).

After a greasy pub lunch accompanied by some delicious ale, we hopped back on the bus until it reached the Guinness Storehouse, a gigantic, multi-media exhibit dedicated to the glory of Arthur Guinness and the black liquid he brewed. Although we’ve established that I’m not a fan of the drink, the exhibit was extremely well done, and a fun way to pass a couple rainy hours. We cashed in our tokens for free pints at the Gravity bar and enjoyed the panoramic view (and a rainbow) before heading back to the bus to see some more Dublin sites from the top deck. A yummy Thai dinner was followed by a couple pints of tasty microbrew at The Porter House.

Dublin wasn’t as… what’s the word I’m looking for? It wasn’t as cute as I expected it to be. Perhaps too much time living in a pristine city like Zurich led me to notice Dublin’s rough edges more than I normally would have. But I did enjoy it, and it had a good city vibe. Plus, Ireland had several other towns that more than made up for Dublin’s lack of cuteness.

Hooch!

This past weekend we were the lucky attendees at Hoochfest, an all-day backyard barbecue thrown by our friends Ashley and Sebastian. There were long wooden tables, tons of food, insanely delicious homemade brownies, and party games. But the real star attraction was the beer, home brewed in the basement specifically for the occasion. Before you start thinking of bathtubs and moonshine, rest assured that this is no low-class home-brewing deal. There are computers involved, and probes, and tubes running from giant container to giant container. Very fancy stuff. I really should have taken a picture, but for some reason I wasn't my usually shutter-happy self that day.

The games involved trivia (bilingual, even, so that all of the multinational attendees could play along), beer tasting (at which I kicked ass, FYI), hammering nails in to a log (as illustrated in the picture by the lovely and talented Matt), and holding out a full Maß beer stein with one arm for as long as possible (ow). There was also whipped-cream-tower-building for the kids.

Sebastian's beer has gained such a following that he's started selling it locally. Starting in August there will even be a Beer of the Month Club that you can subscribe to and have fresh seasonal beer delivered right to your door. The prizes for the party games were free subscriptions to the Beer of the Month club, and pretty much every person at the party won one. So not only were we invited over for copious amounts of delicious beer, but they will also be bringing more of this delicious beer to our house next month. How's that for kick-ass friends?

Sebastian's brewery has been christened Brauerei 8143, and I think their Beer of the Month Club is open to pretty much anyone in the Zurich area. Check out the brewery's website to learn more.