Viereth-Trunstadt is the larger area that small village Weiher is part of. It’s not far from the Panoramawanderug that passes some nice rural scenery, as well as a few other fine breweries. Aside from that, there is little of interest aside from their renowned Kundmüller brewery, makers of the fine line of Weiherer beers.
Brauerei-Gasthof Kundmüller (Weiher)
Weiher 13
Viereth-Trunstadt 96191
www.brauerei-kundmueller.de
Opening hours:
Closed Wednesday
Daily from 9:00
Bamberg Station 12 km/nearest bus is in Viereth
Output: 20,000 HL
Founded in 1874 and still in the Kundmüller family, this fine traditional brewery has done what few others have, they’ve managed to maintain an old world feel along with some typical Franconian beers while stepping successfully into the realm of the craft beer phenomenon finally taking hold in Germany. From the outside, it looks typical of the area and the Biergarten has the leafy trees that take time to grow. While the interior has been renovated, they’ve gone for dark wood which gives it a timeless feel.
timeless feel of Weiher’s pub
I’ll be honest, I’d never been driven to come to Kundmüller despite having tried quite a few of their beers in bottles. There was nothing wrong with them but nothing grabbed me in particular. On a recent trip, heading to nearby Schlüsselfeld to visit a brewery I did want to go to, I saw Weiher was on the way. Since they were reported to have a nice Biergarten and the day looked fine, we decided to finally give it a go. Unfortunately, the weather turned a little sour just before we got there so we safely took a spot inside the cozy pub.
cozy with some nice modern touches to the otherwise traditional decor
It had a nice modern but still traditional feel and when I saw the extensive beer menu, I wondered what had taken me so long to come. I started off with their Schwärzla, a magnificent Schwarzbier with a stout-like appearance. It was as good as it looked and my driving wife was envious after a very small sip. Surely, this should have been our overnight stop.
Schwärzla, the black beauty
Since this was kind of last minute and we were stopping at another brewery soon after, where we would spend the night, we decided to share their mixed meat plate. It was ample and of excellent quality and value. It was from their own butcher and it tasted like it. I went for their Urstöffla, a Dunkles with a long dry finish.
a great house-butchered mixed meat plate & their Urstöffla
This was supposed to be a quick stop but with an IPA on tap and small tasters available (I know, why didn’t I do that with my first two?), my ever-so-understanding wife (and driver) gave the go-ahead for one more, and it was yet another winner. On the way out, we got a couple Schwärzla in bottles to go and noticed another IPA (not on tap) which was a collaboration with Fat Head Brewery in Ohio so got two of them, too.
another winner, this time an IPA with nice balance
It was long past time to go but after discovering they have great value rooms on the premises, something tells me next time we’re in the area, my wife is going to pick this one as the overnight stop, and I’m certainly not going to argue. Great value food, huge well-priced tap selection and a cozy pub and shady wee treed Biergarten. What’s not to love?
Visit #2: Well, one of the great parts of writing Beer Hiking Bavaria was I got to go to a lot of places in a short amount of time. One of them was Weiher and I got to spend two great nights in their very nice great-value guesthouse just out back. I hiked in from Bischberg and got to enjoy the Biergarten on a nice warm day, while sampling three of their session beers: Lagerbier, Keller and Pils along with mixed meat plate.
first meal and beer in the Weiherer Biergarten
I’d hoped to do another hike that afternoon but was wiped out from the hot hike in so decided to enjoy the Biergarten a bit more. I had a nice rhubarb cake with their Rolator and later had a plate of Dosenfleisch for dinner since it was missing on my plate of meats earlier and it was still light out.
enjoying the Biergarten & its many fruits
After an early morning hike the next day, I stopped in the Biergarten for a quick Somerweizen before heading to my room for a shower. I’d had a great ample breakfast so no need for anything to eat just yet.
another advantage staying there: an empty late morning Biergarten
After my shower, I had a good size hot lunch of roast pork and dumplings along with a small Urstöffla, a full size Schwärzla and a small Rauchbier for dessert.
roast pork with dumplings & a small Rauchbier
After an afternoon hike largely in the rain and another hot shower, I had some soup, another mixed meat plate and an assortment of beers: Keller Märzen, Zwickerla Hell, Bock, Weizenbock and Hopferla. One of the best things about Weiherer was they had small serving glasses, making it possible to have a few of their many beers on tap.
quite the farewell feast
I was glad to be staying steps away but sad to be leaving in the morning. Weiher is a great place to stay and a beer destination in itself. My wife unfortunately couldn’t make it but once she sees these photos, there’s another Weiher trip in our future, I’m sure.
With a long lockdown, I’ve sought out some of their beers in shops and haven’t been disappointed:
two collaborations with Cervejaria Bamberg & a tribute Alt
I finally made it back with my wife for an overnight stop after a few COVID-thwarted attempts. She was ecstatic to finally enjoy a few pints of her beloved Schwärla on tap as well as a tasty Jägerschnitzel.
D finally gets to stay at Weiherer
I started off with a pair of tasters of beers I’d not had before, their award-winning Summer Ale and Grünhopfen Pils. Despite it being a cold night made for dark beer, both were excellent and their hoppy palates served well as an aperitif.
two hoppy treats as an aperitif
I got the Braumeister Schnitzel, coated in spent grain, and a Schwärzla to wash it down as well as the photo opportunity of one of the beers featured in Beer Hiking Bavaria.
Schnitzle, beer & book
With a long night ahead of us, I ordered a plate of Dosenfleisch and resampled some old favorites but my wife stuck to her Schwärzla.
a post meal snack & more beers
Beers on tap: Lagerbier, Pils, Zwickerla Hell, Rauch, Kellerbier, Weizen Hell, Keller Märzen, and Urstöffla on regular basis. Seasonals (when I was there): Schwärzla, Summer Ale, Grünhopfen Pils, Grand IPA.
If that’s not enough for you, in bottles: Landbier, Keller-Pils, OSwALT (an Altbier), Zwickerla Dunkel and Bock on a regular basis. Specialty beers include: Rolator (a commemorative Heller Dopplebock), Zapfenduster Imperial Stout and Rauchbock (both collaborations with Cervejaria Bamberg),, Hopferla IPA (collaboration wth Fat Head Ohio), Weizenbock, Bock Bourbon Style aged in bourbon barrels, Dopplebock aged in rum barrels, Weizenbock aged in sherry barrels and a Weizenbock aged in Dornfelder oak barrels (actually unavailable when I was there but it was coming back again).
Beer calendar:
Maibockanstich is the 4th weekend in April
Kerwa is 4th weekend in May
Sommerweizen in summer
Bockbierantich is the 3rd weekend in October (Bock (bottle)/Bock (on tap) & Weizenbock (bottle)/Weizenbock (on tap)
Rauchbockanstich in December
Maybe we better stay a few nights. 😉
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