Schwandorf - Windischeschenbach - To France the Long Way

June 8, 2009

Schwandorf - Windischeschenbach

To the World's Zoigl Beer Capital

The day starts out flat enough and we have tailwinds. We make good progress to Nabburg, a historic town set on a ridge. Fortunately we've been there before and don't feel compelled to ride up the cobblestone street to the old part of town. Our route takes us on to Perschen and Pfreimd. In Pfreimd we have coffee and a pastry served by a lovely waitress who is flatteringly amazed that we have cycled all the way from Munich, and at our age! On to Weiden through pretty countryside, tailwinds but worrying black clouds overhead.

The weather is looking fickle this morning

Rolling countryside of Upper Palatinate (Oberpfalz)

Passing through Nabburg - note the storks nest on the church steeple

Nabburg with the Naab River in the foreground

Weiden is located in Upper Palatinate (Oberpfalz), a region in the northern part of Bavaria, a corner close to the Czech Republic, sort of out of the way and I had never been here before. The town has a charming market square, townhall and of course a few churches worth looking at.

The next stretch to Neustadt we follow bicycle signs, we should have known better. It's the scenic route and weaves back and forth between fields, over little streams, on a little dirt path, bumpity-bump - we should have stuck to my planned route on the GPS.

Bridge on a pretty path through the fields - slow going

Then come the first hills of the trip. We climb up to Mühlberg. When we reach the little pilgrimage church of St. Anna I think, well now we have the climb over with, from here it's going to be downhill all the way to Windischeschenbach. Wrong. There are many more ups and downs before we reach our destination. It is hard work for us, but we have wonderful views from a plateau with a vista that give you that on-top-of-the-world feeling.

Shortly before we reach Windischeschenbach, with blue skies

Not at a great elevation, but it feels like the roof of the world

Windischeschenbach has steep little streets. We walk our bikes around town, and although we're looking for a room we are directed to a Biergarten. This is where the Zoigl comes in. But not yet. First we find a room, get cleaned up, then go out for our evening meal, and why not in a Biergarten?

So, what is Zoigl? Zoigl is a kind of beer, maybe you guessed that already, but not any old kind of beer. It's only brewed by certain brewers in certain towns on certain days of the week . We're in luck - Windischeschenbach is one of the few towns where you can get authentic Zoigl beer, in fact it calls itself "The World's Zoigl Beer Capital". Zoigl is only brewed in Oberpfalz und Franconia by communal brewers (brewhouses owned by the town or an association of homebrewers) and it is sold in the private rooms of the brewer which are used as a pub only for a limited time until the beer is gone. The little Biergarten we have been directed to is entitled to sell it and today is the right day!

Hurrah, we're at the right place at the right time. Even more serendipitous is that fact that our pub is celebrating its fifth anniversary and Zoigl is being sold for its price of five years ago - 1€ for a 1/2 liter glass.

Authentic Zoigl, a golden, unfiltered beer brewed only in one region of Bavaria in brewhouses owned by the town or an association of small brewers

Later on in the trip we occasionally find ourselves at the right place at the wrong time, or at the wrong place at the wrong time. More on that later.

You recognize a pub serving Zoigl by the Zoigl star, a six-angular star similar to the Star of David hanging over the door. This was the sign of brewers in the middle ages symbolizing the three elements water, earth and fire used for brewing and the three ingredients water, malt and hops.

The brewer's star, showing where Zoigl is currently on tap, probably one of the oldest guild emblems of brewers

I'm not a beer buff, it's just that there is a long beer tradition in the region where we are now traveling. The evening with another kind of beer would also have been enjoyable, but maybe not so special. In the little garden are a few tables and chairs, it looks like someone's backyard and we are the only tourists. Our table companions are natives to Windischeschenbach, their dialect not always easy to understand, their stories numerous. Along with your beer, a "Brotzeitteller" is best, a plate of various kinds of cold sausage and cheese eaten with dark bread.

Today's ride: 67 km (42 miles)
Total: 291 km (181 miles)

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