Austrians are a no nonsense people. When you sit down in a pub, the staff want to take your whole order right away - none of this getting your drinks first while you take your time to peruse the menu for food. Or at least this seemed to be the case in most places I visited. That said, their efficiency is second to none. In many places, especially smaller towns and traditional pubs, there is only one size of beer you can order, the 1/2 liter glass or stein. Fortunately for those of us who like to try a number of brews on offer, many of the places I visited in Vienna did have a range. There certainly was the 500 ml 'krugerl' or 'grosses', and even the occasional brew could be ordered in a 1 liter stein. But a more conventional 300 ml glass 'siedel' or 'kleinesbier' I found in a lot of places and even better for us beer geeks was the 200 ml 'pfiff', which leaves a lot more room for variety at any given seating.
Ottakringer is Vienna's largest brewer, and as such has deep penetration in the market place and a good loyal following. Many pubs are 'tied' houses serving only their products, and most of their beers are of high quality and eminently very palatable. We visited one such tied house Bieramt one evening, and while most folks seemed to be out in the biergarten smoking - yes, smoking is still very prevalent in Austria's (and Germany's) pubs and restaurants - we sat at the bar and chatted with the friendly and knowledgeable barkeep. They had 10 taps, all but one Ottakringer products (and that lone brew was the original Budvar). We tried two new ones that had just come on the market recently, an organic filtered beer called Ottakringer Pur, and a new wheat beer named Innstadt Weizen. The Pur had a surprising earthy nose, a fruity palate and was very well carbonated with great legs and good lacing. It was clear and clean, light body, pale gold in colour and was easy to drink with a nutty and fruity maltiness right through to the end. The Weizen was also rather easy to drink, but unfiltered, and fuller bodied, cloudy pale yellow, fruity and aromatic with citric notes permeating the palate. Now Vienna is an historical city, original divided up into districts, and addresses of any building still use the old system, adding the district after the street address. The old and famous Ottakringer brewery is located in the 16th district, and people in that area have their own slang and fun with the language. Our bartender explained to us how to order a beer, a sausage and a slice of bread in that part of Vienna - still a traditional lunch for many. "Ein sechozehner blech, a eitige und a bug latte". Literally translated this means 'a 16 can, one with puss and a humpback'. What you get is a can of Ottakringer beer, a sausage filled with cheese and a heel of bread. Kind of funny really, though the some of the play on words does get lost in the translation to English I think.
I was looking for a good meal when I visited the last brewpub on my list, as I had wandered the streets all day, went and saw the Danube River, hit some museums and never stopped for lunch. This was the Wieden Brau, a lovely, but not-so-little neighbourhood pub. Many of these kinds of pubs seem deceivingly small when you first arrive, but you soon realize they have many rooms running to the back of the building or into hidden alcoves. This was no exception, with the brewhouse sitting right in the middle. All 3 of their beers are unfiltered and bottom fermented. They also had a specialty on, which was a Pils, and it was excellent! This was the hoppiest beer I tried whilst in the city. Fresh hop nose, clean straw colour, thick white head, good carbonation, great initial hop bite, light body with hop bitterness dancing on your tongue and present right through the dry finish. I ordered the Dunkles next, to go with the platter of ribs that arrived with roasted potatoes and a lovely side of spicy salsa and pickled hot peppers. Yum! It was a dark, reddish brown with a big hit of malt on the first sip that settles into a smooth and roast malt dominated palate, but balanced with tones of chocolate and toasted grain, the somewhat hidden sweetness fading to bitterness in the long finish. The Maerzen too was surprisingly good. I must be developing a taste for this style - it is THE style of Austria, and though there are many mainstream and tasteless versions, this one was an exception. Flowery nose with spicy herbal notes, well balanced with nice dryness over the mellow malt character, some fruitiness and buried spice mid way through that falls away in the finish. Like all Weiden Brau's beers, this too was well carbonated. They also make a Helles, and blend it with the Dunkles to make what they call their Mixbier, a kind of black and tan. As well, they offer a Radler. This is a popular mix of beer and lemonade that you can get almost anywhere beer is found in Austria. All of the Wieden Brau beers are also available to take home in 500 ml bottles for 2 Euros a pop. What a deal!
One last thing, the Austrians, like the Germans, love their schnapps. Many little brewpubs do distill their own from the beer they make, but drinkers beware. These are not the candy sweet varieties we see in North America. They are strong and can sometimes be rather medicinal, an acquired taste for sure.
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