Bamberg Again

I suppose the feeling I get when I first arrive in Bamberg for the first time in two years is even better than a little kid going to Disney World.  It doesn't matter how bad the jet lag is it is impossible for me to sleep.  I did try though.  After getting to my hotel in the afternoon I tried like hell to take a nap.  No chance.  My brain wouldn't stop thinking about that first beer and the second and on and on.  What breweries would I visit today?  I wonder if there are any new beers and so on.

I like the hotel I chose a lot.  I stayed at the Tandem Hotel on Untere Sandstrasse right next to the bridge and river.  Great location as it was in the shadow of Upper Altstadt and close to many pubs and of course the Schlenkerla Tavern.

 



So the decision as to what brewpub to visit first wasn't really a tough one.  Schlenkerla was closest and so a nice restorative Rauchbier to help me over the jet lag was just the thing.

 

Fred Waltman of the Franconian Beer Guide has oft mentioned the restorative powers of Schlenkerla.  I thought I would put that to the test.  It worked!  No I mean it really worked.  I felt so much better after knocking back a half liter of this stuff while standing at a table in the schwemme.  But as I reached the bottom of the glass I realized I was hungry.  My first thought was to go to the Spezial Keller but for some strange reason it was closed even though it was a fairly nice day and late afternoon.  So since I was already uphill I thought why not go a little further up and visit a brewery I haven't often visited.  Next stop Greifenklau. 

The place was very quiet.  It was just me and a few people at another table but I could see that they had a new beer on tap called "Laurenzi" that they described as a dunkel Kellerbier.  I felt obligated to give it a try.  I quite liked it and wound up having three before I left.  I also had a delicious plate of chicken with a side of white asparagus.  May is asparagus season over there and this is a very good thing.  May is also Maibock season and this is an even better thing as I would discover throughout the trip.  I think from now on I will visit in May. 

The "Laurenzi":

As I was finishing my second seidla of the dunkel kellerbier a group of beer tourists from Hamburg sat at the table with me.  So I stayed for another glass and had a nice conversation with them about Franconian beer and also about Hamburg.

But it was time to go for a long walk to work off the food and beer .... so I could have more beer of course.  So I chose to visit the neighborhood of Wunderburg all the way on the other side of town.  Finding Wunderburg is actually quite easy.  You can see the church spire rising over all the residential buildings around it.  So as long as you're heading towards that spire you will get there.  Then name is appropriate as there are two world class breweries across the street from each other in Wunderburg.

I always make it a point to hit Keesman first.  In my opinion, the home of perhaps the best German pilsener found anywhere.  It never ceases to surprise me in how good and drinkable it is.  I also love the entrance hallway (Schwemme) of Brauerei Keesman with it's stone floor, user friendly beer ordering window, and tables to stand at.  Classic!

My thought was to just have one Pils before heading over to Mahrs but there was no way to stop at one.  I had to have two before going to Mahrs.  Now I've been to Mahrs a few times but never just stood in the hallway and ordered from the window where the barrel was.  It's a very good beer anytime/anyplace but out of the barrel it is spectacular.  I don't know how long I stood there leaning up against the railway drinking Mahrs U.  I was enjoying listening to the locals converse and just taking in this beautiful pub. 

I think it got dark around 9pm and the jet lag really kicked in so I bought a slice of pizza on the walk back and headed for the hotel.  However along the way, as I was walking past Schlenkerla, I saw someone that I recognized from my Facebook.  It was Jan-Erik Svensson who is a fairly well know (at least to us Franconian beer lovers) beer guru from Sweden.  He was standing outside with some other Swedes travelling with him so I stopped and introduced myself and said hello.  We had a quick chat and a laugh about two fellow beer lovers and Facebook friends living a few thousand miles apart and who had never met before randomly meeting on the streets of Bamberg.  The power of Facebook and beer at work.  So I said good night and that I hoped to see them at a pub tomorrow night and went to bed .... not having any clue what would be in store for me tomorrow.