German Wine & Beer Festivals, Germany

For connoisseurs of wine and beer, August is a fantastic time to be in Germany.  From Berlin to the Rhineland, there is a great choice of festivals to attend, depending on whether you prefer to conduct your wine-tasting in one of the small towns along the Mosel or in Rudesheim on the Rhine or at wine festivals in the larger towns like Stuttgart, Hamburg, Mainz, Franfurt or Aachen.  As a traveller, it’s great being in a town when there is a huge festival on as you get to meet a nice cross-section of people. 

The following is a sampling of festivals:

The Berlin Beer Festival
August 3 – 6, 2008:  Usually held on the first weekend of August annually, this festival boasts the longest beer garden in the world – one mile long! One million people come to this festival each year.  Stalls offer 1,200 types of beer from over 180 breweries from Germany, the Czech Republic, Belgium and the UK with a focus on smaller, private breweries. However long it might take to sample 1,200 varieties of beer, the Berlin Beer Festival sounds like a great way to quench your thirst on a hot summer day.  Live music and shows also keep the crowd entertained.

Aachen Wine Festival
August 3 – 6, 2008:  Located in North Rhine Westphalia, Aachen is an attractive Roman spa town, famous for its therapeutic waters, hot springs and 1000-year-old remains.  This lovely town hosts a summer wine festival in the town center each year with over 400 wines on offer from 20 or more wineries in Rhineland Palatine. Featured wines include Riesling, Mueller-Thurgau, Kerner, Dornfelder and Spaetburgunder. Good food and wine, music and a generally great atmosphere make this Wine Festival a favorite among locals and tourists alike.

The Stuttgart Wine Festival – Hamburg
August 2 – 18, 2008:  Just prior to the big Wine Festival in Stuttgart, Stuttgart Wineries bring their wares to Hamburg for 2 weeks at the beginning of August.  A  wine village is set up in the Hamburg Rathaus Marktplace, complete with wine and beer gardens, regional Stuttgart fare and arts and crafts from the Stuttgart region.

The Stuttgart Wine Festival – Stuttgart
Aug 29 – Sep 9, 2008:  The Stuttgart Wine Festival is one of the largest and most beautiful wine festivals in Germany. From the end of August to the beginning of September, the Stuttgart city center is transformed into a festive wine village. 120 wine alcoves with traditional decor offer up over 250 wines from the region, including Trollinger, Riesling, Kerner, Müller-Thurgau, Schwarzriesling, Ruländer, Schillerwein, Lemberger and Weißherbst.  With so much wine flowing, the atmosphere is bound to be jolly.  Great music and food complement the warm and friendly atmosphere.

The Mainz Wine Festival
August 25 – 28, 2008:  The Mainz Wine Market ( Mainzer Weinmarkt) plays host to over half a million visitors each year.  You’ll enjoy wandering through the parks and rose gardens of the town as you go about tasting wines, eating the local fare and checking out the arts and crafts stalls. There is plenty of music to suit every taste and the city is known to be particularly beautiful at this time of year.

Mosel Wine Festivals
From April 1 – Oct 31, 2008:  From early spring through fall, the towns along the Mosel hold wine festivals. Local foods and wines are served and a general party atmosphere prevails. The Mosel Valley is full of vineyards that rise up the hills from the river banks. There is likely to be a wine festival in one town or another every weekend in the Mosel region, the most well-known in August being the Bernkastel-Kues Wine Festival which runs from the 30 August to 3 September.

The Rudesheim Wine Festival
August 17 – 20, 2008:  Always charming and picturesque, the small Rhine wine village of Rudesheim hosts a Wine Festival that features the wineries of the region as well as food. The festival takes place on the main street and you can enjoy the beautiful views to the Rhine and the vineyards above as you sip your wine.  If you feel intimidated about into the small wine tasting rooms, this is a perfect way to get to know Ruedesheim and its wines.

The Frankfurt Rheingau Wine Festival
Aug 29 – Sep 7, 2007:  The Rheingau Wine Festival (Rheingauer Weinmarkt) is Frankfurt’s only wine festival with vintners from the Rheingau offering over 600 types of wines in Fressgasse, one of Frankfurt’s charming small streets. Rieslings are the specialty wines here, reflecting the unique terroir of the Rheingau wine region.

A visit to Germany is not complete without going to a Wine or a Beer Festival. There is plenty on offer so it’s necessary to plan well in order to get maximum coverage.

Helen