Really Playing for Pizza: Hofbrahaus

Munich, the official Beer Capital of the World.

I'm not really a beer drinker. I've said that many times. However, I must admit that when it comes to beer, Munich does it better than pretty much anywhere else. And in the world capital of beer, the Hofbrauhaus takes the cake for king beer hall. Christie and I visited here last spring (click HERE to read about that adventure), but on our afternoon in Munich we decided it would be great to introduce it to Matt, Alex, and Nick.

The official seal greets visitors at the door.

As you are all aware, the history of Hofbrauhaus dates back centuries to Wilhelm V, the duke of Bavaria in 1589. He apparently had a very thirsty (and demanding) royal household that was dissatisfied with the beer brewed in Munich at the time. I believe it was the beginning of the whole taste great / less filling debate. Either way, the short version is that they decided to build their own royal brewery. So they recruited the master brewer of the Geisenfeld Monastery (monks always make the best beer) to develop their first "brown" ale... and Hofbrauhaus was born!

Prost! (Cheers!)

Wilhelm's son and successor was Duke Maximilian I, who had a slightly different taste in beer. He did not like the thick, heavy brown ale and therefore, being the gourmet he was, decided to corner the market in wheat beer. Maximilian was also a clever businessman, and therefore made it illegal for any other brewery to make wheat beer, consequently securing an incredible monopoly for Hofbrauhaus that made it 1) Uber Successful; 2) With 400 years experience, the leading wheat beer producer in Munich! We tried HB's version, and it was incredible. Very sweet, almost with a honey taste. Again, I'm not a beer drinker but THUMBS UP MAXIMILIAN!

The ceiling is decorated with intricate paintings.

Hofbrauhaus's locker room - for mugs!

One of the more unique features of HB is the "Beer Mug Lockers." Hofbrauhaus is currently the only beer hall in the world where regulars are allowed to keep their own beer mug always on hand, and have it stored in their own unique, locked up location. Staff clean the mugs and manage the lockers, which are all individually numbered. Apparently there are no lockers available, and no waiting list -- when someone passes away the locker is willed to a member of their family!

Mug storage extends to the back corners of HB.

Every time we visit, we see something new at Hofbrauhaus, but we always have a good time. Perhaps the best is the people watching - from the servers to the regulars, the band to the local boys - everyone here is smiling and having a great time!