Uerige - Dusseldorf Altstadt

I would say my second favorite place in the world to drink beer, after Bamberg of course, is the Dusseldorf Altstadt where one can enjoy one of the world's greatest pub crawls.  In the Altstadt are four old and traditional brewpubs brewing and serving the beer that Dusseldorf is known for.  Altbier.  Altbier is and old style (hence the Alt) and is a top fermented lager.  In other words it's a beer that is made with the top fermented yeast but unlike ales the beer is lagered.

My favorite brewery of the lot is Uerige http://www.uerige.de/en/start/.  The Uerige Altbier I think is the hoppiest of the the four but its the sort of hoppiness that makes the beer lively and very drinkable as opposed to overly bitter. 

Both times I've been were in July and most of the drinking was done outside.  I popped inside only to take pictures of the oak barrels they were pouring the beer from.  This too is done the traditional way.  Gravity poured from the barrel. 

Uerige is a great place to stand outside and people watch.  The Dusseldorf Altstadt is party central and the Uerige brewpub is right in the mix. 

The Uerige sign at the front entrance:

Ingmar, Severin, and Dave hanging around outside Uerige enjoying the Altbier and the scenery.

Just a photo inside of the oak barrels and the  blue-clad Köbes that serve the beer.  You don't have to work to get a beer at this place.  Just stand there and one of these guys will bring it to you and won't stop until you cover your glass with a coaster.