Ten days ago, I had the absolute pleasure to visit Germany for two Tap Takeovers and a collaboration brew. As a huge fan of German beer and beer culture, it had been a long-standing ambition of mine to get our beer into Germany. To then have the chance to be reunited with it, and see how much the local people embraced and enjoyed it was just the icing on the cake (or maybe that should be the froth on the pint?)!
The story began with a chance encounter back in February at the Great British Beer Festival Winter, held at Rotherhamâs MAGNA. Whilst behind our bar at the festival, I got chatting to two friendly Germans (Roland and Fritz), who had travelled over to the UK specifically for the festival. I joked with them I couldnât imagine why Germans would travel to the UK for a beer festival, surely, it should be the other way around, but they enjoy the UK beer scene as much as I enjoy the German beer scene. Their purchase of two beanie hats, and them subsequently donning them right away (it was chilly as anyone who has been to MAGNA will relate to!), led me to ask if we could take a photo to put on our social media channels. Their only stipulation was could we tag their brewery and craft beer bar based in Bonn in the post. My next question was to ask if they knew the right people to contact that import UK beer into Germany, and to my delight, they said they sometimes import beer themselves!
Over the following weeks and months, emails chains ever increasing in length, we finally managed to find a mutually convenient date for the trip. Beer selected from our extensive range, pallet constructed, and beer shipped! (Itâs easy this exporting lark, definitely no extra awkward hurdles to overcome since a silly little vote happenedâŠ). Fast forward a few weeks and I find myself at Terminal 3 at Manchester Airport ready for the short flight over to Cologne. Having only met Roland in person briefly over six months previously, he was concerned I might not recognise him, so he helpfully sent me a photograph so there was to be no confusion at the arrivals loungeâŠ
Having located the man wearing Moonshine socks, driven over to Cologne, and checked into the hotel, no visit to Cologne is complete without visiting a traditional brauhaus, to sample some Kölsch and tuck into some Himmel und Ăd at the Haus Unkelbach. There are now only three main Kölsch breweries in Cologne, FrĂŒh, Gaffel and Reissdorf, and the Reissdorf Kölsch we had here was delicious. Light, crisp, a full malt led body leading to a bitter finish. The locals are incredibly loyal to their beer style, and with Kölsch being brewed with a yeast that is top-cropping (like traditional British ale yeast), rather than a bottom-cropping yeast (like most lager yeasts), the foamy head dissipates quite quickly. Therefore instead of the large 1L glass you often associate with German beer, Kölsch is served in very narrow 200ml glasses, and the servers are always buzzing around to replace empty ones.
Although I would have happily stayed all evening in the beer garden, work beckoned, and we headed into the centre of the city to the wonderful Craft Beer Corner in the shadow of the magnificent cathedral. Marc and his staff were wonderful hosts, and were pouring seven of our beer amongst the 15 taps on offer. Relatively lower strength beers (ie under 5.0% ABV) are not widely available in Germany, Roland had mentioned he was unsure how the regulars would respond. He need not to have worried, the Dry-Hopped Deception especially was proving very popular, and I was delighted that the long journey the beer had taken had not affected the quality. The pub itself had a lovely community atmosphere, and has seemingly grown out of the local homebrewing scene. The vast majority of the regulars were all keen homebrewers and it was lovely to see them all enjoying the beer and being so appreciative of what and how we brew our beer. The night was concluded with me receiving an unexpected gift of a signed mallet! Danke Schön!
A bright and early start the next morning, and after meeting Roland on the tram, we were then picked up by Chris, the brewer from Ale Mania, for the short drive to the brewery in the outskirts of Bonn. Founded around ten years ago by Fritz, it was the first craft brewery in Bonn, and while does brew some more mainstream German beers, was set up to brew modern beers and traditional English styles. The small 1000L brewkit is in stark contrast to our 5000L kit, but it was a lot of fun getting stuck in with the brew. The main contrast I found was the calmness of the small outfit compared to the hustle and bustle of Abbeydale. We were joined for the brewday by JP, the former Ale Mania brewer, who now works for the Kuehn Kunz Rosen brewery in Mainz.
The beer we brewed is called âAbbey Maniaâ and is a 5.4% modern pale ale, featuring equal quantities of a German hop, Solero, and an English hop, Harlequin. These two hops are both relatively new, and have been specifically grown to emulate the intense tropical and citrus fruit flavours more associated with American or Antipodean hops. Iâm very hopeful we can find a way of getting some of the beer back over to the UK so we can see how it has turned out.
As the brewday was winding down, the front half of the brewery was then set up to welcome the good folk of Bonn as a little tap room. Similar to Craft Beer Corner, the atmosphere generated by people that came down was really lovely, and they were family friendly too, a toddler playing with a big tub of bottle caps was incredibly heart-warming. We couldnât stay too long though, before we had to head into the centre of Bonn for the second tap takeover at Plato Beer & BBQ. Five beers on tap here, and what an incredible location for a bar. A superb beer garden that was packed to the rafters with thirsty and hungry folk. The food was delicious, and again the beer was flowing, and Sean and his staff were again incredibly hospitable hosts, and I was also introduced to Thomas from Beerolution who had helped to facilitate the import of the beer.
I think the overwhelming favourite of the evening was Black Mass, at points I could see whole tables all drinking Black Mass at once. As the sun descended and the temperature started dropping, we were all moved downstairs to the cellar bar. Low vaulted ceilings, various nooks and crannies, a slightly damp musty atmosphere, it felt as if we had been transported back in time. The cellar bar had an almost mystical quality, a brilliant place to enjoy some beer and fine company.
Heading back to Cologne in the early hours of the morning made a lie-in highly necessary, but I still managed to have a bit of a wander around Cologne on the Saturday, taking in the very impressive (and previously mentioned) Cathedral, the Kölner Dom. It was once the tallest building in the world, and remains the third tallest church in the world today. A stroll along the Rhine was all I had time for before heading back to the airport to conclude a whirlwind 48hrs.
I would like to extend a huge thank you to Roland, Fritz, Marc, Sean, Chris, Thomas and JP for their hospitality, generosity and kindness. Also, a big shout out all the people that came out to try the beers! Seeing our beers being enjoyed and appreciated by some of the most discerning beer drinkers on the planet gives me great belief and pride that we brew world-class beer, and it is an absolute privilege to represent the brewery while abroad.
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Until next time,
Robin
