Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Beer Among Germany’s Highest Peaks
The Town
Garmisch and Partenkirchen were separate towns before they joined together on the eve of the 1936 Winter Olympics. Partenkirchen, which found itself along the Roman trade route that ran from Venice to Augsburg, was long the more prosperous of the two towns. It wasn’t until the Count of Werdenfels chose Garmisch as his seat in the eighteenth century that Garmisch eclipsed Partenkirchen. Partenkirchen still retains something of an old-world Alpine ambience, while Garmisch — closer to the train that heads towards the Zugspitze — is more bustling.
The Zugspitze is Germany’s highest peak. But it’s not just this Alpine giant that draws the crowds. The town’s felicitous surroundings haven’t hurt matters. Cradled by the Kramerspitz to the northwest, the Wankberg to the northeast, and the Wetterstein range to the south, the town is a winter sports paradise. It’s also a haven for hikers in spring, summer, and autumn.
And there’s also beer to go with the views, or to quench your thirst in town after a day of hiking or hitting the slopes.
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Getting Your Beer Fix
Garmisch-Partenkirchen isn’t a beer destination like Tegernsee or Traunstein. But it’s also no “beer desert,” with a few new breweries cropping up in the past decade to offer something locally crafted. The town’s also home to a vibrant Wirtshaus and tavern scene. In short, you won’t be at a loss for places where you can relax with a beer after a day on the slopes or meandering through the countryside.
Breweries
Brauhaus Garmisch
Unlike many other Upper Bavarian towns, Garmisch-Partenkirchen never was blessed with more than a few breweries at a time. Breweries came and went in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but one, the venerable old Brauhaus Garmisch Röhrl, outlasted them all. They brewed through three centuries of thick and thin, eventually foundering on the rock of consolidation that swept postwar Germany. Shuttered since the early 1970s, the brewery (or its spirit, at any rate) received a new lease on life in 2018. Contract brewed at first, the beer now issues forth from a brand-new brewery that opened in the summer of 2023 not far from the original location. I’ve had their Helles, which is quite nice! Tagline: Brewed with water from the Zugspitze.
Brauerei Garmischer Hof
Another newcomer, Brauerei Garmischer Hof is a small Hausbrauerei tucked into the Garmischer Hof hotel. With its showpiece copper brewhouse and hop-shaped lamps that cast a cheerful light, this gastropub founded in 2019 has a familiar feel that echoes Hausbrauereien in places like Freiburg, Tübingen, and Heidelberg. The approach is similar as well: a core range of traditional styles like Helles, Dunkel, and Hefeweizen (all of which, in a slight twist, are top-fermented), along with rotators like porter. Though no showstoppers, the beers are generally fine after a day out exploring.
Wirtshäuser and Taverns
Bräustüberl
Across the Loisach from Garmisch’s center, this wonderful old tavern is housed in a building splashed with murals depicting peasants at the Stammtisch. With all the Alpine charm you could ask for, the Bräustüberl skirts the boundary of kitsch without crossing it. As you enter, you have your pick of a cozy Stube to one side and a rustic beer hall to the other.
Locals gather in the snug Stube wrapped around with roughly hewn plank paneling. The beer hall welcomes larger groups out for a hike, or winding down the day for dinner. Pot-bellied beer pitchers line the mantel above the paneling, vaulted ceilings shelter lively conversations, and Alpine motifs depict idealized scenes from the town’s rural past. A striking indigo blue Kachelofen rounds out the ensemble. Beer issues forth from the König Ludwig Schlossbraureri Kaltenberg, and the menu offers up hearty Bavarian fare fit to fill you up after a hike.
Elch’s Almhütte
Situated at the bend of the Kramerplateauweg hiking path before it descends into Garmisch, this recently renovated guesthouse may not sport the patina of a classically rustic Wirtshaus, but the menu is classically Bavarian. Daily specials are hearty yet affordable. Try the Jägerstrudel if it’s on: a Kräuterpfannkuchen (herb crepe) filled with beef and veal from the Allgäu, and topped with a mushroom sauce. Divine! Wash it all down with a range of Augustiner beers, including the Maximator Doppelbock (perfect in winter). If it’s sunny, find a seat on the terrace, which affords superb views of the Wetterstein range and its star attraction, the Zugspitze.
Flößerstube
I arrived hungry after hiking through the snow and catching the last remnants of purple-orange daylight dancing among the steeples of Garmisch. Hungry as a woodsman. My hearty cheese Spätzle topped with roasted onions arrived just after my beer. I had come to the right place.
The name of this Wirtshaus pays tribute to the woodsmen and raftsmen who floated logs from the surrounding forests down to Munich along the Loisach River, a tributary of the Isar. Old photos and engravings evoke the lives of the raftsmen, others are of snowy landscapes, and still others depict local wildlife like the ibex. There’s a wooden carving of a lumberjack here, an oar there, some boots tacked to the wall alongside an axe, and bric-a-brac everywhere. There’s even a log raft hanging above the bar area.
Zirbel-Stube
Situated in a charming old chalet splashed with façade paintings, this narrow Stube with its exposed beams and chock-a-block seating is more of a pub than a Wirtshaus. In addition to beers from the Hofbräuhaus in Munich, you might also find Pilsner Urquell or Hopf Weissbier on tap.
The place is usually packed, so your best bet is the bar, where the barstool conversations really shine. There’s usually other out-of-towners who have washed up here with fascinating stories to tell. One night I met a psychotherapist who looked more like a mountaineer with his thick brown beard. He had arrived from Freiburg to visit his in-laws and take his son to the annual ski-jumping competition. Our conversation turned to social media and isolation, and to the importance of the random connections with strangers that the tavern facilitates.
One More for the Road
Random connections with strangers. It’s one of the reasons I like beer travel so much. For a few more articles that touch on these themes, check out the following:
The Wirtshaus: Beer, Taverns, and Everyday Life
The area around Garmisch-Partenkirchen is an outdoor lover’s heaven on earth. I’ll save hiking tips for another day, but in the meantime, here are a few more options in the Upper Bavarian towns near Garmisch-Partenkirchen:
Mittenwald: A Beer Hike and a Brewery in the Alps
Ambling for Beer in Oberammergau and Kloster Ettal
Breweries and Beer Hikes in Murnau
Odds and Ends
If you have your heart set on going up the Zugspitze (Germany’s highest peak), you’ll want to plan accordingly, especially if you’re visiting Garmisch-Partenkirchen for a short time. The combination ticket for the train, cogwheel railway, and cable car to the top is currently €66/person. The last trip up from Garmisch is at 14:15. The journey takes 75 minutes each way. I have yet to do this, mainly because I prefer to hike around and see the Zugspitze, rather than be on top of it. That said, friends have told me that the view is stunning. If you do go up, book your tickets in advance. They stop selling tickets on any given day if there are too many people on the mountain. (I know this from the one time I actually planned on heading up the Zugspitze.) Here’s the Zugspitze website with all the info you need to plan an excursion.
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