Good Times at Wurstfest 09′

Last Saturday, after the Texas game, I made the 45 minute trek to New Braunfels to experience the Wurstfest. This was a festival of German culture. Crucial to that culture would appear to be food and beer. And there were plenty of both at Wurstfest – along with some good times and great polka music. The festival was packed full of thirsty people looking for fun!

Drink tickets were worth their weight in gold.

The beer selection there was adequate, with I think around five or six different varieties of German beers, alongside the domestic standards. Getting your hands on these beers became quite a task as the night fell. You had to purchase beer tickets, for a dollar a ticket. Six tickets (dollars) got you a 12 ounce cup of imported beer and a whopping 25 tickets purchased a pitcher.

Learning the right phrases.

The place was packed so getting a new round was a guaranteed 25 or 30 minute wait to boot. After getting the beer or food and sitting down with friends, the good times could then roll. There were hundreds of tables inside tents with polka music jamming. Me and my friends could not find a table, so we relaxed on the hillside, by the river. It is there that I taste tested a couple beers:

Very fashionable.

Warsteiner Dunkel: This beer was pretty average, brewed by Warsteiner. It was was a little hoppy and somewhat flat. 2.5 out of 5 mugs on the Austin Brew Scale.

Warsteiner KL Weiss: This was my favorite beer from the Wurstfest. It was more aggressive and hoppy. I give it 3.5 out of 5 mugs.

Spaten Oktoberfest: This was another good beer, brewed by Spaten. For some reason it seemed a little lighter than the other two, but it was very crisp. 3 out of 5 mugs.

The most fun part of the festival for me wasn’t the ubiquitous beer, it was the fun and friendly atmosphere – everyone was smiling and for some reason, many people were wearing odd hats. So make sure to check out Wurstfest when it comes back in town next year!