Cycling through Bavaria - the land of beer
With 640 breweries located within the state, beer is just as much a part of Bavaria as King Ludwig and the Neuschwanstein Palace! So why not explore the diversity of Bavaria and its beer by bike?
If the leg of the journey planned for the day is a little longer than usual then a “Radler” (shandy) may be a good idea! We have put together some route suggestions for you that will take you from Kulmbach in Franconia to Mittenwald in Upper Bavaria. Please contact local tourist offices for information about accommodation along the route.
Day 1: Kulmbach
The unofficial capital of beer and childhood home of Thomas Gottschalk and home to the Bavarian Brewery Museum is the ideal place to begin this exploration of beer in Bavaria. This is where you will find out everything you have ever wanted to know about the drink that the Bavarians commonly refer to as “Manna“ including the origins of beer some 5,000 years ago in the country known today as Iraq. Kulmbach is a wonderfully romantic town and the ideal setting for your first glass or three of this hugely popular “barley juice”!
Bayerisches Brauereimuseum
Hofer Straße 20
95326 Kulmbach
Phone: +49 (0)9221 80514
Opening hours: Tuesday - Sunday 10 am - 5 pm
www.bayerisches-brauereimuseum.de
Tourist-Service in der Stadthalle
Sutte 2
95326 Kulmbach
Phone: +49 (0)9221 9588-0
www.kulmbach.de
Day 2: Bamberg
Following an easy route along the Main valley cycle trail it’s just 112 km to Bamberg where the entire city centre with its half-timbered houses and winding alleyways has been designated a World Heritage Site. The cellars of the city are home to thousands of barrels of beer. In Bamberg where the beer gardens are known as beer cellars, a particular speciality of the city is the "Rauchbier“ (smoked beer) made by beech-smoking the barley prior to brewing. It may not be to everyone’s taste but it’s definitely worth a tasting!
Brauereiausschank Schlenkla
Dominikanerstraße 6
96049 Bamberg
Phone: +49 (0)951 56060
www.schlenkerla.de
Tourismus & Kongress Service
Geyerswörthstraße 3
96047 Bamberg
Phone: +49 (0)951 871161
www.bamberg.de
Day 3: Neumarkt in the Upper Palatinate
Following the Regnitz cycle trail, the Regnitz Valley trail and the Five-Rivers trail this next stage of our journey takes us to Neumarkt in the Upper Palatinate (112 km). Neumarkt is famous for its organic brewery. For, in addition to adhering to the German purity laws the Lammsbräu brewery in Neumarkt - Germany’s largest organic brewery - pays great attention to the quality of the ingredients going into its beer.
Neumarkter Lammsbräu
Amberger Straße
92318 Neumarkt
Phone: +49 (0)9181 4040
www.lammsbraeu.de
Landratsamt Neumarkt in der Obe rpfalz
Zentrale Tourist-Information
Nürnberger Straße 1
92318 Neumarkt i.d.OPf.
Phone: +49 (0)9181 470-313
www.landkreis-neumarkt.de
Day 4: Weltenburg
The "Tour de Baroque“ trail takes us on the next stage of our tour from Neumarkt to Kelheim where we embark on a river cruiser through the Danube Aperture to Weltenburg Abbey. Today’s leg is some 93 km long. The Danube Aperture caused by the waters of the river carving a gorge through the soft limestone rock is equally as beautiful as the Lorelei. On the other side of the gorge is Weltenburg that together with Weihenstephan in Freising is home to the oldest brewery in the world, established in 1050. Although the brewery and taproom have now been leased out by the monks they still keep a careful eye on the beer prices even though they are entitled to unlimited free beer themselves.
Klosterschenke Weltenburg
Asamstraße 32
93306 Kelheim
Phone: +49 (0)9441 3682
www.weltenburger.de
Tourist-Information Kelheim
Ludwigsplatz 16
93309 Kelheim,
Phone: +49 (0)9941 701234
www.kelheim.de
Day 5: Erding
From Weltenburg the Danube cycle trail takes us on the next stage of the journey to Bad Gögging where we pick up the Abensweg trail to Langenbach and then the Isar cycle path to Freising. Here we join the “Durchs Erdinger Land“ trail on the final leg of day five’s route to Erding (97 km in total). Today’s tour which has taken us through the Hallertau (between Kelheim and Pfaffenhofen) where a quarter of the world’s hop harvest is grown finishes up in Erding - home to one of the most well-known Weißbiers (wheat beer).
Privatbrauerei Erdinger Weißbräu
Franz-Brombach-Straße 1-20
85438 Erding
Phone: +49 (0)8122 4090
www.erdinger.de
Fremdenverkehrsamt Erding
Landshuter Straße 1
85435 Erding
Phone: +49 (0)8122 4080
www.erding.de
Day 6: Aying
From Erding onwards there is no long-distance cycle trail to follow so we continue along the road via Wörth, Markt Schwaben, Ebersberger Forst and Oberpframmern to Aying (55 km) where you can enjoy a typical Upper Bavarian panorama of lush green meadows as far as the eye can see interspersed with the occasional farm or onion-domed church tower. Aying is however home to a brewery guesthouse that is even mentioned in the Michelin guide. This is almost certainly due to the beer list in which the brewery’s beers are described in the same gushing tones usually used for wines. This progressive and dedicated brewery run by Franz Inselkammer, receives due accolades every year for the specialty beers brewed there.
Brauereigasthof Hotel Aying
Zornedinger Straße 2
85635 Aying,
Phone: +49 (0)8095 90650
www.ayinger-bier.de
Gemeindeverwaltung Aying
Kirchgasse 4
85653 Aying
Phone: +49 (0)8095 9095-0
www.aying.de
Day 7: Mittenwald
On leaving Aying the first stage of the tour once again follows ordinary roads to Gmund. Here we pick up the Lake Constance – Lake Königsee cycle trail and continue passed the Zugspitze to Mittenwald (114km) with its 100 year-old brewhouse and exhibition of historic tools. This final stage of our tour affords the most stunning views of the Karwendel massif. Once you get there you can put your feet up, relax and enjoy a nice cool glass of beer as you watch the sun go down.
Brauerei Mittenwald Mathias Neuner KG
Innsbrucker Straße 13
82481 Mittenwald
Phone: +49 (0)8823 1007
www.brauerei-mittenwald.de
Kurverwaltung Mittenwald
Dammkarstraße 3
82481 Mittenwald
Phone: +49 (0)8823 33981
www.mittenwald.de
Further Information about bavarian beer:
Servicebüro Bayerische Biere
Karlstraße 44
80333 München
Phone: +49 (0)89 31909390
www.bayerisches-bier.de
