Tag Archives: German beer

BIG APPLE BITES: Drinking in a winter wonderland…

Now, ever since I got back from Munich, I’ve been missing German beer halls. And I totally missed out on the Christmas markets when I was over there, too. So when I found out about Loreley, this funky joint a block from the Bowery, serving up German beers in “Eine Maß bier” amounts, you KNOW I had to check it out, bro — plus, they still had their Christmas decorations up last weekend, so that was an added bonus!

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We’re starting off with a litre of Kostrilitzer Schwarzbier, a nice, dark lager from Deutschland. Nice, rich, caramel/chocolate taste, but easily crushable at 4.8%.

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Not only are they still celebrating Christmas at Loreley, but they’re still celebrating Oktoberfest, too. This Hofbrau Oktoberfest is a nice, malty lager, a lot like the ones I slammed in Germany, but a bit stronger at 5.8%. Nothing wrong with that at all!

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When I heard they had soft pretzels, I had to get one of those, too. I haven’t had a proper pretzel since I got back from Munich… but I gotta say, this is just like I remembered. Soft, fresh and chewy — even better than some of the ones across the pond!

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And because it still feels like Christmas, I’m having a Delirium Noel. They don’t serve this one in litres at Loreley — and that’s probably a good thing, since it’s pretty strong at 8%. Not quite as strong as Delirium Tremens, but it’s still a heavy dark ale with rich flavours, halfway between prune juice and chocolate. Worth trying once, anyways.

MUCH MORE MUNICH: Dude, they even have a beer hall at the airport!!!

Now, when you’re flying outta Munich, and looking for a place to eat at the Flughafen, you don’t hafta settle for some soggy steak sandwich, son! Right after you take the escalator up from the S-Bahn station you’ll see Airbräu, a beer hall brewing its own beer and serving up local Bavarian favourites.

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Unlike some of the beer halls I’ve been to, your choices aren’t limited to a litre of helles here — you can get a litre of any of their other beers, like this Kumulus wheat beer, bro! I’ve had a couple other weissbiers in Munich, and this one checks all the boxes — dude, a litre of this is only 6.40 Euros!? Shut the front, back and side doors!!!!!

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For dinner, I’m having the Bavarian roast pork, cooked for 12 hours with homemade dumplings and a side of coleslaw with bacon bits. Pork is pretty tender, with nice crispy skin, and both the pork and the dumplings go great with gravy. It’s airport food that doesn’t suck — and it’ll only set ya back 14 Euros, bros. All that plus a litre of beer is just over 20 Euros… I feel like you can barely get a burger for that price at an airport across the pond!!!!

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MUCH MORE MUNICH: Do you even KNOW knödel, bro????

Now, Munich is a very diverse city — you can find pretty much any kind of food here. (The latest trend is Mexican food, apparently — but we’re a long ways from Mexico, so I think I’m gonna pass…) Me, I wanted to try a style of cuisine that I’ve never had before, and I found it at this funky joint called Fink’s Südtiroler Knödelküche. (Try saying that five times fast!)

So, if you didn’t know (and I only found this out like a month ago), a knödel is a type of dumpling from the South Tyrolean region of Italy, which is actually in the northern part of the country. Now, I’ve had a whole lotta Italian food in Toronto, but I’ve never even seen these before… so I went all in with a KnödelQuartet — four knödel for 18 Euros, bro!!!!

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Started off with the Porciniknödel, nice mushroom flavour that cuts through the mix. Goes great with the Gorgonzola sauce (served separately), son!

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Up next, the Greeknödel, with feta, olives and sun-dried tomatoes. You can taste the tang of the olives, while the tomatoes give this one a nice little kick!

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You can tell which one is the Pizzanödel by its bright orange colour. The combo of tomatoes and cheese make it taste kinda like a pizza… A pizza with no meat, that is.

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Last but not least, the Baconnödel — there’s no shortage of bacon in this one, son! The bacon goes quite well with the rich, doughy dumpling… dude, if I lived here, this would be body by bacon dumplings!!!!

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Washed it all down with a Weihenstephan Weizen, which they’ve been brewing since 10-freaking-40! Man, I loves me some German wheat beer, and this one’s on point. Nice, easy drinking, with a bit of bananas at the end — you KNOW bananas is good, bro!!!!!!

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But even after all that knödel-motion back there, we still have room for dessert. This Bitter Chocolate Orange Knödel is coming in hot with a sugary, doughy outside that kinda reminds me of apple crumble. Chocolate is definitely there, but it doesn’t steal the show. One of the most interesting desserts I’ve had all year — you won’t find this at Swiss Chalet, son!!!!!!!!!

MUCH MORE MUNICH: Getting schnitt-faced at Hofbrauhaus on a German beer crawl

Dude, we’re hanging out in Munich, Germany, one of the greatest beer cities in the world — so you KNOW this is my kinda place, bro! And you can bet yer bottom Deutsch mark we ain’t drinking peppermint schnapps!!!!

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We’re starting off with a Paulaner Munchner Hell, cuz we’re raisin’ hell with the hippies and the cowboys, son! This beer goes all the way back to the 30s — the 1630s! — when a buncha monks decided they could brew a better beer than all the breweries at the time. (Turns out that even native Munchners don’t like Lowenbrau…) One cool thing about Munich is you’re allowed to drink on the street, and most people just leave their empties on the sidewalk so someone can collect them for the deposit. Man, if you go to the subway stop before the soccer stadium, with like 6-7 garbage bags, you could make an easy 100 bucks, bro…

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From there, we’re heading to the Oktoberfest Museum, son! The museum might be closed for renovations, but their beerhall is still serving up the finest wares from Augustiner, another local legend. I’m definitely a fan of their Hefeweizen, paired with the hotttest, freshest pretzels I’ve had in town. (They were also the first pretzels I’ve had in Munich…but they won’t be the last!!!!)

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Now, little did I know when I walked into Hofbrauhaus; Munich’s biggest, most celebrated brewpub, that I was walking into a trap. Turns out they were the official Tampa Bay bar for the NFL Munich game, and since I was in town to boo Tom Brady, I did not stay long. I did have time to down a foamy beer and a giant pretzel, which tasted fresher, but not hotter, than the last pretzel I had.

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So, instead we ended the night at Hackerhaus with a German-style charcuterie plate, washed down with a kellerbier.

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What the heck’s a kellerbier? Well, it’s when you take a traditional German lager, but don’t clarify or pasteurize it, leaving you with an easy-drinking beer that’s magically delicious! I think I’ll have 3 more to go… 😉

Funky four-course feast in Kensington Market

Now, when the weather’s actually nice outside, I like to head down to Kensington Market. You’ve got a buncha killer craft beer joints, some of the best tacos in Toronto — they’re even serving ’em up First Nations style! — and a Tom Cruise-themed burger joint. If it’s funky, you’ll find it here. I mean, where else are you gonna get real-deal Salvadorean pupusas in this city???

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This pupusa revuelta is stuffed with pork, beans and cheese — a true triple threat in Flavourtown! You’ve got some coleslaw on the side, and a not-so-mild sauce on top… all for just $3.65 at the Emporium Latino??? Shut the puerta de entrada!!!

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Now, we ain’t about to wash down that Salvadorean speciality with a Bud Light! Instead, I reached into the fridge and pulled out a Tepachito, this funky pineapple cider from Mexico. It’s like Pineapples Gone Wild, bro!!!

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But you KNOW that a pineapple soda isn’t gonna be the only beverage on this adventure! We’re busting out the German beer, along with a massive veal and lamb sammich at Otto’s Berlin Doner. The craft beer selection at this place kicks the crap outta Supermarket next door, and this meaty, saucy sammy is more than a light snack in Flavourtown. I went with a Hacker-Pschorr Weiss, a nice wheat beer from the old country that they actually have on tap, for $7.50. (Pretty sure the last time I went to Supermarket, I had a Corona…)

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Now, that doner might have been enough food for some skinny-pantsed hipster, but you KNOW I ain’t full yet, bro! So we’re heading over to Blackbird Baking Co, this funky bakery on Baldwin that makes everything fresh in-house…including this Roman-style mushroom pizza. Normally, I’m allergic to any pizza that doesn’t have meat on it, but when you’ve got the fresh mushrooms, black olives, poblanos and red peppers, I don’t think it needs anything else. One of the best vegetarian dishes I’ve had this year!

At this point I probably don’t have room for dessert…but I can always still cram a two-dollar churro down my piehole:

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Chicken schnitzel & waffles @ Otto’s Bierhalle

Now, I’m a pretty big fan of fried chicken and waffles. Dude, this is body by fried chicken and waffles! So, when I heard that Otto’s Bierhalle, this funky German joint on Queen West, was doing it up schnitzel-style, I was all over that like a Mexican fan on South Koreans at the World Cup! (Wait, too soon???)

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Now, instead of giving you one great big waffle, they throw down a four-pack of mini Belgian quarters. The waffles are nice and fluffy, with a bit of syrup on top. Chicken is super moist, not too crispy, goes good with gravy–although I did ask ’em for some hot sauce instead. And it comes with a side pomegranate-spinach salad. I guess I gotta eat that too?

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Of course, you don’t go to a German beer hall and sip on a Corona, bro! This here’s Munich Gold, a funky fresh pilsner from Hacker-Pschorr. Dude, this brew’s so legit, even the glass speaks German!!!!!

FLAVOURTOWN OLYMPICS: Pounding some German brewskis, bro!!!

Dude, Germany beat Sweden at hockey!? Men’s hockey!!!??? Man, that never happens! I mean, the last time Germany won anything was…actually, I can’t even think of a time when Germany won. Talk about a major upset–and a righteous reason to break out the German smoke beer, bro!

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Dude, so we’re hanging out at Laylow, this cozy craft beer joint on College, where they’re serving up some Maerzen Schlenkerla smokebeer, straight outta Bamburg! This brew is rich, dark and smokey, and about eight bucks a bottle at the bar. Now, I dunno about the game tomorrow, but I’m guessing these tasty brewskis won’t be the only Germans getting pounded by some Canadians!!!!

READ MORE: Holy smokey German beer!

Holy smokey German beer!

Now, I’m no stranger to smoked food. I’ve had smoked chicken, smoked turkey, smoked wings, smoked corned beef, smoked ribs, smoked sausage, smoked brisket…and even a Scandinavian smokehouse platter! But smoked beer was a whole ‘nother story–up until last night.

I dunno if they eat BBQ in Germany, but smoked beer is actually a pretty big thing. See, there’s this brewery called Schlenkerla that uses beechwood-smoked barley in not one, not two, not three or four or five or six but seven signature brews! And you don’t even hafta go all the way to Bamberg to get it, cuz they’re serving it up at Laylow, this friendly neighbourhood brewpub at College and Dufferin, son!!!

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Dude, this beer is blacker than a Spinal Tap album cover! And it’s got a nice smokey richness to it. You know the bartender broseph had me sold when he said it smells like bacon–and it really does! You can buy ’em online in the bottle for 1.80 Euros, but at Laylow, it’ll cost ya $8.50. Hey, shipping’s a bitch, bro!!!!

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