Last week I returned from Oktoberfest in Munich – it was quite the experience.
A few observations and reflections on the event:
- The way the event works is there are just over a dozen been tents, each of which has its own unique atmosphere and can hold anywhere from 5,000-10,000 people. Large parties can reserve a table, but for the average visitor, you need to arrive before 10:00am each day and grab a seat in a tent. I was initially skeptical as to whether I could spend four days sitting at one table per day, from 10:00am until sometime in the evening. But it turned out to be pretty easy. There were lots of great people, live music, and obviously plenty to eat and drink. And the service was great. There are some carnival rides and food stands on the grounds outside the tents, but on the whole, there’s really not much to do expect grab a table, eat, drink, sing, dance, and be merry. In fact, you can’t even order a beer anywhere on the festival grounds unless you have a seat at a table in a tent.
- The beers come in one size – a liter, which is equivalent to about three twelve ounce beers. And while I initially expected there to be somewhat of a selection, most tents only serve one type of beer. There are actually only six beers that are permitted by the German government to be served at the event, and they’re all types of Amber Märzen (lager). Regardless, they were all delicious.
- People joke about the traditional German attire – lederhosen for men and dirndls for women – but most festival goers take their clothing very seriously. Almost everyone dressed up. We even met some people who claimed that their lederhosen had been passed down to them over a number of generations. This sounds like a nice tradition until you realize that nobody washes their lederhosen, any everybody uses them as a napkin. We picked up our own lederhosen on the first day. They’re “breaking in” nicely.
- While there were certainly plenty of international visitors, it seemed that the majority of the people at the fesitval were Germans. Many of whom go every year with friends, colleagues, or family. In fact, I’m not even sure that a beer festival of this size could be successful in a place like the States. While there were drunk people everywhere, there were surprisingly few incidents, fights, or signs of crime (I’m sure there were exceptions, but it wasn’t apparent). I can’t say I would imagine that to be the case at a beer festival of that size held in a city like Boston.
Here are some shots I took throughout the week. I’m putting together a video compilation as well that I’ll hopefully post soon.
The Hofbrau House – A traditional German beer hall that was built in 1598:
Some shots of the beer:
Here’s what it looked like insize of the Schützen-Festzelt tent:
There was a shooting range inside, for the hardcore Germans who like to get some target practice in before an afternoon of drinking:
The Hacker-Pschorr Tent:
Some shots from Munich City Center:
A radish plat, with some sausages, pate, pretzels, and bread:
One evening, I noticed a smiley face in my beer:
