The goal of this blog is highlight the origins of the world's classic beer styles. To that end, I've tried to cover some pretty old beers from places like Belgium, England, and the United States. However, only one brewery can claim the title of "world's oldest": the Weihenstephan Brewery in the Freising District of Bavaria, Germany.
The next few centuries, however, were a time of turmoil. The original monastic community founded by St. Corbinian was probably abandoned by the end of the 8th century. At some point in the 9th century, the Bishop of Freising rededicated the site as a monastery. Then things went pretty well until 955, when raiding Huns leveled the monastery. The Benedictines didn't give up, though. Over the next few centuries they continued to rebuild and expand the settlement into what became known as Weihenstephan Abbey.
In 1040, Abbot Arnold of Weihenstephan obtained a license from the City of Freising to brew and sell beer. According to most reliable sources, this officially makes Weihenstephan the oldest continually-operating commercial brewery in the world. (It bears mentioning that the Weltenburg Abbey brewery, located at a different Benedictine monastery in Bavaria, also claims this title: they've been brewing since at least 1050).
The road to immortality was not smooth. From 1085 to 1463, the abbey burned down three times and was depopulated by plagues, famines, and a massive earthquake. In 1336, Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV (himself a Bavarian) attacked and burned the monastery as part of a bloody campaign against his cousin Frederick, a pretender to the throne of Germany. Three centuries later, during the course of the Thirty Years War, a combined French and Swedish army plundered and razed the abbey. The Austrians captured Freising during the War of Spanish Succession in the early 1700s and - you guessed it - burned the abbey down.
Throughout all of this turmoil, the Benedictines stubbornly rebuilt and rebuilt and continued to brew. However, politics finally did the work that armies could not. The abbey closed its doors in 1803, when Napoleon Bonaparte ordered the secularization of Bavaria. The church's property was subsequently sold off. However, the brewery continued to thrive under the direction of its new owner: the Free State of Bavaria. The brewery is still owned by the state to this day, hence its official name - Bayerische Staatsbraueri Weihenstephan ("Bavarian State Brewery Weihenstephan").
Today, the world's oldest brewery is, paradoxically, also one of the world's most modern. Since 1930, the Technical University of Munich has operated a world-famous brewing academy on the site. This cutting-edge school is now a global leader in brewing technology.
Weihenstephaner is a light, flavorful Bavarian lager of the style known as Helles (I don't speak German, but I'm told this means "clear"). This style of beer is similar in appearance and heritage to its close cousin, the Pilsner. However, Helles differs from Pilsner in a few key respects. Pilsners tend to have a sharp, hoppy aftertaste, while Helles lagers are more malty-sweet with very little hop flavor or aroma. Helles lagers tend to be slightly lower in alcohol (around 4%, as opposed to 5-6% for Pilsners). Helles are typically also somewhat lighter in both color and body. Weihenstephaner is a classic example of the Munich Helles style. It is light in color and brilliantly clear. It has a robust malty flavor that also manages to be refreshing. (It's like those Miller Lite ads from a few years ago..."tastes great, less filling".) The aftertaste is crisp, smooth, and rich - the product of fermentation by a world-famous strain of lager yeast plus a long period of aging at cool temperatures.
From what I can tell, American beer drinkers tend to toss all Continental lagers into the same pile. I completely agree that it can be hard to notice subtle differences among beers like Pilsner Urquell, Stella Artois, Warsteiner, or Heineken. But each of these brews has its own distinct characteristics that deserve recognition, and none more so than classic Munich Helles lagers. So rather than rushing out to buy a case of Weihenstephaner (which, by the way, runs on the pricey side - about $10 per sixer in my neck of the woods), I would recommend getting a mix-and-match six-pack of different classic brews from the Munich area: Paulaner, Spaten, Weihenstephaner, Hacker-Pschorr, Lowenbrau, and many other deserving entries that I've left out. My personal favorite is Spaten...but they're all awesome. Of course, I'm biased since German lagers really are, on average, my favorite beers in the world.
One final note: Weihenstephan is also well-known for their Hefe-Weissbier, a fantastic Old-World wheat beer. I certainly recommend this brew as well - just don't expect the assertively sweet, aromatic character of your standard American wheat beers. The Hefe-Weissebier is more bitter, tangy, and thinner-bodied, with a subtle fruity-spicy flavor that comes from the ancient strains of yeast used to ferment it.
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