Paulaner – Munich, Germany

Ok, here we go. We finally made it to Munich. After hitting the Marienplatz and checking out the beer garden in the Viktualienmarkt, we stumbled upon Paulaner’s pub and had our first beers in Germany.

First, I went for their dunkel they had on tap. It came across as very “clean” and definitely like a very flavorful, malty lager. So malty, it almost seemed to tread the line between a lager and an ale. Normally, I’m not a huge fan of lagers, but I can dig this.

Next, I had to try their famous Salvator beer, the origin of the doppelbock style (even though they only had it in bottles). Monks from Paula, Italy who had moved to Munich came up with this beer hundreds of years ago to sustain them during Lent when they were unable to consume solid foods. These monks sent some of this strong beer to the Pope for approval, as some were worried they were having too good of a time “fasting” in this manner. Apparently the beer spoiled en route and upon tasting, the Pope was quite impressed the monks had chosen to subject themselves to consuming such a beverage during Lent and gave Salvator papal blessing. The monks pretty much said “umm… well ok then” and kept making and drinking Salvator each year.

I found Salvator to be a bit sweet – in a good way. Kind of like a malty double IPA minus the hop kick. The waiter tried to warn me about this beer. “Strong beer, yes?” Yes please, ya bitte, Whatever, just bring me more Salvator.

Dunkel

Salvator doppelbock

Availability

Tasty taps

Crazy Germans gettin' tipsy in the Viktualienmarkt beer garden