Exploring Fränkische Schweiz
JULY 26, 2024
GenussHof Pingold
This idyllic 4th-generation farm set in the placid “Franconian Switzerland” region adopted a holistic approach in the late 80’s and today is one of the world’s largest growers of organic hops. In addition to the iconic local German “Noble” varieties Hallertauer, Hersbrucker, Spalt and Tettnang, the farm cultivates aroma varieties more commonly associated with modern craft brewing: lemony Cascade, grapefruity Mandarina Bavaria, and pepperminty Polaris. Pingold also cultivates a variety of organic grains and fruits, and a tasting of its various house-made liqueurs is a welcome feature of a visit to the farm.
KLOSTERBRAUEREI WEISSENOHE
While the southern-Bavarian giants Weihenstephaner tirelessly advertise their world’s-oldest-brewery status, the more modest Winkler family, who oversee production at Klosterbrauerei Weissenohe, has to settle for being the world’s second best: brewing here only began as late as 1100. Though his ancestors were eastern-German transplants, brewery patriarch Urban Winkler considers himself a proud Franconian, his recipes and techniques a reflection of those passed down through many generations of local monastic and family brewers. Interestingly though, Urban has also collaborated with African sorghum brewers and dabbled in marijuana beer.
FÜNF SEIDLA STEIG
The “Five ½ Liters of Beer Trail” takes hearty hiker-drinkers through nearly seven miles of woodlands, pastures, and villages, offering up five characterful local breweries — Weissenohe, Friedmann, Lindenbräu, Hofmann, and Elchbräu — as incentives at different points on the path. Such walks are a Franconian phenomenon, underscoring the density of breweries per capita in the area and the importance of small, local village producers in maintaining the traditional culture of this under-explored corner of the beer world.
THUISBRUNNER ELCH-BRÄU
While there was an inn, brewery, distillery and bakery on the site of the present-day Elch-Bräu in the 1500’s, the modern inhabitants had to completely restart there after many decades of closure. Today Georg Kugler oversees a family operation that, in keeping with the whimsical company name (“Elk Brew”) produces creative distilled spirits and craft beers in addition to more traditional Franconian lagers. Elch-Bräu is beautifully situated in the tiny historical village of Thuisbrunn, overlooked by an imposing hilltop castle first mentioned in the 1300’s. It is currently in the process of recovering from a devastating fire which closed the brewhouse for a time in 2023.
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