Klosterbrauerei Andechs

Domingo

Colorado

4.53/5  rDev +4.1%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 5 | food: 4 | $$

A wonderful "must do" trip if you're in the Munich area. Easily accessible via the s-bahn system and either a short bus or taxi ride from the station.
The entire atmosphere is just terrific. A large self-service style beerhall (no tablecloth in sight) that of course just happens to carry some of the best half-dozen beers in the whole world.
I was there in the winter so I didn't get to experience the outside biergarden area quite so much, but you can see how nice it must be in warmer weather. The view is stunning.
Beers were roughly 2 euros each and are served in the default .50 mug, or the larger one for about 50% more for the Helles and Dunkel.
Selections are a Helles, Dunkel, Weiss, Doppelbock, and a few special selections. The specials in the winter of '05 were the AMAZING Apfelweiss, and Dunkel Jubilaumsbier. You also can order a Radler if that's your cup of tea. There are also several varieties of Schnapps distilled at Andechs including peach and apple. A nice couple from Hamburg gave us a try of the apple and it was wonderful.
Food is typical hearty bavarian fare...but done REALLY well.
English is typically spoken and mostly understood, but knowing a few German phrases is a big plus.
It just doesn't get much better than this. If you're in Munich, you'll want to hit up the Hofbrauhaus and Andechs.

Because all of the beers are so wonderful, you'll want to likely have a friend ordering one thing while you order another...and just split the beers. This way you can try everything without becoming incoherant due to the potency of many of the brews!

An amazing thing is that the place is FULL of locals. We arrived at 10AM thinking we'd be the first ones only to discover 25 locals that appeared to have arrived some time earlier. By noon, the main hall was full...and on a random Wednesday no less. People in Germany know a good thing and take advantage of it!

EDIT: In the summertime the place opens up quite a bit. There's a huge patio area with an additional bar area, and even a second biergarten on your way up the hill with its own taps (which may have items not available in the main hall). Also, the Apfelweiss turned out to be a simple juice-blend item (which is still awesome), but you could probably have them make it using other beers as well.

01-05-2006 00:48:10 | More by Domingo

bigbelcher

Arizona

4.4/5  rDev +1.1%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

A little bit of heaven in every glass is how I think of Andechs. Where else can you go and see a 15th century baroque church with their own beer garden? The beers are all of outstanding quality with dopplebock available year round. The only disappointment had to be in the limited food selection in the beer hall. When the beer garden is open the BBQ ribs and chicken are both outstanding. The beerhall itself can get quite smokey so the beer gardens are a good plus with a fantastic view of the countryside.

12-28-2005 17:29:34 | More by bigbelcher

PatYoda

Colorado

4.7/5  rDev +8%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5 | $$

This is an amazing place. The atmosphere category here is almost a joke. You're drinking some of the best beer in the world at the actual monastery where the monks brew it. You're up on a hill looking down into a beautiful valley. There are hundreds of other beer lovers from all over the world there enjoying the beer with you. Definitely a 5. While here, I tried all of the beers they had and was impressed with every one. I had several huge pretzels which were excellent and some Scheinhaxe or however you spell it, which apparently is pork knuckle. It was excellent as well. As a true beer traveler, you must visit this place at some point. There's really not much else I can say about it that you don't already know, so that will have to suffice. It's worth the plane ticket to Munich alone!

11-14-2005 21:49:04 | More by PatYoda

ColoradoBobs

Colorado

4.58/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5 | $$

There really are no words adequate to describe the experience of a day on the holy mountain. From the unique aspect of the view to the astonishing intricacy of the chapel, from the overtly Germanic "Gemütlichkeit" of the whole place to the outrageously delicious beer, this is a place to be savored slowly and enjoyed deeply.

Remembering that this is an active monastery helps explain the atmosphere and the hospitality. Observing the rule of St. Benedict, which says, “All strangers who come should be received as if they were Christ himself,” the managers treat guests very well.

We sampled four beers at the monastery:

1. Spezial Hell
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/911/4528/?ba=ColoradoBobs

2. Dunkel Naturtrüb Jubiläumsbier
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/911/25035/?ba=ColoradoBobs

3. Doppelbock Dunkel
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/911/2899/?ba=ColoradoBobs

4. Weissbier Hefetrüb
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/911/3995/?ba=ColoradoBobs

What the four had in common was an amazing depth and complexity. The one we rated lowest, the Spezial Hell, would probably have been rated much higher if we had sampled it alone: it simply couldn't stand up to its incredible companions.

My advice is to skip breakfast, arrive late morning for a huge early lunch, then spend the afternoon intermittently strolling and sampling half-liters. It's an experience you will never forget.

Note that the monastery sells beer at a higher price on the grounds than elsewhere. You can get half liters of Andechser for about 1 Euro in Munchen, but they're about 3 times that at the monastery. I'm sure it's a way of being nice to their distributors and making some extra money off the tourists. Despite the price, it's worth it for the amazing experience.

10-31-2005 04:35:22 | More by ColoradoBobs

mentor

Colorado

4.58/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5

Was encouraged to visit Cloister Andech's during my visit to Munich in May, 2004. After a long day of touring King Ludwig's castles we almost returned directly to Munich without stopping for a visit. Thank goodness we did stop. Signs directed us fairly easily to the monestary, which is located on top of a hill. The enormous parking lot at the base of the hill was mostly filled and buzzing with celebratory folk. Up the hill we walked, past oodles of booths selling knick-knacks, until we climbed the stairs to the biergarten.

What an unbelievable place. Long tables of revelling beer-drinkers enjoying the company they've come with and eagerly making friends with whomever grabs the seats next to them ("It's hier frei?"). There is no table service, although they clean up after you leave pretty quite. The line for beer is long, but moves very fast. A different line is for food and, unfortunatley, the selection is quite limited. I was really hungery and ordered the most substantial item on the menu...scheinhaxe (pig's foot, hairs still intact). I do NOT like pork, but it was actually quite good. My wife ate a pretzel that she had to hold onto with both hands because it was the size of her torso. Around us sat an international audience. We met people from towns nearby, a couple from Canada, and then who sits down next to me, but Nobel Prize winner Demond Tutu. WTF? Apparently, he was visiting the monestary and wanted to see the brewery in action. He ordered a Helles (light) and split a scheinhaxe with his wife.

Too bad my wife couldn't drive a stick-shift or I would have had many many beers. Sweet, clean, and divine. Whoa unto me, I had to drive back to Munich and could only enjoy one Helles and one Dunkel (dark). We sat in a baudry section in the main outside seating. Inside seating is available and a quiet outside section was available on the patio that overlooked the barn and local terrain.

If you ever make it to Munich, you MUST find a way to travel the 30-45 minutes south-eastish to visit this fantastic place. Monestary? Or heaven on earth?

07-12-2004 06:31:39 | More by mentor

BierManVA

Virginia

4.55/5  rDev +4.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 5

It's been about 8 months since I was here and I wonder to myself why I haven't put down my thoughts until now.

September, 2003, during Munich Oktoberfest. I find myself on the train platform with Bierman9, BierallucanbRI and his cousin and brother. We are all a little slow from the night before and not much distracts us from our self flagilation on the train and bus to Andechs.

But something magical happens...Our arrival to the brewery! First and foremost, the view is beautiful. Set amongst the hills of Bavaria, the gentle rolling countryside captivates and astounds the visitor. Then the bier, mighty and brash. Huge amounts of the most delicious brews available are awaiting the palate of even the most discriminating traveler. (Pls import this nectar!) What's next? The food of course. Classic and incredible German dishes of pork, wurst..you name it.

Before we know it, our troubles are gone, we are loud and boistrous and another night at the Oktoberfest awaits us!

A trip to Munich without a stop in Andechs is like going to San Francisco and not seeing the Golden gate.

John

05-27-2004 02:23:26 | More by BierManVA

Hobbz

Rhode Island

4.43/5  rDev +1.8%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5 | $$

A lovely, but hung-over morning, September 22 (2003) found me joining five others (my brother, nephew and his buddy, Bierman9 & BierManVa) en route on the S-bahn out of Munich and heading for Herrsching and Kloster Andechs -- my first and long-overdue, highly-anticipated visit!!! The weather had not always cooperated in the past, but now I could arrive and sit in the sunshine outdoors with my big-ass doppelbock and work my way quickly out of any thought that I was ever feeling squeamish. Precisely the case, and the monk's brew was magical to the end. True beer enjoyment (Biergenuß) par excellence.

Getting situated with one's beer is also done here with direct efficiency... You go to the payment counter right in front and pay for your beer choices (size and type) -- and then hand in your slip to the servers who are continuously pouring. Then it's possibly food and inside or out depending on preference, mood or weather or whatever... I wasn't up to it this time, but I have heard from locals that the Schweinhaxe are the absolute best here.

10-12-2003 04:18:14 | More by Hobbz

John

New York

4.4/5  rDev +1.1%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4

As previous reviewers have stated, this is truly a special place. A place of religious significance for more than a thousand years, a place a fine brewing significance for five or six hundred. Wow. The onion domed towers from the cathedral are visible from some distance away. Once you reach the hilltop you know that this is indeed everything everyone has said here on BA and more. Just about an hour outside of Munich on the S-Bahn (toward Herrsching) but well worth the trip. Plan on spending at least a half day here. Visit the cathedral, wander around the grounds and visit the shop. I picked up some cool glassware at a reasonable price. Hang out for some great beers and basic fare, self serve style. Meet some new friends in the Bier garden…enjoy the view. When we visited they were serving a Helles, Spezial Hell, Weisse, Doppel and Radler (beer w/ lemonade). Be sure to have the Dopplebock…the monks sacrificed little while fasting on this liquid bread. Be sure to make it a point to visit here if anywhere nearby.

10-01-2003 15:51:22 | More by John

Spacegrass

Maryland

3.6/5  rDev -17.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 2 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5

I would almost like to write two reviews of the Andechs. We made the mistake of going to the full-service beer garten to begin with and it was horrible. Service was incredibly slow and our server kept forgetting stuff. For example our food came with no silverware and another server saw us sitting there as she walked by and had to get it for us. The food tasted good but I found what looked like a pubic hair in it. I couldn't believe this was the Holy Mountain I was at and I was finding a pubic hair in my damn food.

While in this garden (it's the one on the right if you hike up the mountain, on the left if you come from the bus stop -- AVOID IT!) I had the Doppelbock ,Bergbock, and Weisse, along with a sip of the Hells and Dunkel from those who I was with. The beers here are by far amazing, I would have given a 5 for quality based on that if there wasn't a pube in my food. My favorite was the Bergbock hells but honestly I drive to any bar that had just one of Andech's fantastic beers. They were all fantastic. (I brought a few back with me so I may try and go more in depth on the taste of the beers after I have had them again)

After being sick of waiting for the service we got our bill and headed over to the self-serve beer garden. Much better! The only complaint I would have about here is that you can't see the view quite as well, but the beer makes up for it. This area was much nicer and was a very redeeming factor of my forgiveness to Andechs after visiting the first garden.

The gift shop was nice and the glassware prices very reasonable, much like the food and beer was. I got to peek inside the church and it is absolutely beautiful in there. Really my biggest complaint about the Andechs is that it has become somewhat touristy. But in all reality, this is a beer site I'm writing on, and the beer was excellent. So make your way over and enjoy a few Holy brews, it is definitely worth a visit just for that.

06-11-2003 20:23:55 | More by Spacegrass

PatandDavid

Massachusetts

4.58/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 5

Well, after Beirman9's overwhelming recommendation that we visit Kloster Andechs, David and I decided to get the heck out of Munich and go exploring. We took the train, and at the last stop, the German Family riding with us asked if we were going to Andechs. We said yes, and that we were taking the bus. They convinced us that walking up would be more pleasant, and really build our appetite for the beer and food...they weren't kidding!! After about an hour of walking through the snow covered woods, we made it to the top. We found a table out back and then it was time for the good stuff: The food and beer are outstanding! David got the Dopplebock and I got the Helles, both in a mass. It's all self serve: you grab and tray and point out what you want, and they serve up a fine plate of traditional regional specialties. You also go the the beer line, order yourself a beer, pay, get your ticket, then give it to one of the beermen to pull you a beautiful beer. The German family was very nice to us: they shared some of the delicasies with us, we bought them a few drinks, they bought us a four pack of beer to take home...the whole experience was overwhelmingly one of the best of our trip. True camraderie found, plus excellent beer and food.

highly recommended!

pat

03-08-2003 05:15:52 | More by PatandDavid