My Day At Lahnsteiner Brauerei

[Whistlingjack]

Well, after a whirlwind tour of Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Italy and Switzerland, its back to Deutschland for the "business" part of my stay here.

Today Mrs WJ and I visited my new boss at the Lahnsteiner Brauerei. I also met the brewmaster and was invited to sample some of the product. I start work at 8am Monday morning...can't wait.

The country here is quite beautiful and we have a flat on top of the hill overlooking the Lahn River. Not far away is Koblenz which is situated at the junction of the Rhein and the Mosel. I hate to have to confess, but I will be sampling some wine here... h34r:

We will be flat-hunting and sight-seeing this weekend, with a trip planned to visit relatives near here.

WJ

Ps. Zwickel, sorry I couldn't make it this weekend, but we'll see you in Frankfurt in a couple of weeks. Is Mrs Zwickel going too?

 

[Doogiechap]

Mate I love the sound of the Beerstengel ! The Beer Sweets sound interesting :blink: . Congrats on your job !
Cheers
Doug

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

Well, after a whirlwind tour of Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Italy and Switzerland, its back to Deutschland for the "business" part of my stay here.

Today Mrs WJ and I visited my new boss at the Lahnsteiner Brauerei. I also met the brewmaster and was invited to sample some of the product. I start work at 8am Monday morning...can't wait.

The country here is quite beautiful and we have a flat on top of the hill overlooking the Lahn River. Not far away is Koblenz which is situated at the junction of the Rhein and the Mosel. I hate to have to confess, but I will be sampling some wine here... h34r:

We will be flat-hunting and sight-seeing this weekend, with a trip planned to visit relatives near here.

WJ

Ps. Zwickel, sorry I couldn't make it this weekend, but we'll see you in Frankfurt in a couple of weeks. Is Mrs Zwickel going too?

You are a long way from Albany WA.So now you are at lahnsteiner-brauerei.de?

 

[lucas]

is the job over there a long term thing, or is it like more hands on experience before you come back home and start crafting great beers for us in australia?

 

[Zwickel]

Hi Whistlingjack,

I was already a little worried about you, didnt hear anything of you for the last two weeks.
Im going to skype you as soon as possible.

ahhh.....and urgently recommended, do a wine sampling day at some wine cellars close to your place. Thats a great wine growing area where you are, dont miss it. :beerbang:

Cheers mate

 

[chillamacgilla73]

Nice one WJ - Koblenz holds a special place in my heart. I travelled in a Kombi camper from Koln down the Rhine thru Koblenz and further down through the Mosel in December 94. Christ it was cold sleepin at night!!! I had a few arvo beers in Koblez and was catching 40 winks on the back seat when I awoke mid air heading towards a 3 way fridge after having a head on accident with a VW passat. My brother had recently arrived from Oz n forgot Ze Germans drive on RHS of the road. Kombi sold n Eurail all the way.

A top place to be staying ya lucky bugger! Good luck on your first day at Lahnsteiner Brauerei.

 

[Duff]

Congratulations WJ. It would be unreal brewing beer over in an area surround by such great beer, nice range as well.

Cheers.

 

[bradmcm]

Good luck! Koblenz is also a favourite town of mine. I stayed in the Festung Ehrenbreitstein for a few nights and it was wonderful. If you like history be sure to check out the German Army Technical Collection. Panzers!

 

[Whistlingjack]

is the job over there a long term thing, or is it like more hands on experience before you come back home and start crafting great beers for us in australia?

Its a sort of apprenticeship. After this I will hold a Dipl. Braumeister.

I'm not certain about the prospects after that, it depends on what comes up. I am just looking to learn the craft and take it from there.

Koblenz is a very beautiful place and I'm fortunate to find a brewery like Lahnsteiner to continue my brewing education.

WJ

 

[Whistlingjack]

The first couple of days have gone very well. I work with a great bunch of guys and they tolerate my broken German... :huh:

Yesterday I worked on the kegging line and today was spent filtering. I haven't got to lay my hands on the brewhouse yet, just visits there when I can smell the mash, but the time will come. The brewhouse is very new (2003) while some of the other plant is quite old, but functional.

The beer so far is to my taste (how can it not be when its free)

Tomorrow, we do a change of the filter pads and hopefully in the afternoon, I'll get into the brewhouse... :super:

The weather here is just like a winter at home, cold and wet, but we expect fine conditions for the weekend.

WJ

 

[Doc]

Fantastic WJ. Your trip sounds to be working out well.
Hope you get into the brewhouse soon.

Another thread to watch over the coming months

Doc

 

[Whistlingjack]

I am just getting an idea of the schedule here.

Today was maintenance and cleaning, so no brewing. The false bottom was taken out of the lauter tun and the whole vessel was cleaned thoroughly. Some taps and pipng were replaced, the filter pads were changed and the filtration room given a good clean.

Kegging continued though and I finally got to learn how to drive a forklift...what a blast!

This is a busy place, producing at capacity, and although everyone works hard, we have a lot of fun. There are only ten regular workers (including three brewers) so its easy to get to know everyone.

The weather has not improved.

WJ

 

[Screwtop]

Sounds like your apprenticeship started much like any other WJ with sweeping the floor (so to speak) and working your way up. Have you travelled to the South (Baden/Wurtemberg), my mothers family came from small villages near Stuttgart called Steinheim an der Murr and Schmiden, hoping to visit there next year, I'm told it's a pretty area of the Black Forest.

 

[Whistlingjack]

Hi fellow brewers...long time, no chat...

Finally got access to the internet at our apartment, all be it illicit. (If people don't want you to use their WiFi, they should secure it)

Anyway, life in the "Mittelrhein" is great, but the summer, if you can call it that, is over. You would think that the brewing industry would start to slow but we are as busy as ever. We are close to running ahead of our capacity, which means contracting out.

A fresh load of malt arrived today. I hadn't witnessed that yet. I can't say what quantity but it took three hours to unload. We use three tonnes per brew and do up to five batches in a day (only two brewdays a week)

My regular tasks consist of filtering (340hl today) or filling kegs (30 per hour when the machine runs right) and refining newly learned skills. I haven't dropped a keg off the forklift in a while... :huh:

Last week, Mrs WJ and I visited friends in the city of Mnchen. We saw the preparations for the Oktoberfest and drove out to Andechs Kloster for a beer. Around $AUD8.50 for a litre ma of one of the best beers I've had so far in this country. Also met some Aussies at the Hofbrauhaus...what a blast that place is.

Other mentionable tours include the scenic drive up the Mosel to the Saar and the home of fellow AHB'er Zwickel. Thanks again for the hospitality and I hope your brewery is working ok now...

I hope this connection lasts and I can get some more updates in, but only six weeks until we're back in the lucky country...

WJ

 

[bonj]

Don't know how I missed this thread. I followed the VLB thread intently.

Sounds like you're having fun, which is great.

 

[Whistlingjack]

The end of another routine week of brewing, filtering, filling and cleaning.

The highlight was a visit last evening to the house of one of the brewers for a BBQ and drinks. He used to run his own brewpub and, at the end of a great evening, produced a 5 litre bottle of beer schnapps he had made there and stashed away. Well, the two nips I had tasted just great but on top of all the beer I drank, my head was a little sore this morning...

Sometimes we break the routine by doing things like climbing the ladder to the top of the fermentation tanks to check the manometers, exploring the storerooms or taking the spent kieselguhr to a nearby farm for use on the fields. That always results in the supply of goodies like fresh eggs, meat and cheese made on the farm.

An order came in this week for the export of 500 cartons of our beer to China. We had to pack them into boxes and load them on the pallets. It took three of us two days. 10,000 bottles is a lot of beer... :blink:

Last week I went with one of the brewers on a drive to Mnstereifal about 60km away to pick up some kegs. Some great scenery but complicated by the fact that we were given the wrong directions and took almost 3 hours to find the place.

Anyway, learning heaps and enjoying the work.

WJ

 

[Whistlingjack]

A big day of filtering today. About 380hl of obergrig (not allowed to call it Klsch here), pils and altbier. This means I get to play with high pressure water and superheated steam when I clean the filter tomorrow... :super:

We filled many kegs, so we will filter twice this week. Three of the lagering tanks got the CIP treatment also.

This weekend was the annual Lahnstein Kirmes (town fair) and of course our brewery featured prominently. A lot of kegs were emptied over the three days. These fairs are everywhere at the moment as each town tries to upstage each other.

On sunday, Mrs WJ and I visited her aunt and uncle near Limburg and we were shown a 15th century castle that was up for sale. A "renovator's dream" that would make a fine brewery... :beerbang:

The weather is cooling now and the forests are starting to show a brown hue. Time to head for warmer climes, methinks...

WJ

 

[Whistlingjack]

Well, my last day at Lahnsteiner Brauerei has come and gone. I lost my internet connection, so I haven't been able to keep up the reports.

I have learned heaps about brewing and the industry in Germany. The brewers gave me a great send off and I'll miss their fantastic support! The gifts were apt and the farewells sincere...



So here I sit, late at night in a hotel in Paris, drinking Hoegaarden (cheapest beer in the supermarket I went to) pondering the next move. By the way, its not pleasant looking at the big screen on the Eiffel tower and being reminded of our RWC failure.

In just over one week I'll be back home and making beer. Only for myself, and friends, for the time being, while dreaming about bigger things.

Thanks for all the messages in this, and the previous thread, and I'll add more if I can get online again here.

WJ

 

[Ross]

Its a sort of apprenticeship. After this I will hold a Dipl. Braumeister.

I'm not certain about the prospects after that, it depends on what comes up. I am just looking to learn the craft and take it from there.

Koblenz is a very beautiful place and I'm fortunate to find a brewery like Lahnsteiner to continue my brewing education.

WJ

Hi WJ,

So did you get your Diploma, I had visions of you being in Germany for a fair while?
I'm sure you'll land on your feet here very quickly, with so many new micros coming onstream. Best of luck for the future...


cheers Ross

 

[Whistlingjack]

Thanks, Ross...

I had to prove at least three months employment in a recognised brewery to get the diploma.

WJ