Do Germans Drink Warm Beer?

Many people in the United States drink their beer ice cold, so myths and legends abound about countries filled with people who love to drink warm beer. The reality is far from the myth, as is usually the case. So, what is the truth? And where did the myth about Germans loving to drink warm beer come from?

Beer is Brewed Warm

First, it is important to understand that beer is traditionally brewed on the warm side. Ales, the kinds of beers that have been around for more than 10,000 years now, are brewed with ale yeast, which ferments best at temperatures between 60- and 78-degrees Fahrenheit. That’s pretty warm. The reason for this warmer temperature is the enhancement of flavors and aromas, which are stunted at colder temperatures.

Interestingly enough, lagers, which came along much later, only about 600 years ago, do indeed ferment at much colder temperatures. While some lagers are quite tasty, still others are considered virtually flavorless, with very little complexity. Those beers have come to be drunk at ice cold temperatures because to warm them up even a bit tends to bring out undesirable notes no one wants to drink.

That trend has carried over to virtually all American beer drinking, which many now think has to be drunk at ice cold temperatures.

In reality, many beers actually taste better and are more enjoyable all around at a warmer temperature closer to 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

Do Germans Drink Warm Beer?

No. Germans do not drink warm beer. However, German beers are served a bit warmer than American beers. While Americans tend to serve their beers almost to the point of freezing, and to serve it in a chilled glass on top of that, German ales are typically served between 40 and 50 degrees.

Those temperatures are not warm by many standards, but Americans are so used to ice cold beer, that the myth has held that Germans drink warm beer.

What Is Warmbier? And What Is Glühbier?

There is one small exception to the rule that Germans don’t really drink warm beer and that is warmbier.

In the 18th century Johann Georg Krünitz’s Oeconomische Encyclopädie it is mentioned that: “Warm beer is a drink that our grandparents enjoyed in the last century, and at the beginning of the present, almost in the same way as we now serve coffee, and with better benefits for their health.”

The general recipe for warmbier called for beer to be warmed up and mixed with eggs, flour, butter, ginger, nutmeg, sugar, and salt.

Warmbier is not an extremely popular drink in Germany nowadays, although you will still find Germans sticking to this tradition in the cold season.

Clearly, this drink can no longer simply be called beer, and it cannot be said that because Germans enjoy this beverage that they drink warm beer, but now you see where the myth may have some foundation.

Another notable mention is the Glühbier (you may have heard of glühwine?) which is basically mulled beer and which is also served warm around Christmas.

What Countries Drink Warm Beer?

The same logic that encourages Germans to drink their beer a bit warmer than Americans do extends itself throughout Central Europe, where beer is typically warmed up a bit before drinking. It makes sense that in the dead of winter you won’t want to drink a freezing cold beverage, and perhaps the United States simply does not have enough ice-cold geography to warrant warming up beer.

Indeed, Central Europeans, including Germans, sometimes use a beer warmer that slightly increases the temperature of beer so that it is not too cold to drink in the dead of winter. A narrow metal tube is filled with hot water and closed with a lid. The tube is then suspended in a glass of cold beer to bring the temperature up a bit.

The beer warmer has been around for centuries and has been given as gifts at holidays. It is no wonder then that Germans have a reputation for drinking beer.

Again, it is critical to remember that we are still not talking about a warm beverage but rather a cold beverage whose temperature is brought up slightly. We also must acknowledge that the vast majority of beers are not intended to be served ice cold.

Cheers!

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Sources:

1. https://vinepair.com/articles/what-bierwarmer-guide/
2. https://winning-homebrew.com/do-germans-drink-warm-beer.html
3. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biersuppe#Warmbier

 
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