There are some elite brewers who stand out as the oldest and most respected in the world. Grolsch from the Netherlands, Yuengling from Pennsylvania, Guinness from Ireland …
But none of these have been in business while Weihenstephaner Brewery in Germany. This Bavarian brewery is the oldest continuously operating brewery in the world. Discover its long, long history of German brewing and plan a visit to the Weihenstephaner Brewery in Germany.
History of the Weihenstephaner Brewery
Like many German breweries, Weihenstephaner started out as a Benedictine abbey in 725. That’s right, over a thousand years ago!
St Corbinian (Korbinian) laid the first stones with 12 companions and brewing began in 768. However, it was not until 1040 that Abbot Arnold was officially allowed to brew and sell Weihenstephan beer in the city of Freising. The official decree has been disputed, but it is certain that by the time the Bavarian beer purity law was enacted in 1516, Weihenstephaner had already been brewing for years.
In the midst of all these changes, the brewery also suffered several periods of destruction and reconstruction. Invasions by Hungarians, Swedes, French, and Austrians, fires, three plague epidemics, and even an earthquake in 1348 rocked the brewery. But they kept brewing beer.
Germany also underwent major changes with secularization and the monastery was dissolved in 1803. All the possessions and rights of the brewery, like all that beer, were transferred to the Bavarian state. In 1921, it became the Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan (Bavarian State Brewery Weihenstephan) and used the seal of the Bavarian State as its corporate logo.
Weihenstephaner Brewery has continued to garner honors such as the ‘Best Great Brewery’ award from the Australian International Beer Awards in 2010 and gold medals for its Hefeweizen and Kristallweißbier for the World Beer Cup in 2016.
The brewery has managed to stay ahead with its brewing program, education, and even social media. They have active Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts, including a video of Americans trying to pronounce “Weihenstephaner” (“Steve Whiny” is my favorite).
Beers from the Weihenstephaner brewery
The brewery embraces traditional and cutting edge beer technology and has won numerous awards.
Weihenstephaner Weissbier
Taste the quintessential Bavarian beer Hefeweizen (wheat beer). A light golden yellow beer, it’s earthy with a banana finish and doesn’t need an extra lemon to brighten it up. It is made according to the original recipe.
Bayrisch Dunkel Tradition
This reddish brown lager is full of roasted flavor with a caramel finish. It is paired with hearty German dishes such as roasts and game.
Weihenstephan Vitus
The Vitus is not your typical Bock beer. It tastes like frothy and fruity wheat beer, but weighs 7.7%. It is a top prize winner that takes home the best beer in the world, as well as the best wheat beer in the world, the best strong wheat beer in the world, and the best strong wheat beer in Europe.
Weihenstephaner 1516
This Bavarian Kellerbier marked the 500th anniversary of the Beer Purity Law. Using a recipe from 1516, it is a naturally cloudy cellar beer matured for an extra long period at low temperatures. The promotion proved popular and will now be a regular season beer in March in Germany.
Weihenstephaner Korbinian
Named for the founder of the abbey, this dark Doppelbock has malty hints of plums and figs, as well as roasted caramel, walnuts and chocolate.
Read about all the Weihenstephaner beers.
Visiting the Weihenstephaner Brewery
Visit the Weihenstephaner Brewery in the Bavarian town of Freising, just 20 minutes from Munich Airport. Tours provide an in-depth look at the world’s oldest continuously operating brewery from the museum’s ‘Origin of Beer’ to its 1,000-year history.
Tours cost € 8 (and include a € 2 voucher for the Weihenstephaner drink shop) and last about an hour. Do you want more tour? There is a two-hour version for € 11 that also includes the coupon, a sample of the product, the legendary wheat beer, a pretzel and a glass to take home as a souvenir.
Guests under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult and children under the age of 6 are not allowed. Wear closed shows and register online beforehand.
- Weihenstephaner brewery website: www.weihenstephaner.de/en/
- Tour hours: Monday – 10:00; Tuesday – 10:00 and 13:30; Wednesday – 10:00
- Traditional brewery on site, as well as a picturesque Biergarten on the hill.
There are two locations in Friesing and several branches across the country:
Weihenstephaner Ubicaciones en Freising
Brewery Weihenstephan
Weihenstephaner Berg 10
D-85354 Freising
Weihenstephaner am Dom
Domberg 5a,
D-85354 Freising
Weihenstephaner in Berlin
Neue Promenade 5
D-10178 Berlin
Weihenstephaner en Wiesbaden
Taunusstrasse 46-48
D-65183 Wiesbaden
Brewing beer at the Weihenstephaner brewery
Weihenstephaner Brewery doesn’t just make great beer, it teaches the art of beer making. A move in 1852 to Weihenstephaner allowed the school to become a university in 1919. It was incorporated into TUM (Technical University of Munich) in 1930 and still educates master brewers today.
The site includes a small research institute with high-tech beer technology. Students learn the traditional brewing process step by step, as well as all the microbiological principles that make beer possible.
