Ummerstadt Brauhaus is a small communal brewery located in Ummerstadt, noted as the smallest community in not only Thuringia but also second in Germany. A charming village filled with half-timbered houses, it unfortunately and curiously lacks many amenities for tourists. It’s certainly worth popping in for a walk around but outside of festivals, there’s not so much to keep you busy.
lovely Ummerstadt
Ummerstadt is nestled in the largely rural Hildburghausen county of Thuringia. It’s also part of the municipality of Heldburg, which is rich in communal breweries. Across the border from Lower Franconia and part of the Fränkischer Reichskreis, it’s included here even if many locals may not particularly agree.
Ummerstadt Brauhaus
Mühlweg 70
98663 Heldburg (Ummerstadt)
Opening hours:
Not open to the general public outside of their annual Brauhausfest
Output: 200 HL
History of Ummerstadt Brauhaus
The current Brauhaus dates back to 1861 but according the their sign, brewing dates back to time immemorial or at least 1710. They brew for about a week, once in spring and autumn. Everything is done by hand. It’s a real museum piece brewery and it’s worth going out to the Brauhausfest just to tour it.
inside the fascinating Ummerstadt Brauhaus
Though I love seeing these old breweries, far more than modern ones that generally bore me, I always feel like I’m missing out on drinking time, especially if that’s limited. So, what I loved about this place, even though they had a full on Fest on the main square of town, they also had a barrel going here. Not only that, they had little sandwiches. The real bonus was it was way cooler than the hot square which was nearly treeless.
barrel poured beer & snack during the tour
Ummerstadt Brauhaus Brauhausfest
Ummerstadt Brauhaus holds the Brauhausfest once a year, usually in June. It’s a word of mouth kind of thing so I was happy when a good friend who’s also a member of a communal brewery gave me the date. Since I couldn’t get a lift, I was glad to find out their was a direct bus there and more importantly, one returning. I only had a few hours but it was enough. The festival takes place right on the picturesque main square. It was unfortunately scorching hot so not an ideal spot. I would imagine on a cooler day, it would have been idyllic.
enjoying the great tastes of Ummerstadt Brauhaus Brauhausfest
Ummerstadt Brauhaus beer & food
The Ummerstadt Brauhaus Haustrunk was a lovely dry session ale that hit the spot on this hot Fest day. The Bratwurst were typically excellent as you expect in Thüringen but the real bonus was an incredible rhubarb cake. I especially loved that I’ll use this to get my wife to join me next year. Well, that and the incredible half-timbered old town.
It was a brief but great visit to the Ummerstadt Brauhaus Brauhausefest and I hope I’m lucky enough to do it again in two years.
Beers on tap: Ummerstadt Brauhaus Haustrunk.
Similar communal brewery experiences in Thuringia can be found in Hildburghausen county.
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