Seasonal Greetings!

We would like to wish all of our readers an excellent Christmas 2007.

For those of you we have met over the year, good to have met you and for those who have been on one of our tours, thanks, your custom has been greatly appreciated!

We hope to see you all again in 2008 on more of our tours!
Cheers!

Andy and Evi
Bier-Mania!

Ardennes Special/Chouffe Tour (AS-071214)

For tour photos click here.

Day 1-Friday 14 December 2007.
Louvain station. 2-30pm
After a quick introduction, 'Hello gents, this is Matt from the Stella Artois brewing factory....' we were on our way out of Louvain and onto the autoroute to the Ardennes.
After passing over the River Meuse/Maas we were into the Ardennes, Spa to our right, Malmedy to our left. Surprisingly it wasn't raining, it was freezing, yikes!
1-1 Brasserie de Bellevaux, Malmedy
First things first, straight to the cafe and a sampling of the breweries 3 beers (a 4th-Blanche/Wheat is on in the summer) then William showed us around his new copper Japanese brewery, an incredible brewery for the Ardennes where 'one-pot' breweries seem to be the norm!



A short drive across the Ardennes and onto Mont.
1-2 La Vieille Forge, Mont
Hello Boomer, how are you?
Awesome Belgium Beer Night with some amazing vintage beers dug up from Mr Chouffes's cellar. Maybe he should move more often!
Thankyou Mr Chouffe!


Day 2-Saturday 15 December
2-1 Millevertus Brasserie, Toernich
After being told to help ourselves to a beer (!) and looking around the brewery with Daniel's wife, the main man then turned up and started again with beer tasting! Great place, great beer and an amazing 'one-pot' brewery. Thanks.
2-2 Orval Monastery, Villers-devant-Orval
After some Orval cheese, a beer and some food it was back into the cold and a look around the ruins to discover the legend of Mathilde and her lost ring!
2-3 Houffalize
Quick stop, quick beer and onto Achouffe.
2-4 Achouffe Brasserie, Achouffe
Brewery tour, a mad dash to the cafe, some crazy Chouffe music then onto La Vieille Forge!
2-5 La Vieille Forge, Mont
Belgium Beer Night (another one!), some great Ardennes food and a 40-beer night! Good effort!

Day 3-Sunday 16 December
A -5°C start and we're off onto the autoroute and today is Lambic day. Past Bruxelles and onto Gooik in Vlaams-Brabant.
3-3 De Cam Geuzestekerij, Gooik
An excellent guided tour of De Cam 'blendery' by the man himself, Karel. We were also treated to an excellent bagpipe demonstration! Awesome.



Bruxelles. 2-45pm. The town is grid-locked. Rome looks tame compared with this. 'heard of the Italian job? Well this is the British Job....right turn Klide!'.
Drop-off at the traffic lights. Bye chaps....

Medieval Baere & Banquet Night (PM-071207)

Another day in the year 1516.

A wise monk once said:

He who drinks beer sleeps well.

He who sleeps well cannot sin.

He who does not sin goes to heaven.
AMEN.


Photos now online.

Medievel Baere & Banquet Night (PM-071201)

The year is 1516. The day is 23^rd April in the year of our lord. The town is Ingolstadt/Bayern.

Our rulers, Dukes Wilhelm and Ludwig have just told our brewers that they can no longer add gruit/wild herbs lavender, coriander and juniper to the beer. How on earth can I now mask those horrible tastes when I serve you your jug of beer?

They can’t even use wheat, rye, oats, peas and beans anymore. How can I serve your beer for 3 Pfennings?

Only barley, water and hops can be used. Mad. Stupid Dukes.

We call it bier from our forefather s’ Saxon word baere, the word for barley. Those pagans bastards in the north still call their crap beer Øl, they cannot even read and write, the heathens!

You, peasants are in my tavern in the city walls.

You have walked here from your dirty stinking villages in your crappy rags, why you can’t even afford the decent silk and fine cloth our ‘nobles’ wear! And what are those things on your feet. Ha ha! And I see you have your heathen children, how many Maßs will those little gits have tonight? At least they will have something decent to drink!

Well at least tonight you will probably find our food too spicy and salty anyway, it would go foul anway.

And as for you women. You are lucky our gentlemen allowed you to sit at our table, until 1100 you were banished to the kitchen where you belong. All you have brought is your stupid rules, we have to wash our hands now and we can’t even fart or burp, whatever next, using a fork like those nobles!?

You may even have some white bread instead of that hard black crap you normally have. What you don’t eat just feed to those scruffy in-bred dogs of yours.

Drunkenness is forbidden in the here as well as in the monasteries, and any of you who spills your beer must stand upright all night.

After our feudal landlords took over brewing from the monks (1250), we can even brew beer ourselves! Great. Mind you soon I think we can no longer brew in the summer as it really is getting hot (bluddy global warming!).

Mind you, after the Black Death in the 1400s there are fewer than half of us left in Europe anyway. Ha. More beer!

Since 1351 you have had your jugs filled to the mark, I cannot even put water in the beer!

So, finally, you are lucky to drink wine tonight, I managed to ‘acquire’ a wagon load from the Scloß.

Drink then, drink and take someone down a peg or two!

Prost! Cheers!

Photos from 1516, click here!

Great Belgium Beer Tour (May 2008)

This 10-day Great Belgium Beer Tour TM takes in the whole of Belgium and as well as northern France and the Biere de Garde areas.

TOUR FULL

Dates
Friday 23 May- Sunday 01 June 2008
Pick-up Düsseldorf, drop-off Bruxelles Airport.

Itinerary
The copyrighted Proposed Itinerary for the tour can be found be clicking on Proposed Itinerary. (Please email for a password). Enjoy!

More photos of Belgium, please click here.

Looking forward to a seriously awesome 10-day tour!

Highlights

• Visits to all 6 Belgium Trappiste Monasteries.
• Drink every style of Belgium beer.
  
• Cafe Culture of Antwerpen and Bruges.
• Capital City of Bruxelles for 2 nights.
• Beer Dinners at 2 of Belgium's premier restaurants.
• Biere de Garde region of Northern France.
• Saison Country.
• Lambic Country
  
• 4 Countries, Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Germany.
• Brewery visits.
  
• Ardennes.
• WW1 & WW2sights.
• Fun!
  
• And much much more.......

All enquiries and further details contact Andy by email andy@bier-mania.com or phone us here in Germany.
Cheers!

Great Belgium Beer Tour (February 2008)

This 10-day Great Belgium Beer Tour TM takes in the whole of Belgium and as well as northern France and the Biere de Garde areas.

The tour is designed to combine with the start of the Zythos Beer Festival 2008.

ONLY 4 PLACES LEFT

Dates
Thursday 21 February-Saturday 01 March 2008.
Pick-up is Düsseldorf and/or Bruxelles Airport (please ask). Drop-off is Zythos Beer Festival Saturday morning.

Itinerary
The copyrighted Example Itinerary for the tour can be found be clicking on Example Itinerary. (Please email for a password). Enjoy!

More photos of Belgium, please click here.

Looking forward to a seriously awesome 10-day tour!

Highlights

• Visits to all 6 Belgium Trappiste Monasteries.
• Drink every style of Belgium beer.
  
• Cafe Culture of Antwerpen and Bruges.
• Capital City of Bruxelles for 2 nights.
• Beer Dinners at 2 of Belgium's premier restaurants.
• Biere de Garde region of Northern France.
• Saison Country.
• Lambic Country
  
• 3 Countries, Belgium, France and the Netherlands.
• Brewery visits.
  
• Ardennes.
• WW1 & WW2sights.
• Fun!
  
• And much much more.......

All enquiries and further details contact Andy by email andy@bier-mania.com or phone us here in Germany.
Cheers!

NEW Denver and Colorado Beer Tours

Coming in 2008 (when the snow clears!) is a brand new Bier-Mania! tour outside Europe. Yep. we're off Stateside to the Wild Wild West!

After we participated at this year's annual American Homebrewers' Conference (AHA) in Denver, Colorado, and saw what a great beer place Colorado was a new tour was born, the »Colorado Mountains Wild West Special«. Strange but true!

We will be combining beer, breweries, micro-breweries, the scenery of the Rockies as well as the history of the Wild West to bring you an epic adventure. Same format as our European tours, small group size (8 maximum), travel by minibus and use those rustic hotels such as Hotel Fairplay in Fairplay.

Watch this space for details in the new year.

NEW Verdun and Lorraine, France Beer Tours

This brand new tour the »Biere de Garde Special« takes in the Lorraine region of northern France in the Meuse River region (River Maas). Heard of Verdun from WW1, prabably rings a bell with you somewhere? Anyway, that's where we are going to base these 2 to 3 day tours.

Verdun has a great nightlife as well as the micro-brewery and bier-cafe L'Estaminet as well of course some interesting history to get your teeth into.

The area is phenominal, combine some true Artisanale breweries (there aren't too many left in Belgium!), such as Rarecourt and Arnaud with WW1 history, add a brewery museum, a castle and even a Chateau brewery then you have the recipe for a good tour and of course a good time!

These tours can be combined with the »Ardennes Special«TM, the »Great Belgium Beer Tour«TM and even the »Great European Beer Tour«TM.

For more interest and to guarantee a place on our tours please email, andy@bier-mania.com or phone us up, be good to hear from you.

Oktoberfest 2008 (Sep/October 2008)

The Tour Itinerary for this year's Oktoberfest 2008 can be seen by clicking on the following link.
Please email for password.

Oktoberfest 2008 Tour Itinerary © 2008

Dates:

Tour 1 Friday 19-Monday 22 September 2008
Tour 2 Tuesday 23-Friday 26 September 2008
Tour 3 Friday 26-Monday 29 September 2008
Tour 4 Tuesday 30 September-Friday 03 October 2008
Tour 5 Friday 03-Monday 06 October 2008

Cheers!

Bohemia and Franconia Special Beer Tour (April 2008)

Next April's Bier-Mania! beer tour combines the Czech region of Bohemia with the German regions of the Oberpfalz and Franconia.

Dates
The 10-day Bohemia and Franconia Special Beer Tour TM is from Friday 11-Sunday 20 April 2008.
Pick-up/drop-off is Frankfurt Airport.

Itinerary
The copyrighted itinerary for the tour can be found be clicking on Proposed Itinerary. (Email for password). Enjoy!

More photos, please click.

Looking forward to a seriously awesome 10-day tour!

Highlights

• Regensburg Altstadt on the Danube.
• Brewery guest house (over-night) and distillery in the Bavarian Forest in Germany.
• The Šumava (Bohemian Forest) area of Czech Republic.
• České Krumlov (UNESCO World Heritage Centre)
• České Budĕjovice/Budweis (over-night)
• Budweis Pivovar/Brewery visit and tour
  
• Country breweries of Bohemia (we know where they are!)
  
• Prague (UNESCO World Heritage Centre)
• Plzeň/Pilsen Pivovar/Brewery visit and tour.
• Zoigl beers, 15 pubs with over-night in the Oberpfalz, Bavaria.
• Forchheim's 4 breweries, and the beer-cellars of the Kellerwald !
• Fränkische Schweiz and Pottenstein.
  
• Maisels Steam Brewery Museum, Bayreuth.
  
• Historic Bamberg (UNESCO World Heritage Centre).
• Bamberg's Smoked Beers and10 breweries.
  
• And much much more.......

All enquiries and further details contact Andy by email andy@bier-mania.com or phone us here in Germany.
Dobre Den or Prost!

Ardennes Special Beer Tour (December 2007)

The Ardennes Special Beer Tour TM will be from Friday 14-Sunday 16 December 2007.

Pick-up and drop-off is Bruxelles (TBC).

Friday night is Belgium Beer Night & beer meal cooked by Tine's fair-hand!

Saturday-the wonders of the Trappistes!

Sunday-Abbey crawl to Bruxelles via La Roche-en-Ardenne.

Please see Proposed Itinerary for the schedule and itinerary.
Looking forward to seeing you all on the tour!

Andy

Oktoberfest 2008 (Sep/October 2008)

BOOKINGS NOW BEING TAKEN

After our hugely successful Oktoberfest 2007, you've guessed it we are gonna go back for more and 'do' the Big O again next year in 2008!

Even if you don't like beer or big crowds, München's annual Oktoberfest is a truly unforgetable experience, there is plenty to see and do!

The Oktoberfest grounds not only has beer tents but around a 3rd of the grounds are occupied by funfairs and rides as well as food stalls selling pig rolls, chickens etc.

And contrary to a lot of what you may have heard, it is not just a 'tourists' festival'. It is a big event for Germans as well with everyone dressing up (Bier-Mania! included!) in their best Dirnd'ls and Lederhosen for the event. Children also go to the Oktoberfest, it is for everyone.

Have a look at the dates, if it's not for you then no probs, if you just want to stay for 3 days in Munich in a drunken haze then there are plenty of London based companies that do those style tours, we don't though (although we do drink a fair few 'wets'!).

The Dates
So, dates for 2008-

• Tour 1 Friday 19-Monday 22 September
  
• Tour 2 Tuesday 23-Friday 26 September
  
• Tour 3 Friday 26-Monday 29 September
  
• Tour 4 Tuesday 30 September-Friday 03 October
  
• Tour 5 Friday 03-Monday 06 October

Bookings are now being taken, first come first serve!
Prost!

Bier-Mania!

New Czech Republic Beer Tours

THE NEW BIER-MANIA! TOUR IN THE BOHEMIA REGION OF THE CZECH REPUBLIC IS NOW LIVE!

The »Bohemia Czech Special« is a 5-night/6-day tour taking in the beer culture, pivovars (breweries), pivnices (pubs) and other sites in the Bohemian region between Ceske Budejovice (Budweis), Prague and Plzen (Pilsen), this tour really is awesome!

Locations range from Eggenberg, Budweis, Regent, Platan, Lipan, Zvikov, Herold and many many more!
For some great info on great Czech breweries and beers check out the excellent site based in the Czech Republic www.czechbeerguide.com, awesome.
More details email Bier-Mania!.
For now though, some photos, enjoy.

Click on this link for photos from the Bohemia Czech Special.

The Sumava region of Bohemia. One of the remotest areas of Europe.



Ceske Budejovice main square. Gorgeous main square, countless little pivnices (pubs) are on the back streets as well!



Ceske Budejovice Pivovar brew house. Although Budweis is of course not the only brewery in Bohemia, it is one of the largest and best known. There is an excellent visitors centre at the brewery with the tours even taking in some beer from the lagering tanks! Awesome, if you're not driving.



Ceske Budejovice Pivovar lagering tanks.



Hope you are thirsty.

Dobre Den!

Oktoberfest 2007-Tour 5 (MB-071005)

Tour 5. The Danes.
The last Oktoberfest tour this year. I am sad.
Star date Friday 05 October 2007.
Just dropped off the last tour at a definitely horrible time in the morning at Nürnberg airport. Bye bye.
Oh dear, no clients. Ha, that's cause they're already in München-travelled from Denmark by overnight train, smart move with guaranteed sleep, or so they thought until someone decided to jump in front of a train somewhere near Cologne!

We don't load up (remember, everyone's in München) then it was back to the 'cannonball run' from Nürnberg to München, a 2-hour drive, this time the skies were blue and the birds were singing. And the beer-bus went a lot lot faster empty. Allianz Arena goes past in a blur.

Click this link for photos from the tour.

Today, Friday 05 October, 1200 hours (midday), Hofbräu Festzelt, Mass Kruges and Hend'l, yum yum. we are well early, gonna be a long day.



Day 2. München, great walk and a great lunchtime sesh at the Hofbräuhaus. Great day.



Day 3. Regensburg, Weltenburg Kloster, Burg Randeck, Schneider Privatbrauereigasthof. Great day.



Day 4. The last day of this year's Oktoberfest for Bier-Mania!. Drop-off Regensburg train station.

I need a break so I drive 320km across the Bayerische Wald in Germany and the Sumava in Czech, arrive in Ceske Budevice, drink some more beers, try my Czech out and hit the sack, very very hard!

Ein Prosit. Or of course Dobre Den if you're the other side of the border.

Oktoberfest 2007-Tour 4 (MB-071002)

Tour 4. Star date Tuesday 02 October.
Nürnberg airport. 3 down, 2 to go.

We load up then it was back to the 'cannonball run' from Nürnberg to München, a 2-hour drive, this time the skies were blue and the birds were singing. And we had loadsa time.

Click this link for photos from the tour.

Tuesday 02 October, 1400 hours (2pm), Hacker Festzelt, Mass Kruges and Hend'l, yum yum.



And horses need beer as well.



Day 2. Walkabout. Hofbräuhaus. Waltzing Matilda. Awesome!



On the way out.



Ein Prosit.

Oktoberfest 2007-Tour 3 (MB-070928)

After dropping off the last tour at Nürnberg airport, 5 minutes later the South Africans and New Zealanders arrive, yep, they mistook me for a 'kraut with lederhosen on'!

We load up then it was back to the 'cannonball run' from Nürnberg to München, a 2-hour drive in conditions resembling a waterfall on speed.
Anyway, we check in and then it's off to the Wies'n in some pretty yucky weather, the tent and a few beers later.....

Click this link for photos from the tour.

The Big Weekend, the busiest and the half way point for the fest! 3 million litres drank so far (just Bier-Mania!).

I wouldn't want to be a chicken within a 100km radius of here.

Day 1. Friday 28 September, 1400 hours (2pm), Schottenhamel Festzelt, Mass Kruges and Hend'l, yum yum. And of course 'Grant's girls'.

Day 2. München walkabout. A wet at Augustiner Bierhalle, another at the Englisher Garten. The lads hit the fest again, the rest of us look for 'Dirndl's' and drink some more beer at Schneider, along with copious amounts of food!



Ein Prosit.

Oktoberfest 2007-Tour 2 (MB-070925)

This tour again had a 'pre-tour' when we had the night in Forchheim before the tour getting over to the Kellerwald again and of course seeing me mate Andy's beer-garden/pub, the fabled Rappenkeller look around the cellars and a couple wets then it was off back to the Schweizergrom hotel for a few more beers before beddie time!

Welcome to Bavaria!

Day 1. So, Tuesday 25 September, the second Bier-Mania! Oktoberfest tour. Pick up the Aussies in Nürnberg airport then it was onto Regensburg, some lunch then Schneider Weisse brewery to see how Weizen beer is made the real way! Then it was Burg Randeck for some great views and our cosy brewery guest house, Josef Schneider.

Click this link for photos from the tour.

Day 2. Wednesday 26 September, 1400 hours (2pm), Hacker Festzelt, Mass Kruges and Hend'l, yum yum.



Day 3. Walkabout. Augustiner, some great beer, Hofbräuhaus, some great music. 'Afternoon-cap' at Schneider, some serious beer!



Ein Prosit.

Oktoberfest 2007-Tour 1 (MB-070921)

The Oktoberfest tours kicked off on Thursday 20 September when we drove down to Bayern, of course via Forchheim!

We actually had the night in Forchheim before the tour getting over to the Kellerwald and of course me mate Andy's beer-garden/pub, the fabled Rappenkeller look around the cellars and a couple wets then it was off down town to the Eichorn brewery pub then met up with Banz and his mate for a few more jars.
Welcome to Bavaria!

Day 1. So, Friday 21 September, the first Bier-Mania! Oktoberfest tour. Pick up in Nürnberg airport then it was onto Regensburg, some lunch then schneider Weisse brewery to see how Weizen beer is made the real way! The it was Burg Randeck for some great views and our cosy brewery guest house, Josef Schneider.

Click this link for photos from the tour.

Day 2. Saturday 22 September, 1200 hours (midday), the sounds of the canons fired to mark the start of the biggest Volksfest (people's festival) in the world.

We wait for our American friends, we worry, we meet, they set a world record, 50 metres in 1 hour. We hit Munich.
Hofbräuhaus was kicking, when I got in that is, no flipflops son!



Day3. 1100. Hofbräu Festzelt. We are all excited. It will be a very long day.



Cheers.

Bier-Mania! Update

Welcome back to Bier-Mania!.

Been away awhile but yep, I'm still alive, just!

Back last Thursday after nearly a month on the road, 5 x back-to-back Oktoberfest tours and a 4-day research trip to the Czech Republic later I am sort of slowly recovering! My thirst for beer however is still there although I do count 4 'beers' these days as 4 litres. Oh dear!

All Oktoberfest tours were 4-day/3 night tours starting in Nürnberg airport and spending 1 night in Josef Schneider's (and of course Ute, Joesef's missus) brewery guest house on the Altmühltal river near Kelheim, very nice place indeed and of course great food and beer! Most tours also included a brewery visit to Schneider Weisse brewery in Kelheim where everyone managed to bottle their own beer, those who missed kindergarten when they were younger showed their definite lack of skills! Regensburg was also visited with our lunch stops normally in Spital brewery beer garden or restaurant, great place, old hot dog stand and of course nice cathedral!

The other 2 nights of the tours were spent in München with 1 day at the Wies'n soaking up the Oktoberfest atmosphere (Oktoberfest grounds) and 1 day seeing the rest that München has to offer such as the beer gardens Augustiner (Arnulfstrasse) and the Englischer Garten over to the NE of the centre of town. Of course the historic Altstadt was also visited such as the Rathaus and square, the Glockenspiele as well as the Hofgarten and Odeonsplatz. Of course a München trip would not have been complete without the Hofbräuhaus in which we had lunch in and a sing-song a total of 4 times, great atmosphere and great band, in fact they even played Waltzing Matilda for us (see tour 4)! München's other great 'beer-places' were also visited-Schneider on Talstrasse (also great food) with it's New York/Kelheim Weizen beer and of course Augustiner Bierhalle, great beers and great places!

So, the nationalities on the tours. A complete mix of people, large and small, male and female and from all walks of life, Aussies, Canadians, Brits, Americans, New Zealanders, South Africans and Danish! To you all, you were all good people and cheers for making your way to Bayern for the tours, ein PROSIT!

Cheers for now,
Bier-Mania!

Bruxellensis 2007 Photos

Photos taken at taken at Bruxellensis this year are now online, see Bruxellensis Photos

The festival was a complete success again, many thanks to Yvan and Bernard for giving Bruxelles/Brussel (and in fact Belgium) this great event!

Till next year!
Cheers,
Andy

Bruxellensis 2007

The unique Belgian beer festival, Bruxellensis this year will start at 1200 (12am) on Saturday 08 September and end at 2100 (9pm) on Sunday 09 September 2007.

Opening times:
Saturday 1200-2300 (12am-11pm)
Sunday 1100-2100 (11am-9pm)

Cost:
Festival tasting glass 15cl €3.00
Beer token €1.20
Food Various

Where Approximately:
Around 3km directly south from the cenntre (Grand Place) of Bruxelles at-

Address of Festival:
Les Glacières de Saint-Gilles,
rue de la Glacière 18, 1060 Bruxelles.

See you there. We have the stall Beers of Düsseldorf & the Lower Rhine.

Beers we will have (all 10 litre barrels)

1. Füchshen Alt
2. Schlüssel Alt
3. Schumacher Alt
4. Uerige Alt
5. Bolten Ur-Alt (unfiltered)
6. Bolten Landbier (unfiltered Hell, top-fermented)
7. Gleumes Hell
8. Schmitz-Mönk Alt
9. Schmitz-Mönk Weizen
10. Zunft-Bräu Hell Lagerbier
11. Zunft-Brau Dunkles Lagerbier
    

Cheers for now!
Andy

(Festival glass must be purchased on entry to the festival).

Franconia and Bamberg Special (SB-070728)

Back in July on the 1st night of our Franconia & Bamberg Special beer tour, we stayed at Privatbrauerei Schneider (Josef). Quite a mouthful, brewery guest house I think is easier to pronounce!

The brewer, Joesef (or Herr Schneider to his mates) had a party for his son (who was off to China soon) as a he had recently graduated as a Master Brewer and had a great new job lined up there.

The band was kicking as we left the Stuberl (German=cosy wood lined room designed for merriment), Ron and myself couldn't resist a final nightcap or 2 as we had to pass the beer tent on our way to our rooms!


The band were awesome, I just couldn't stop thinking of the impending Oktoberfest in September in Munich when there would be 5000 more people singing and dancing!

So, have a look, have a smile and think of a good time!
Cheers,
Andy

Welcome to the World of Beer Mania!

Welcome to the World of Beer and the World of Cultural Beer Tours in the Central European Beer Zone!

This is the News and Updates page of our Bier-Mania! website.

Prost!
Andy