Germany's lesser-known beers that are worth a try
As opposed to international beer day, which is celebrated in August, Germany's beer day is set on this date to commemorate the passage of the
Reinheitsgebot
(or the Purity Law) on April 23rd, 1516. The Purity Law stated that beer may only consist of water, malt, hops and yeast.
Germany is home to around 6,000 different beers, according to a
report
by
RND,
and to recommend any of them above the others is sure to invite some serious backlash among German aficionados.
As to my own credentials, I won't claim to be an expert, but I have drunk nearly 400 different German beers since I arrived in Germany, and I kept track of the good and the bad with a rating app.
READ ALSO:
365 German beers - What I learned from drinking a different variety each day
So, based on my own exploration of German beers, here are a few suggestions of some good, and lesser-known, brews that you could crack open to celebrate this special day.
When in Bavaria
While the whole country of Germany is known for its beer, Bavaria has really done some heavy lifting to build that reputation and keep it alive.
Munich's Oktoberfest is the largest beer-drinking festival in the world, and a
Lederhosen-
wearing German with a litre of
Helles
in hand is undoubtedly the image that comes to mind for most people outside of the country when they think of German beer.
Thanks in no small part to the aforementioned
Reinheitsgebot
(which originated in Bavaria) the Free State's most popular beers are classic types made by a handful of established breweries. By and large Bavaria is not the place to come looking for innovative, new craft breweries. It's where you come to find pure beer that's been brewed in the same way, and served in the same
biergartens
for centuries.
A perfect, and somewhat lesser-known example of this is Kloster Andechs. Benedictine monks have been brewing beer at the Andechs Monastery since 1455.
A more recent up-and-comer is the Giesinger Brewery. Founded in 2007, Giesinger has quickly become a local favourite around the Bavarian capital, but interestingly the Association of Munich Breweries has so far managed to prevent it from being called a
'Münchner Bier'
or from being sold at Oktoberfest.
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Not too far to the north, the Franconian region is home to its own collection of breweries. I've heard it said that upper Franconia is home to the
highest number of breweries per capita in the world
, but I've also seen other sources give that title to other places. One thing that's certain however, is that you could taste beers for a lifetime around here.
Nuremberg is famous for its
Rotbier
(red beer) which get their colour from being stored in old wine barrels. One of my favourite German beers is the Nürnberger Rotbier by Hausbrauerei Altstadhof, which you can visit near the base of the city's castle.
The Hertl brewery from this region is also worth a mention.
If you are in the mood for something different, try Hertl's 'Schwiegervater's Stolz', which is their take on a
smoked beer – a unique type that is especially popular in Bamberg.
The classic Bamberg
Rauchbier
to try is called Aecht Schlenkerla – either the
Märzen
(Festbier) or the Urbock.
READ ALSO:
Travel in Germany - Sipping smoked beer and soaking up culture in beautiful Bamberg
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When in Berlin
Berlin's classic beers are all pretty plain pilsners, such as the well-known Berliner Pilsener or Kindl.
But the German capital is also home to a number of smaller breweries that have started to gain some notoriety – at least in the local scene – and increasingly it's also home to some interesting craft breweries.
A glass of beer rests on the counter at Eschenbräu in Berlin's Wedding neighbourhood. Photo: picture alliance / dpa | Henrik Josef Boerger
BRLO is probably the Berlin craft brewery with the widest name recognition, but for something a little more interesting I'd say head to Eschenbräu or Vagabund - both based in the district of Wedding - instead.
These both offer some of their own craft recipes as well as their takes on the German classics. In my opinion these smaller breweries feel a bit more authentic, and serve fresher tasting beers than the larger generic-feeling breweries.
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Fuerst Wiacek is a Berlin-based micro brewery creating the kinds of uniquely branded recipes that would give even the wildest California-breweries a run for their money. This one doesn't have its own brick-and-mortar location, but you can
find it
at a number of bars and shops in Berlin and elsewhere.
Another great Berlin-based brewery is Quartermeister, which has set itself the task of being the first beer 'for the common good', meaning the company is organised as a social enterprise and also supports local projects. Oh, and their beers are all really tasty of course!
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DW
3 days ago
- DW
Helping women refugees in Germany find work – DW – 08/10/2025
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Local Germany
5 days ago
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'Smile and make conversation': How to make friends with Germans
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Local Germany
6 days ago
- Local Germany
Eight German words I now use in English
I didn't know anyone when I first arrived in Germany, and barely a word of the language. My first teacher was the TV, which meant that my first complete sentence was Ich bin nicht bewaffnet ("I'm not armed") – a phrase I've luckily never had to use in real life. One thing led to another, however, and not only is my German fluent now but it's started actively colonising my native language. Here are a few German words I've started using more and more when I speak English. Mensch These days, regardless of whether I'm speaking German or English, whenever I need to express surprise, frustration or empathy, Mensch is the word that just comes tumbling out. I can't remember the last time I said 'bloody hell' or 'no way' in English. Now it's always ' Mensch , I can't believe he did that' or ' Mensch , I'm sorry to hear that.' Literally, the word means 'human' or 'person' in the sense of Menschenrechte ('human rights'). As an exclamation, it's short, sharp and easy to pronounce. Weirdly, perhaps because I like saying it so much, I've also found myself using the word in the Jewish sense of an upstanding or honourable person: 'The guy's a real Mensch .' Doch Doch is one of those German words it takes an age to start using, but then when you do, it's almost impossible to stop. This is mostly because we don't really have an English equivalent. The closest is probably 'yes, but…' or 'yes, and…' In other words, doch has become my go-to word whenever I want to sound as if I really value someone's input, but (with regret) find it necessary to flatly contradict whatever it is they're saying. READ ALSO: These things about the German language still make no sense to me I honestly don't know if I'd still be married without doch in my life. I like it so much I find I often say it twice at the beginning of a sentence (' Doch doch , we can still make it if we leave now.') More prosaically, doch is also used in German to contradict a negative sentence – in the sense of 'You don't have a car, do you?' 'Yes (I do)' – and to offer friendly encouragement: Komm doch mit, meaning '(I want you to) come with us'. Genau Doch's better half, Genau means 'exactly' or 'that's right' and is used endlessly in German conversation, which must be why it now appears in all my English conversations, as well. In German, I can sometimes spend a whole evening in the pub without needing to say anything except either doch or genau . There are times, after a long day at work, when I wish English could be half as economical. Unverschämt Soon after I arrived in Germany, in order to meet people and learn the language, I joined a football club. The experiment worked so well that for a time German actually became my football language – a fact which became clear to me on a trip back home when I started shouting Geh drauf ('close him down') and Schieß ('shoot') at the TV during an England - Germany game. Advertisement Unable to understand what I was saying, my friends thought I was cheering for Germany. My behaviour, in their opinion, was truly Unverschämt. Used when someone is being rude or out of order, Unverschämt literally means 'shameless'. I seem to use the word constantly, regardless of which language I'm speaking, either muttering it quietly under my breath or using it to comfort my friends, wife, or children whenever they start describing the latest injustice they've suffered at work or school. Geht nicht Of course, I don't always mindlessly agree with everything my children say. When faced with questions like 'Can I borrow twenty euros?', 'Can I stay over at Matilda's tonight?' or 'Can I have a new handy?' My stock response here – after explaining for the 400th time that 'handy' isn't an English word – is Geht nicht. Meaning that something is impossible or can't be done, Geht nicht ( and Geht, meaning the opposite) have become the words my wife and I use in all our otherwise English-language conversations about logistics. READ ALSO: Five myths about German that language learners should ignore 'What about the 15th?' Geht nicht. 'The 16th?' Geht. Na & Ne They're everywhere! The evil twins of German-language contagion. Germans often begin conversations with the word Na – meaning 'So' or 'Well' or 'Hey' – and conclude sentences with the word ne, which is short for nicht wahr (not true) and is used in the way that English speakers use 'right?' or 'isn't it?' at the end of a sentence. Advertisement And now I can't stop doing it either, despite the fact I know I sound ridiculous: 'Na, all good? You're going on Saturday, ne?' READ ALSO: 'Umpf' - Six noises to help you sound like a German Quatsch I love the English words 'nonsense' and 'bollocks' but not as much as I've come to adore Quatsch , which can be used in either context and is just so satisfying to say. On trips back to England, old friends are invariably mystified when I suddenly ejaculate: 'but that's doch Quatsch, ne .' Kiez There are lots of German words I've started using simply because there's no good English equivalent, from Fremdschämen (feeling embarrassed by someone else's actions) to Treppenwitz ('staircase joke", or the thing you wish you'd said once it's too late), but the one I can't do without is Kiez . Mostly associated with Berlin and Hamburg, it means neighbourhood, but with a much stronger sense of community and the implication of an area which has a distinct local identity. Advertisement I love my Kiez in Berlin, and find I can't bring myself to talk it down as either a "neighbourhood" or an "area", even with people who've never heard the word Kiez before and for whom it has absolutely no meaning. What German words have made their way into your English? Let us know in the comments!
