I’d just about fallen out of bed, dragged a comb across my head, drunk a cup and I was already running late. That was before I found out a friend who I’d been planning on meeting at the the 14th Bierbrauerfest in Bad Staffelstein threw a curve ball at me. There was a Kerwa in Melkendorf and he had room in his car. The catch? He would come by in a half hour. How could I resist? How I was going to break the news to my wife, who was enjoying her second tea in bed, that she’d have to drink it in the shower was another thing? She didn’t even flinch and we were just about ready for our ride. Yup, I’m lucky. Our friend is anything but a typical Italian but we didn’t know he’d actually be punctual. I guess his love of Fanconian beer is turning him into a German of sorts. He claims to even prefer dark bread.
lovely religious procession in Melkendorf
What’s a Kerwa?
With all the rushing about, we still managed to get held up by a religious procession as we drove into Melkendorf. A small village problem, to be sure, and one that generally proceeds the church consecration festivities which Kerwa’s entail. It probably lasted all of five minutes but it was 9:30 and there was a beer to be had right around the bend. Beer’s the point for us non-church going folk. We arrived to find the brewery courtyard bustling and Biergarten full of people obviously enjoying their Weisswurstfrühstück. We squeezed onto a table and did likewise. I hadn’t been to the “newish” Brandholz Brauhaus since the former Brauerei Winkler closed down in 2016. Their Golden Brown was lovely and we were glad we’d given up our slow morning.
hard to resist a beer you’ve never had
Arriving at Bad Staffelstein Brauerfest late
We didn’t have time to linger, Manuele’s daughter, who was enjoying a lie-in, needed to be picked up. By the time, we strolled into Bad Staffelstein, it was high noon and the sun was beating down. It was way past our projected 10:00 arrival time. It was packed and it didn’t take long to figure out there was nowhere for our party of now seven to sit in the shade, at least not together. Manuele was immediately accosted by fellow Franconian beer lovers who know him or at least of him. He’s been a fixture in the area for quite some time. We took advantage of the Manuele Colonna notoriety to seek refuge out of the sun. It’s much easier to squeeze onto a table when you’re just two, especially a couple.
ta lovely setting despite the heat
The beers at the Brauerfest
The festival features beer from ten of the breweries of Bad Staffelstein. Well technically, as they are all part of the postal code though truly from small villages surrounding the admittedly gorgeous town blessed with many a half-timbered house but no remaining breweries of its own. I’ve been to all of them but Hetzel in Frauendorf, but not for lack of trying. I’ve really liked the Frauendorfer bottles I’ve had so their beer on tap was a big draw for me. Perhaps unsurprisingly, we started off with their Kellerbier and Vollbier. I wasn’t alone, it was definitely one of the busiest stands. I’d just been to Brauerei Thomann but wanted my wife to try their beer and our table mates were raving about their newish Märzen, Küchsla. It was a hit with my wife too.
the lure of Hetzel
Craft Beer at the Brauerfest
Earlier, on arrival, one of the first people we had run into was the noted Franken Maigl, who mentioned that his beer was being served at the Hopfen Rebel stand. Manuele and the rest of our Italian crew had made a beeline for it right away but I wanted to try less hoppy beers first and seek out some shade. With that mission accomplished, I decided to give them a go. Though modern Craft Beer is no longer of much interest to me, I was intrigued to try at least one of their beers so his Adam Riese was next up for us. It was so good, I tried one of their flagships, a brown beer called Braunbär.
Hopfen Rebel was new for us
While I could have easily increased my new-for-me total of beers in Franconia, I wanted my wife to finally have Metzerbräu on tap. The butcher-cum-brewer has garnered quite a reputation in the area and their stand was another super popular one. My wife liked our shared one so much, she had one on her own as I moved onto resampling Trunk Dunkel and Dinkel Kellerbier. We also enjoyed a few snacks.
a few snacks & Metzgerbräu
Summer festivals can be hot
I checked in our friends from time to time, even they had scattered a bit to find some relief from the brutal sun. We actually had moved our table onto the other side of the street when the shade did the same. By this time, it was solely ours so I tried to corral our group to no avail. At one point, Manuele messaged me to say he couldn’t find me to say goodbye. He was off to another Kerwa. It was probably a good thing. Sometimes less is more and feet up on the couch with a cold glass of water was sounding pretty good at this point.
fun in the sun but for only so long
Later that evening on social media, some spoke of it being the best beer festival in Franconia. Oddly, the idea of a beer festival is sort of new here even though there have been festivals for centuries and my guess is they’ve always involved beer. I’m fairly certain just one beer. Even at the most noted ones now, there might be six or so, generally served in liter mugs which isn’t exactly conducive to sampling. The idea at those is to sit and enjoy your company and the beer at hand, not to constantly be on the look out for the next one. In that sense, this is closer to a real beer festival, hence its name Bierbrauerfest.
What to expect at the Bierbrauerfest
Each of the ten breweries had at least two and often four beers on on tap so trying them all would have been virtually impossible, at least for this mere mortal. It was interesting to try beers I’d had before close in succession. I unfortunately couldn’t get to some favorites. Sadly, some beers were in less than stellar form. Others were surprisingly good. In the end though, it was just a fun day out. We saw some people we knew well, others we’d just met briefly prior and as with such events, we met some new people. Many were new to Franconian beer and were surprised at the variety. Some hadn’t heard of multi-hopped beers. Everyone we met thought the event was great. It’s certainly not a bad beer fest, it’s a Bad Bierfest.
The 14th Bierbrauerfest in Bad Staffelstein was a resounding success despite scorching temperatures. Finding shade was a battle but staying hydrated was easy. Beer is, after all, 95% water.
The Bierbrauerfest is held on Maria Himmelfahrt (August 25th) every year.
The region is a hotbed for Beer Hiking. Why not see more than just Bamberg?
Bierfests are definitely different in Germany compared to USA. I’ve been to several beerfests here in south Florida…pay an upfront fee and get small samples of dozens upon dozens of beers. When I attended the Frankisch Bierfest in Nuremberg – there seemed to be maybe 30-40 breweries which Is a lot but the smallest size was half a liter. No chance I can drink 1 beer from every brewery, let alone try multiple from the same brewery. As a group, we all ordered different beers each round and sampled each others – then we each finished the one we liked best that round. Worked for us and I loved the experience.
Nice work around. Fest is the operative word here. Beer is just part of it. It’s more about having a good time, eating and hanging out with people you know and meet. I always found drinking very small samples at American beer events didn’t work out as you didn’t get enough of as taste and when you move around between different styles, the often overrun others. I remember drinking nothing but IPA at the Great American Beer Festival one night and all stouts and porters the next. I don’t like when you have to get a Mass but a half liter is fine. For an event like this, a .3L or even .4L would be useful. Funny how just a little bit less can make a difference. Thanks for enjoying.
I was a little surprised, Rich, by your comment, “Though modern Craft Beer is no longer of much interest to me..” What happened?
I was into Craft Beer in the 80s. I drank more than my share of IPAs. I occasionally have one when I’m back home but the prices alone would warrant not drinking them, even if I weren’t bored. I’m complaining that half liter bottles here are a Euro. I have my hands full trying to get to the small breweries that are disappearing here. I don’t have much time to check out ones doing what I saw done twenty years ago. Hopefully one day you’ll come over and see for yourself what I’m talking about. Hurry up, it might not last for long.