Märchen vom Verwundeten Terrier-Tales from the Wounded Terrier

General Beer Discussion by BRADPEAR

This is not a review, I don't now how to post an article, bare with me. In the several months I have worked at the Verwundeten Terrier, my view of the brewing world has increased greatly. I have also suffered d a damn near crippling fall, and take two hours by bus and train to get to the damn job, in the rain and snow. Needless to say obtaining wheels are a priority in my life at the moment. The operation itself is one of the,if not THE smallest commercial brewery in Deutschland. the business has been in the same family since 1793. The name comes from some local hero hund of the Great War, I don't know the whole story, my Deutsch is not that good yet. First off let me give a few lines to brewing and breweries. Cottrell noted if you are serious about becoming a better brewer and or interested in a university education in brewing, you best brush up on higher math and chemistry. No truer words have been spoken, and they are an understatement. If breweing is anything other then applied organic chemistry, what is it? To become a brewer/malter in Deutschland takes three years of schooling and on the job training. After that, three more years internship, then you can stand for the Master Brewer. What der Massa is. A Master Brewer here is a creature from the altenziet, the olden times as we say in Dixie. Amongst the advanced brewing skills, and the laying on of hands that is on par with becoming a Master Mason, a candiate for Brew Massa must complete courses in: Tax law, resturant management, accounting, employee relations, first aid, and numerous other related to buiness subjects. When you are a Massa you have the right to enslave students from the US, and have them work in miserable conditions. Well, that is how it works out. Brewery in Deutsch translates to: cold, wet, and hard labor. The Black Forest is not Florida, and even the summers are cool and wet. Translate, the Winters are what can be expected at 48 degrees North in the Northern hemisphere. Note to self: The region is not called the Black Desert. Ok, the brewery is like any other small business. You don't own it, it owns you. What I have learned is it takes an amazing amount of time and geld to keep this thing going. If you ever think you want a brewery, or brew pub, my humble advise is seek professional help. If you persist, have deep pockets, and a great business plan. Understand every aspect of the local and state tax codes. Become an expert in accounting even though you will hire out your tax and accounting to another individual at some point. The other day the Expresso machine takes a dump. 700 Euros to replace it, resturant quality for sure, but still a pile of geld. One of the cooling motors goes out. 5 Hours to get it out of the attic, then 2,500 plus Euros to fix the unit. The good news is the building was paid for by 1800, and it is damn near impossible for the state to take your home for non-payment of property tax. That is another story. The bad news is the Massa bought his sisters portion of the business and has to make payments. Bottom line, the bank will always be a factor. Ok, thirsty yet, lets talk about bier. I am way biased about the bier, so let me just say the brewing methods, in grains, the water (from the cemetery) are all the best, and this is a great version of Landbier as you can find.Bocks of perfection are made as well. The turd in the punch bowl is most of the folks coming in to the place are not spring chickens. The gasthaus is not excatly the Speicher (student pub in FUWA). An interesting attitude amongst the younger drinkers is if my father goes there is must not be good. Hell, my old man damn sure knew waht good was, I am sure their parents know the same, but youth is what youth is, young. They desire to venture beyond the village brewery, and drink Worsintheburg, Becks, or Cola wheat biers. I figure the young folks will some day come to prize the Terrier or not. Maybe the grandkids will end up there. Botom line: As good as the Verwundeten Terrier is, its survival is not written in stone. What I do there. If the brew Master has no yet reach 40, the other workers are on to 80. This being the case, I get to do all the work that is too hard, too wet, cold, dirty, or dangerous for the alt manneren to do. You don't start at the top at the Terrier. I am in charge of making damn sure the brewing areas are sterile for the Brewer to come in and work. Since the brewhaus was built in the late 1700s, it takes some cleaning to get it sterile. I also grind the grains, and sell kistern that is boxs of bier to the locals. 21 .5 liters is 12.30 Euro. I am also there for bottling and labeling. At the present, that pretty much sums it up. I have far more respect for anyone making a brewing operation work now then ever before. No mater what I think of the brew, or how sorry or great it is, to keep the doors open is a major accomplishment. A word about Worstintheburg. The local giant, Fursstinburg, produces some bland products that sell like tickets to heaven. To say it is not my bier is an understatement. The good news is those folks dump millions of Euros into the local economy in the form of sponsoring sport teams, concerts, city functions, you name it. Bastards! The nerve of them, being an asset to the communities! Folks know it and give to them, so they can give back. Maybe, just maybe, why Buttwiper is so popular in tthe states. Easter bock next time, Brad. P.S. On an interesting local note, the state, Baden Wurtenburg, owns its own brewery. Rothaus, is the local student favorite, and produces some pretty good inexpensive brews. Zapple (umlaut over the A) is a local tradition. At the Speicher we sell two lagers, Becks and Rothaus. It is a north vs. the South deal. Old times here are not forgotten. Becks is as awful here as in the states.... This message was edited by Brad Pear at 2/13/2005 2:49:12 AM.