March 31, 2023

Bad Reichenhall: Beer in an Upper Bavarian Spa Town

Of Salt and Spas

The first thing I’ll say about Bad Reichenhall in the southeastern tip of Bavaria is that I was pleasantly surprised. I’ve never been one for spa towns, and have left places like Bad Ischl in Austria and Karlovy Vary (Carlsbad) in the Czech Republic feeling like these places have seen better days.

Maybe it was the crystalline blue sky, maybe it was the rugged Alps etched against the setting sun. Maybe all of this gave me the sense that the town was pulsating with life, even as the old baths exude an air of bygone days with their faded elegance. And then there’s all the late Romanesque architecture dotting the town, like the church of St. Zeno, founded in 1136 and dedicated to the saint who protected the region against floods.

Like many cities and towns in the region — Salzburg, Traunstein, Hallstatt, to name but a few — Bad Reichenhall owes its early prosperity to salt. Indeed, the very name of the town pays tribute to salt: Hal is the Celtic word for salt — hence Reichenhall, or rich in salt. White gold, as it was called, has shaped the history of Reichenhall for over 2000 years, as successive waves of Illyrians, Celts, and Romans mined the area.

With all those minerals coursing through subterranean streams and lakes, Bad Reichenhall was poised to begin a new career at the end of the nineteenth century when Prince Luitpold granted Reichenhall the status of “royal Bavarian spa town.” The spa town architecture is everywhere, from the opulent fin-de-siècle hotels to the filigree woodwork fronting buildings in the Kurpark.

Bad Reichenhall and Its Beer

That’s all fine and good — and so is the centuries’ old Sebastian Quarter and the still older fortification walls, by the way — but what about the beer? Bad Reichenhall hosts the beautiful Wirtshaus outpost of Brauerei Wieninger in nearby Teisendorf, and is home to Bürgerbräu, “Bavarian beer in person,” as the tagline goes.

Schwabenbräu Wirtshaus and Beer Garden

Let’s start with Wieninger’s Schwabenbräu Wirtshaus, an inn with colourful paintings (Lüftlmalerei) depicting a mélange of religious, chivalric, and culinary images splashed across its façade. The interior is suitably rustic, but it’s the beer garden that drew my attention on that warm and sunny afternoon. This is one of those “klein aber fein” (small but fine) beer gardens with all the trappings you’d expect from larger affairs, but with one slightly different touch: grapevines round out the shade provided by horse chestnut trees.

The food here is beyond on point (I ordered a delicious Bratwurst with sauerkraut and onion sauce), and the beers will do you fine as well. (For what it’s worth, Wieninger’s beers are, for my tastes, perfectly serviceable without ever being stellar.) The Wieninger Zwickl is just what the style should be: young, plenty of yeast character, a mild green apple fruitiness, and the slightest hint of country butter, along with a distinct “stickiness” on the palate from all the good stuff still in suspension. The Guidobald Dunkel is also a decent choice. Aroma-wise, the beer heads in the direction of some Bohemian dark lagers I’ve had (chocolate, cocoa, café au lait), while the roastiness on the palate (almost smoky) is reminiscent of a Schwarzbier. For those who like the richness of Franconian Dunkels, this one isn’t it. Relatively dry and spare, which isn’t a bad thing on a warm day.

Brauereigasthof Bürgerbräu

Now for Bürgerbräu, right in the center of town. There’s been a brewery on this spot since 1494, and it’s been called by its current name since 1901 when August Röhm, great-grandfather of the current owner and head brewer, acquired the brewery. A thorough post-WWII renovation gave this brewery and guesthouse its current colourfully elegant form. Rooms are available if you’re calling it a night in Bad Reichenhall.

If the trompe l’oeil façade is interesting in its own right, it’s the wall murals (Lüftlmalerei) at the back of Bürgerbräu’s courtyard that got my attention. Though I don’t know when the mural was completed, the visual language harks back to the early 1930s. What’s more, and while relations between Bavaria and Austria are currently placid, the mural presents an interesting flattening of historical conflicts in the region. Or perhaps we can read the mural in a more sanguine fashion: Bavarian working-class brewers reaching out with beer to their similarly clad Austrian brethren across the border.

Historical ambiguity aside, the beer (and food) at Brauereigasthof Bürgerbräu is what makes exploring these far-flung corners of Bavaria so worthwhile. The terrace is a nice place for a fair-weather drink, and the interior is everything you’d expect from a cozy Bavarian Wirtshaus: well-worn patterned wooden floors, vaulted archways, unique chandeliers, and the obligatory wood-paneled walls.

A Broad Palette of Beers

All of Bürgerbräu’s beers are up there on the Richter scale of Bavarian beer. And, rather uncommonly for Bavaria, they brew a wide range of German styles and variations: 19 all told, as of 2023. The Braumeister is a burnished golden export-strength beer (5.4%) with well-rounded notes of country bread, freshly crushed Pils malt, and a light graham cracker sweetness, all accented by a twist of citrus and Alpine meadows in bloom. Fine stuff! If it’s in season when you’re visiting, the amber Rupertus Weizenbock is a tour de force with luscious banana custard, elegant spice, and a harmonious malt backdrop blending toast, light caramel, and vanilla.

Many more of Bürgerbräu’s myriad beer offerings have tickled my fancy over the years. The “Gustl” Kellerbier is a fine statement of this unfiltered style, replete with a subtly spicy hop bitterness balancing lightly honeyed malt notes and a yeasty “country bread dough” character. Straddling the world of Helles and Pils, Bürgerbräu’s Export is similar to their Braumeister, but creamier and spicier, along with a subtle green apple note. For fans of stronger beers, the Suffikator is a complex dark Doppelbock delivering dried figs and dates, rum-raisin, whole-grain dark bread, milk chocolate, and caramel/toffee, all with an undertone of herbal-spicy hops.

If you still can’t make up your mind, go for the Rupertini Dunkel, a deft beer with chocolate notes, a hint of caramel, and an echo of hop spice. It’s well attenuated (which means it’s on the dry side and highly drinkable), and not at all “spare” like some southern Bavarian Dunkels. Even better: the Rupertini Dunkel goes perfectly with Wildpflanzerl, a juicy patty made from deer and wild boar smothered in a sumptuous sour cherry sauce. I can’t think of too many combinations that bespeak cool autumn evenings better than this. Not there in the fall? No worries. You’ll find all the Bavarian standards on the menu, along with other seasonal dishes.

Prost, everyone, and happy travels!

Odds and Ends

Bad Reichenhall is located along a railway branch line that runs from Freilassing to Berchtesgaden. Though a bit far from Munich for a day trip, you can easily get to Bad Reichenhall from Salzburg. Other towns and sights in the region include Traunstein, the scenic Chiemsee and the spectacular Königssee, and, of course, Berchtesgaden and Salzburg.