Characteristic products
Wurst is THE Bavarian specialty, and comes in all shapes and sizes. The region's most famous is probably Weisswurst ("white sausage"), made from pork, veal and spices. It is cooked in water and the skin must be removed before eating. Stockwurst is almost identical but shorter, while Wollwurst has the same filling but is not molded in a casing. It is poached directly and then grilled.
In Franconia, the specialty is called Nürnberger Rostbratwurst or simply Bratwurst. This grilling sausage is everywhere, often served with mustard in a bun. Despite its name, Bierwurst contains no beer. But this very thick, finely spiced smoked sausage is sliced and served with beer. Milzwurst, or spleen sausage, is also very thick. It is therefore cut into slices, breaded and fried. Regensburger Wurst originates from Regensburg and resembles a small, richly spiced Frankfurter.
On the charcuterie side, there's the inevitable Leberkäse ("liver cheese"), which strangely enough contains neither liver nor cheese. Instead, it's a finely chopped meatloaf. Or try Presssack (head cheese) or the excellent Black Forest smoked ham, not forgetting Griebenschmalz (bacon spread).
Bavaria also produces fine cheeses such asAllgäuer Bergkäse, similar to Emmental, or Rauchkäse, a smoked cheese with a thin brown rind. Weißlacker is nicknamed "beer cheese". It has a very thin rind, a buttery texture and a powerful taste that goes well with beer and rye bread. Some blue-veined cheeses are more recent creations, such as Bavaria Blu or Chiriboga.
Among vegetables, potatoes are everywhere: boiled, fried, in salads or in the form of dumplings. Sauerkraut is also a popular choice. From May onwards, asparagus (Spargel) is back on the menu, and Germans love it, usually with hollandaise sauce.Hopfenspargel (young hop shoots), rare but highly prized, are only picked in February-March. Finally, mushrooms abound in Bavaria's thick forests: ceps, morels, chanterelles and more.
Eating habits and celebrations
The day begins with breakfast(Frühstück), often a hearty affair featuring cold cuts, cheese, rolls, jam and hot drinks. Lunch(Mittagessen) ranges from a simple snack to a full restaurant menu. The coffee break(Kaffeetrinken) at around 3 - 4 p.m. is not limited to a simple drink, but allows you to enjoy cakes and sweets with friends, especially at weekends. Germans generally dine very early, often before 7pm. Dinner(Abendessen) can be more or less varied and copious. In Bavaria, it sometimes takes the form of a "snack" or Brotzeit, consisting of cold meats, cheese, eggs or meat, accompanied by bread and salad.
The Christmas markets in Munich, Würzburg, Nuremberg and Augsburg are among the most enchanting in Europe, and are the perfect place to indulge in gingerbread, mulled wine and delicious sweets, not to mention a host of savoury dishes such as pretzels and sausages. The mascots of these markets are Zwetschgenmännla and Zwetschgenweibla, two little prune figurines decorated with traditional costumes.
Folklore and beer lovers won't want to miss the Oktoberfest. Considered the world's biggest funfair, this celebration takes place over the last two weeks of September and ends on the first Sunday in October. In figures, Oktoberfest means over 7 million visitors, almost as many liters of beer consumed, half a million chickens and almost 300,000 sausages, all spread over some 420,000 m² since 1810.
In Bavaria's major cities, especially Munich, you'll find every type of establishment and cuisine, from fast-food outlets to Michelin-starred restaurants. However, for a taste of Bavarian traditions, nothing beats a visit to a Biergarten. These terraces are usually located on the outskirts of or directly in a park, with large tables where people come to drink beer in the shade of the trees. Traditionally, you'd bring your own food, but today more and more Biergärten offer Bavarian specialities.
Bavarian cuisine classics
For a bite to eat, it's impossible not to mentionObatzda, a creamy cheese binded with butter, onion, paprika, cumin and a little beer, often accompanied by soft pretzels. Unless you prefer Kartoffelkäse, a spread made with potatoes, onions and sour cream. Salads include Kartoffel-Gurkensalat, with potato and cucumber, or Wurstsalat, with sausage strips, gherkin, radish and pickled onions. Zwiebelkuchen is an onion, bacon and cream pie, originally from Swabia.
Bavarians are fond of dumplings(Knödel). They can be made with bread(Semmelknödel), bread and bacon(Grammelknödel), potatoes(Kartoffelknödel) or in the form of steamed buns(Böhmische Knödel). They often accompany soups such as Leberknödelsuppe (liver dumpling soup) or Griessnockerlsuppe (semolina dumpling soup).
Soups are also very popular, such as Brotsuppe (bread soup flavored with beer, onion and cream), Hochzeitssuppe or "bride and groom soup" (poultry soup with chicken dumplings and small vegetables), Pfannkuchensuppe (broth with strips of herb-salted pancakes) or Kraütlsuppe, an herb soup with croutons.
Spätzle are homemade noodles eaten from Alsace to Austria, and in Bavaria you'll find Käsespätzle, cheese noodles with caramelized onions. There's also Reiberdatschi, rösti-style potato pancakes, and Schupfnudeln, wheat or potato flour and egg dumplings, similar to gnocchi, served with sauerkraut. Dumplings are also served in a sauce, such as Semmelknödel mit Pfifferlingsoße (bread dumplings with chanterelle cream). Alternatively, Bayrisch Kraut consists of shredded cabbage cooked in beef stock with lard, onion and apples, seasoned with vinegar and often served with Bratwurst or roast pork.
Of course, meat - and pork in particular - is an important part of Bavarian cuisine. Examples include Krustenbraten, a pork roast with a crispy skin, or Schweinsbraten, a pork roast recipe common in Upper Bavaria. Schäufele is roast pork shoulder with caraway seeds in a beer sauce. The classic Eisbein or Schweinshaxe is a pork shank marinated in a spicy brine and then roasted for a long time. Finally, Saure Zipfel is a Franconian dish based on Bratwurst simmered with onions, white wine and vinegar.
Schlachteplatte or Schlachtschüssel is a kind of sauerkraut garnished with potatoes or potato pancakes, bacon and various types of sausage. On the beef side, Sauerbraten is a sweet-and-sour beef stew with red wine, vegetables, spices and sometimes dried fruit. The closely related Böfflamott ("Beef a la mode") is similar to Sauerbraten , but without the sweetness and spiciness. Pichelsteiner is a stew of beef, pork and mutton with various vegetables cooked in a broth. Lake and river fish are also common. Steckerlfisch is a fish (trout, bream, corregone) skewered on a wooden stick and grilled directly, much appreciated for Oktoberfest. Alternatively, the simple Gebackener Karpfen is a recipe for roasted carp from Franconia.
Desserts and drinks
Bavarians, like the rest of Germans, have a sweet tooth, and there are many Bavarian sweets, such as theAllerseelenzopf, a braided brioche with raisins and pearl sugar prepared during All Saints' Day. Or the Germknödel, a steamed brioche filled with Powidl (spiced plum jam), sprinkled with sugar and poppy powder and topped with melted butter or custard. Dampfnudel are small brioches - sometimes filled - stewed in a milk-water-butter mixture. Gugelhupf is a soft raisin brioche better known in France by its Alsatian name: kougelhopf.
Typical of Swabia, Brenntar is a porridge made from roasted spelt flour(Musmehl), sometimes served with custard and red fruit. Auszogne or Knieküchle are hat-shaped sugar doughnuts, while the classic Apfelkücherl are tasty apple doughnuts. Kaiserschmarrn is a fluffy raisin pancake torn into pieces, sprinkled with powdered sugar and flaked almonds, then served with applesauce.
Nürnberger Lebkuchen are Nuremberg's emblematic dried fruit gingerbread cookies, which can be molded into a heart shape or coated with chocolate or sugar icing. They even have a guild founded in 1643 and a PGI. Kletzenbrot is a similar type of spice cake, richly garnished with dried fruit, then macerated in kirsch or schnapps for a long time. Last but not least, Schneeballen or "snowballs" come from Franconia and are crisp little balls of dough, traditionally sprinkled with powdered sugar, but nowadays they're topped with chocolate, strawberry icing or powdered hazelnuts.
On the pastry side, it's impossible not to mentionApfelstrudel or apple strudel, or Topfenstrudel (cottage cheese strudel). Bavarian cream is thought to have originated in Bavaria, but the actual recipe was developed in France. It is, however, a very common dessert in Germany. Baumkuchen or "tree cake" is a tube of pastry baked on a cylinder over embers. Zwetschgendatschi is a shortbread tart with plums.
Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte or Black Forest - with its layers of cocoa sponge cake, whipped cream and cherries in syrup - originated in Baden-Württemberg, but is an extremely common dessert throughout Germany. Typically Bavarian, Prinzregententorte is a multi-layered cake alternating chocolate buttercream and apricot jam, topped with chocolate icing. Finally, Bienenstich (Honeycomb) is a flaked almond cake filled with vanilla and honey cream.
The Bavarians are famous for their love of coffee, which is often drunk with a dash of cream(Sahne), whipped or not, and there are many cafés and tearooms, both old and new. Hot chocolate in Germany is often delicious and generous. Although tea is not yet very common in southern Germany, its popularity is growing. As for cold drinks,Apfelschorle, a mixture of apple juice and sparkling water, and Spezi, a soda combining cola and orange juice, are worth mentioning.
Bavarian beers, schnapps and wines
In no other Land does the word beer vibrate with such intensity as in Bavaria. There are no fewer than 650 breweries here, almost as many as in all the other German Länder combined. For example, the Weihenstephan Brewery, founded in 1040, is the oldest brewery in the world. The Andechs brewery, founded in 1455, is housed in the abbey of the same name. Founded in 1300, Kuchlbauer produces 110,000 hectolitres of white beer, while Augustiner-Bräu, established in 1328, is the oldest brewery still in operation in Munich. And let's not forget Erdinger Weißbräu (1886), the world's largest producer of white beer. Klosterbrauerei Ettal is located in a splendid Baroque monastery nestled in the Alps.
If beer is so important in Bavaria, it's because it was here that Duke Wilhelm IV promulgated the Reinheitsgebot or Beer Purity Decree in 1516, obliging brewers to use only a mixture of water, barley and hops. The Münchner Reinheitsgebot already existed in Munich in 1487. Among the most common beers is Weizenbier, a top-fermenting wheat-based beer brewed mainly in Bavaria, with a strength of 5-6°. Rich and amber-colored, Märzen is THE Oktoberfest beer. The term "Oktoberfestbier" is a protected appellation used by six Munich breweries that serve their beer - Märzen - for the event: Augustiner, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu, Löwenbräu, Paulaner and Spaten.
Originally from Lower Saxony, but emblematic of Bavaria, Bock is a powerful beer that comes in several forms: Doppelbock, ranging from golden to dark brown, with hints of toast, between 7 and 12°, and Maibock, hopped but paler. By freezing Doppelbock, you can remove some of the water from the beer to concentrate its alcohol content. The result is Eisbock - from "Eis", ice - with an alcohol content of up to 13°. Typical of Franconia, Rauchbier - produced from smoked barley - is brewed at two Bamberg breweries: Schlenkerla and Spezial. Dunkel is a Munich brown lager with a caramelized, toasted taste. The beer is also mixed with lemonade to produce Radler or panaché - very popular in Bavaria. Russ is a white beer-based panaché.
While Bavaria is a land of beer, wine also plays an important role, particularly in Franconia, with its 6,200 hectares of vineyards. White wine is grown on around 82% of the area, compared with 18% for red wine. Sylvaner, Müller-Thurgau and Riesling are the most important white grape varieties, while Domina and Pinot Noir account for the majority of red wines. The typical bottle for Franconian wine is the Bocksbeutel, shaped like a flattened flask. This bottle shape, usually reserved for high-quality wines, is emblematic of Franconia.
Lovers of strong spirits can pack a bottle of schnapps in their suitcase. In German, this vague term describes various types of strong spirits around 40°. The more precise Obstwasser or Obstler refers to fruit brandies (pear, apple, plum, quince, etc.), which are very popular in Bavaria. Kirschwasser or kirsch, made from cherries, is also very popular.
