Vineyard hopping through the world’s various wine regions has long lured visitors to France, Italy, Chile, California, and Australia, among other places—and has become a well-established pastime with its own name—enotourism. And then there are well-mapped trails dedicated to Scotland’s whisky and Kentucky’s bourbon distilleries that are veritable pilgrimage routes today. But beer breweries—often centuries old and found in historic cities and scenic settings—seem to have a weaker magnetic pull. Until recently.
There are many reasons to visit these places where beer is made—you might find special beers not available elsewhere, or discover some fact or hear some anecdote both fascinating and revealing. Everyone has heard of Dublin’s tourist-clogged Guinness Storehouse—by some accounts Ireland’s most-visited site—but there is an embarrassment of options in numerous other countries.
Going strong since 1810, and culminating this year on October 3, Munich’s uncontested Oktoberfest draws crowds of locals and out-of-towners who merrily imbibe more than 6 million liters of liquid gold. And yet it is neighboring Czech Republic who holds the title of highest consumption of beer per capita. And there is plenty in the world of beer happening on this side of the pond as well.
To get me started, I turned to Jeff Alworth, who shares some of the classic breweries around the world in his new book, The Beer Bible. The following four destinations are just a few that promise a quintessential beer experience, with plenty else going on in the area for designated-driving companions.
Belgium
Beer aficionados will find many things to justify a pilgrimage to Belgium, such as sampling a bottle from the reclusive monks of Sint Sixtus at Westvleteren—and the only place to do it is the abbey in the town of the same name (less than two hours west of Brussels, past Ghent). Stop by the small café called In de Vrede, and have a thick slab of cheese with a goblet of the monks’ elixir. You can’t visit the brewery itself, but you can walk around the grounds or stroll down the lovely wandelpad to an outdoor shrine. De Dolle Brouwers is not far away and offers a tour of their brewery every Sunday afternoon. Even though the company is relatively young, you’ll find wonderfully funky old equipment collected and displayed by the “Mad Brewers”—with the reward of a great beer afterward.
Germany
Beer has long been serious business in Germany. Perhaps nowhere more so than in northern Bavaria’s region of Franconia, and Bamberg, the charming city at its heart. Bamberg is an incredible jewel, a wholly intact old town with stunning half-timbered medieval architecture and history everywhere you look. In fact, UNESCO declared the entire old town a World Heritage Site in 1993. There are nine local breweries to explore—mighty impressive for a town of just 70,000 people—including Mahr’s, Schlenkerla, Ambräusianum, and Spezial, where the local specialties ofrauchbier and ungespundet are made. The Bamberg breweries don’t offer tours, but the pubs (and there are many) are the real show. You could easily spend a week and never leave Bamberg’s historic heart, but consider a road trip to Brauerei Hartmann in neighboring Würgau, where brewery tours are offered, or head south to Hallerndorf and the Brauerei Rittmayer, another excellent outing.
Czech Republic
There’s something momentous about arriving in Pilsen, just a two-hour train from Prague, and walking through the huge anniversary gate at Pilsner Urquell to visit the brewery that changed the face of brewing across the world. It’s a great tour, offered in Czech, English, or German, and finishes with that famous tipple of wood-aged pilsner. Pilsen also has a nice brewing museum near the cathedral, and two small brewpubs nearby, Purkmistr and Groll, have had the temerity to open up in the shadow of Urquell. In Budweis (its proper Czech name is České Budějovice), 90 miles south of Prague, you can visit the country’s other famous national brewery, the centuries-old Budvar.
United States
The great East Coast city with a credible claim to be the nation’s best for beer tourism is Philadelphia. This is one of America’s oldest beer towns, in one of the only states to survive Prohibition with a few breweries intact, and it’s now a craft beer leader. There are some venerable pioneers in and around the city that are still in operation—Dock Street, Yards, Flying Fish, Victory, and Sly Fox—along with a new crop that includes Philadelphia Brewing and Earth Bread + Brewery.
The Beer Bible is the ultimate reader-and drinker-friendly guide to all the world’s beers. To find out more, purchase your copy here.
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