Andreas-Maisel-Weg 1
95445 Bayreuth
Tel.: +49 921 46008020
www.maiselandfriends.com
www.liebesbier.de
Bayreuth Station 1.3 km
Opening hours:
Liebesbier restaurant:
Monday to Friday 8:30-00:00
Weekends & holidays 9:30-00:00
Maisel’s Bier Erlebniswelt (tour with audio guide):
Daily 11:00-17:00
The Maisel family’s brewing heritage traces back to Obernsees where the start up existed in the mid-1800s for about thirty years. The sons founded the offshoot in Bayreuth in 1887, dubbing it appropriated Brauerei Geb. Maisel (Maisel Brothers Brewery). The original beautiful red brick building serves new purposes but thankfully remains intact as a monument to Bayreuth’s brewing historical glory. In 1955, they made an unusual decision to introduce a Weissbier and this remains their claim to fame with their popularity prominent not only in Germany but as an export too.
the old Brauerei Gebrüder Maisel building
They have owned a majority of the neighboring Bayreuther Bierbrauerei since 1965 and operate somewhat independently with Maisel concentrating on top fermenting wheat beers and the other on bottom fermenting lagers. That is until the Maisel & Friends brand featuring Craft Beer was introduced in 2012. This surprisingly successful venture has led to the entire facility’s “reinvention” as a Beer Experience (Bier Erlebnis Welt) with a upmarket hotel, gourmet restaurant/pub and visitor center. I did not have time to “experience” it all, nor take photos of the old brewery’s or their Bierkellers. That will have to wait until a summer visit, hopefully in 2022. I did, however, go to their restaurant, Liebesbier.
ultra modern Liebesbier
This facility has been here for about five years. Though the focus of this January 2022 trip to Bayreuth was to check out Manns Bräu and my favorite in town, Becher Bräu, I figured I’d stop briefly at Liebesbier to take some photos and have a few beers. From the approach, I was very impressed with the entire operation. It was grandiose even on a US scale. It wasn’t just the size, it was how smoothly it was run and the general friendliness. The bartender was quite good and after a beer and a look at their intriguing if pricey menu, I decided to have lunch there for a more extensive if not entirely complete experience.
Aktien Landbier Fränkisch Dunkel & just some of the many taps
I started off with the Aktien Landbier Fränkisch Dunkel from the Bayreuther Bierbrauerei. I’d had what I believe was this beer south of Munich and had liked it. It came in a full size pint and gave me time to check out their extensive menu and to gauge their beer with a “regular” one. They had a range of their own beers as well as those from their sister brewery. They also had an array of guest Craft Beers which were unsurprisingly pricey, though to be fair they offered small servings if you just wanted to try them and they were reasonable by Munich standards.
Maisel & Friends Dry Stout & pulled goose
I moved onto their Dry Stout next and ordered pulled goose. It took awhile for the dish to come out but it was not only a marvelous presentation but really tasty too. The quality was excellent and the price of just under 20€ didn’t seem so bad once I tasted it. The fried dumplings that came with it were perfect and if I could make one suggestion, a third one would be most welcome!
Maisel & Friends’ IPA & the pub area
I could have easily spent the afternoon there but I had another stop so finished up with their IPA. While not the most robust one, it would make an easy drinking session beer if you had the time and inclination. I showed my wife the photos and she’s ready for a visit so hopefully we’ll be back together this summer.
second visit with my wife was a resounding success
I never manged to get my wife to Liebesbier in the summer of 2022 but we made a quick lunch stop on the May 1st holiday in 2023. She loved the Dry Stout and we both though the burgers were the best we’ve ever had in Germany. They even cooked them medium rare, something most restaurants refuse to do. I finally tried the noted Maisels Original Weisse and their Hoppy Hell as well.
his & her desserts
Despite the burgers being so large, I wasnted to try their West Coast IPA and my wife noticed homemade ice cream in quite a few flavors and opted for the stout caramel. She thought it was yummy and the West Coast IPA was much better than their standard IPA I’d had on my first visit.
My wife enjoyed the ambiance and it’s certainly a big departure from your usual Franconian brewpub stops. I’m sure we’ll be back for a meal again soon
Beers on tap: Bayreuther Hell, Bayreuther Aktien Landbier Fränkisch Dunkel, Bayreuther Aktien Zwickel, Maisel’s Original Weisse, Maisel & Friends Pale Ale, Maisel & Friends Hoppy Hell, Maisel & Friends India Ale, Maisel & Friends Weizen IPA, Maisel & Friends West Coast IPA, Maisel & Friends IPA, Maisel & Friends Dry Stout, Veltins Pilsner plus some of their own rotating beers. In addition to this already exhaustive list, they have quite a few rotation guest beers. I was surprised to even see one from Italian Craft Beer icon Brew Fist!
Bottled beers range from Maisel & Friends Stephan’s Indian Ale, Maisel & Friends Marc’s Chocolate Bock and Maisel & Friends Jeff’s Bavarian Ale to an assortment of American Craft Beer classics and Belgian standards.
At any rate, you will probably run out of money before you run out of choices!
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