Continuation of the European Beer Tour...Germany, Austria and Switzerland

We had such an amazing time in Belgium (and the Belgium beers remain our favorite!) but it was time to head on to the other countries we were visiting, starting with Germany.  Our first stop in Germany was in Freiburg - a university town where Holly and I studied abroad in college.
We stayed at a hotel that was right on the square where they hold daily farmer's markets.

Of course one of the main attractions in Germany is the bratwurst - and we were not disappointed!  

No better way to wash down a bratwurst than with a beer at a beer garden overlooking Freiburg.  This Weisbier was light and refreshing with a hint of citrus. 

---

Our next stop was Austria and the Stiegl Brauerei in Salzburg.  This was one of our favorite (and most modern) breweries with a great self guided tour.  Of course we loved the tasting at the end too!

David was thrilled to get his ceramic liter beer stein.  And I loved this Stiegl-Herbst-Gold beer, it had a fantastic herbal flavor to it and was so refreshing.

Our next stop that day was at the Augustiner Beer Hall in Salzburg.  Such an authentic beer hall.  One of our favorite memory was seeing a German grandmother's birthday with her whole family there drinking liters of beer - including the grandmother!   I love this culture.

After Salzburg we were back to Germany for a stop in Munich and went to the Paulaner Brewery - great tour that started out with a 45 minute "all you can drink" tasting.  Yes please! Below are the tasting glasses, one of their copper brew kettles, and the "portable kegs" that they bring to the tents in Oktoberfest.  

And of course we had to do the Hofbrau Haus...

Our last stop in Germany was in a cute town, Mittenwald - they have the highest elevation brewery in Europe, and some of my favorite beers!  We couldn't understand the whole tour because it was all in German, but the beer was delicious.  And what a quintessential town, complete with cute streets, sidewalk cafes, and beautiful mountains surrounding us.

We then took the train to Chur, Switzerland where we stayed the night and then caught the gorgeous Glacier Express train to Zermatt, Switzerland.  It was such a gorgeous train ride, and we were lucky enough for nice weather and to go through some amazing elevations - almost thought you were in a different world!

And now for the final leg of our amazing Europe trip - Zermatt Switzerland - some of the best hikes (Matterhorn!) and food (fondue!) of the trip...

Oh our hike down, we stopped in a tiny "town" that had a restaurant and had some of the best pasta of the trip - a "lemon and prawn" pasta which I plan to re-create on a blog post very soon here - stay tuned! 

We enjoyed both fondue (melted cheese with bread dipped into it) as well as Raqulette (cheese that is melted under a broiler then shaved off onto your plate) served with bread, pickles and lamb carpaccio.  Absolute perfection - I was in heaven.

In all, it was the most amazing culinary / beer tour experience that I could ever ask for.  My appreciation for beer (and food of course) has only risen with this trip and I am so thankful for the experience.  I will definitely be re-creating recipes and referring back to this trip - I appreciate you all reading this and experiencing it with me!