We have a somewhat “famous” place here in Shepherdstown called the Bavarian Inn. It’s restaurant serves German food and people come quite a distance to dine on their favorite German dishes.
Every year the Bavarian Inn holds a German festival, known as — your guessed it — Oktoberfest. This year it was held on September 17… in fact it’s held in September every year. So you’re probably asking why, if it’s called Oktoberfest, it’s not held in October. I’ve often wondered that myself over the years.
The first time I ever experienced an Oktoberfest was in Germany. I think the original, and probably still the biggest and best known, is held in Munich. However, the only Oktoberfest festival I ever attended in Germany was in Frankfort. Apparently the magnitude of the Frankfort festival doesn’t compare to the one in Munich… but it’s pretty big!!
This year, the real Oktoberfest (in Munich) began on Saturday, September 17. At noon on that day, the Mayor of Munich tapped the first keg of Oktoberfest beer. The mayor tapping the first keg of beer officially starts Oktoberfest. The mayor declares, “O’ zapft is!” (“It’s tapped”.) Once that first keg is tapped, the first person to get a beer is traditionally the Minister-President of the State of Bavaria, but after that, all visitors are allowed to quench their thirst. This year’s festival ends on October 3 (officially at 11:30 pm.)
So how did these festivities get started in the first place? Well, in 1810, Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hidburghausen, and all the citizens were invited to the celebration. Since then, the festival has grown to include horse races, games, rides, music and — beer. It’s interesting that originally the celebration did not include beer. In the festival’s early years, beer was only served outside the fair, or festival, grounds. Of course that’s no longer the case — now more than 7.5 million liters are consumed each year.
Oktoberfest regulations say that the only beer that can be served for the celebration must be from one of Munich’s six breweries — Paulaner, Spaten, Hacker-Pschon, Augustiner, Hofbrau, and Lowenbrau. And, like all other German brews, Oktoberfest beers must pass the “purity” law or Reinheitsgebot, which was passed in 1516 to ensure the beer’s quality.
When there’s a 16-day long beer festival, some people, or a lot of people, are bound to have one pint too many. When someone passes out from too many beers, the locals call them “Bierleichen” — or, “Beer Corpses.” I saw many of them at the one Oktoberfest I attended in Frankfort. In fact, you could hardly walk for all the Beer Corpses. The protocol seems to be, you just step over them and carry on….
So back to wondering why Oktoberfest begins in September… by moving the festivities up, it allowed for better weather conditions. Because the September nights were warmer, visitors were able to enjoy the gardens outside the tents and stroll over “die Wiesen” or the fields much longer without feeling chilly. Historically, the last Oktoberfest weekend was in October and that tradition continues today. Having better weather is also nicer for the Beer Corpses when they come back to life…..
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