As many as three breweries are coming to GBSA from the Northern Bavaria / Upper Franconia: Mahr's Brau from Bamberg (according to U.S. Men´s Journal 2007 “Best Brewery in the World”), Brauerei Gebr. Maisel and Bayreuther Bierbrauerei from Bayeruth. The region of Franconia, in northern Bavaria, is easily the most interesting part of Germany when it comes to brewing. Franconia boasts the biggest number of breweries per square kilometer in the world, and by far the widest array of original beer styles in Germany. Bamberg is the cultural heart of Franconia.
Brauerei Gebr. Maisel is most famous in Germany and abroad for its Bavarian wheat beer specialty – Maisel's Weisse Original.
The brewery launched its latest brand, Maisel & Friends, in 2012, making Maisel a pioneer in the fast-growing specialty and craft beer segment.
Maisel & Friends stands for new and creative interpretations of international beers with surprising tastes and flavors that are brewed for very
special moments.
Maisel's sister company, Bayreuther Bierbrauerei, brews handcrafted Franconian specialty beers. The varieties Aktien Zwick'l (Kellerbier), Aktien Original (bottom-fermented) and Aktien Landbier (dark) come in a traditional swing top bottle. Bayreuther Brauhaus is the umbrella brand for age-old Bavarian beer types such as Bayreuther Hell (pale lager), Bayreuther Bock and Bayreuther Hefe-Weissbier (unfiltered wheat beer). All beers are brewed according to the Reinheitsgebot, the Bavarian Beer Purity Law of 1516, yet still offer amazing variety. Exceptionally creative and skilled, the brewers.
All the visitors of the festival will be able to taste, same as in past years, the products of these two Bayeruther's breweries.
The list of Bavarian participants at GBSA certainly does not stop with the account of upper Franconian breweries.
The raging favourite of this year's tasting competitions will surely be the Schwarzbräu brewery from Zusmarshausen. This brewery takes great advantage of its location in the natural park situated in Bavarian Swabia.
The Privatbrauerei Erdinger from Erding near Munich is the largest producer of wheat beer in the world. The Erdinger Brewery has recently been successful at the International Beer Festival Awards in San Diego, where their Pikantus Weizen Bock won a silver medal in the 'German-Style Weiss' category in 2013.
Dampfbierbrauerei Zwiesel, producer of a typically German and quite specific recipe called “dampf”, or “steam beer”, is attending our event
repeatedly. In České Budějovice this kind of beer is well known to the visitors of KMP Craft Breweries Club where you can get this draft beer
occasionally. However, this type of beer is making its way to the Czech market only very slowly.
It is actually top-fermented ale, even though its flavor may remind you of lager. Dampfbier in Zwiesel matures traditionally in open
fermentation tanks. That way it can freely develop and finally ripen in the cellars carved deep into the rock adjacent to the brewery. It is malt
rather than hops that dominates the flavor of the beer.
There are not many producers of this type of beer even in Germany itself. Besides Zwiesel Brewery it is made by the above mentioned Brauerei
Gebr. Maisel in Bamberg. There are similar beers in several places around the world, e.g. in the USA it is called “Steam Beer®” and is registered
by Anchor Brewery from San Francisco. Bavarian and American recipes originated independently of each other, but they seem pretty similar ...if
we ignore the fundamental difference: the German "Dampfbier" is top-fermented ale while the US "Steam Beer" is lager.
Several breweries from the south and the east can be added to the Bavarian list:
Hofmark Brauerei from Upper Palatiner Loifling is a relatively small brewery, yet its production is exported successfully to several countries
including the USA and Japan.
Another participant is taking part in the contest: the Bucher Bräu family brewery from Grafenau situated in the Bavarian part of the Šumava Mountains. Typical Bavarian beers are produced in the area of the Bavarian Forest (National Park). The most successful is their bottomfermented Helles.
Other Bavarian breweries will not have to travel far to reach České Budějovice:
Ettl Bräu from Teisnach and Privatbrauerei J.B. Falter from Regen. Not just the jury members at GBSA, but also the visitors of the festival can
look forward to the excellent wheat Falter Weissbier Premium Gold and several other beers from its production.