I spent longer than most folk probably do trying to decipher the fare plan for the VRB transport network and tackling the ticket machines at the station.
Then scooted up onto the platform in time to catch the RE19 service for the 50-minute trip to Aachen.
Around 261,000 inhabitants make it Germany's 27th biggest city. So what makes them all want to live here?
Cathedral. Confectionary. And Craft Beer...possibly.
Or maybe the "thriving black metal scene", which Wikipedia reports exists.
Aachen is twinned with Halifax which definitely delivers craft beer, if not black metal so much.
Trekking past the street folk hanging out by the station listening to Motorhead, I made the 10-minute walk into the city centre and marvelled at the exterior of the cathedral and the characterful olde-worlde streets with some impressive buildings.
The tourists queued at the counter of the bakery selling the local speciality Printen - gingerbread-style cookies made with a secret recipe including spices and honey. I grabbed a small bag as a souvenir and took a picture of the Christmas display in the window (the earliest acknowledgement of the festive season this blog has seen to date!)
Accepting that the drizzle wasn't about to clear up to provide me with blue sky pictures, I figured shelter in a beer bar would be a good plan.
I visited on All-Soul's Day, which is a big holiday day in Germany, meaning most of the shops were closed and many of the pubs too. My first target, the Aachen Brauhaus, was all locked up. Better luck at the craft beer bar...
The tourists queued at the counter of the bakery selling the local speciality Printen - gingerbread-style cookies made with a secret recipe including spices and honey. I grabbed a small bag as a souvenir and took a picture of the Christmas display in the window (the earliest acknowledgement of the festive season this blog has seen to date!)
Accepting that the drizzle wasn't about to clear up to provide me with blue sky pictures, I figured shelter in a beer bar would be a good plan.
I visited on All-Soul's Day, which is a big holiday day in Germany, meaning most of the shops were closed and many of the pubs too. My first target, the Aachen Brauhaus, was all locked up. Better luck at the craft beer bar...
Hopfen+Malz Beer Shop (Elisabethstraße 6, 52062 Aachen)
Technically this is listed as a beer shop, as evidenced by the long run of fridges and shelving down one side when you enter. But it's far from a shop with a couple of tables. In a sizeable and quite ornate space there were several different seating areas - a front room reserved for a beer tasting later in the afternoon, a dimly lit back section with tables next to brewing kit, and the old cinema seats right at the front, which I made a bee-line for.
The beer list wass pretty stunning...
Technically this is listed as a beer shop, as evidenced by the long run of fridges and shelving down one side when you enter. But it's far from a shop with a couple of tables. In a sizeable and quite ornate space there were several different seating areas - a front room reserved for a beer tasting later in the afternoon, a dimly lit back section with tables next to brewing kit, and the old cinema seats right at the front, which I made a bee-line for.
The beer list wass pretty stunning...
I wasn't such a fan of the bar's own home-brew red ale, but the Freigeist 'Speckerla', an 8.5% smoked dopplebock, was an absolute stunner.
Then I deviated from the Deutsch theme when I spotted the sole American interloper on the beer list scored an impressive 4.27 on Untappd. Outer Range come from Frisco and their 'Super Ultra Mega Classic' is a 10.5% fruity, murky beast, generously hopped with Citra Cryo, El Dorado and Galaxy.
As it was, I picked completely the wrong time to leave - minutes before the heaven's opened and the rain came down in buckets. Sightseeing is rubbish from under an umbrella whilst trying to avoid the puddles in shoes unsuitable for wet weather (I could hear Mrs PropUptheBar tutting at me all the way from Oxford).
So I did what any sensible folk would do and found another pub.
So I did what any sensible folk would do and found another pub.
Domkeller (Hof 1, 52062 Aachen)
Looks great from the outside - a building with a Flemish feel to it, respectable hanging baskets, and big enough umbrellas to allow for outdoor drinking undisturbed by a downpour.
There were no tables available inside this wet-led bar although, not taking up much space, I managed to stand at the bar without getting in the way too much before a better perching spot became available.
The Domkeller had a reasonably long-list of trad beers, but I stuck local with Aachen's own brewery Bahkauv and their quaffable pale ale.
Looks great from the outside - a building with a Flemish feel to it, respectable hanging baskets, and big enough umbrellas to allow for outdoor drinking undisturbed by a downpour.
There were no tables available inside this wet-led bar although, not taking up much space, I managed to stand at the bar without getting in the way too much before a better perching spot became available.
The Domkeller had a reasonably long-list of trad beers, but I stuck local with Aachen's own brewery Bahkauv and their quaffable pale ale.
This made for a nice little pit-stop - a bustling busy bar with some great nooks and crannies.
Finishing the last of my beer, I set off again, pleased to see the rain had eased off.
I wanted to call in to the cathedral before any more beer distractions came my way.
I wanted to call in to the cathedral before any more beer distractions came my way.
It's UNESCO listed and one of the oldest cathedral buildings in Europe - the site of many a German King and Queen being coronated. It is fantastically ornate throughout, features the dazzling gold of the Shrine of Charlmagne and a fiendishly ornate pulpit, plus magnificent frescos on the octagon ceiling that may lead to a crick in the neck for the rest of the day.
Various shops and eateries lined the market square, soddden empty outdoor tables in front of them on this dull and eerily quiet day. I figured I'd take my custom to the Golden Swan...
I've found a few places like this in Germany: full of character from outside - completely lacking any within. This Schwan has had a modern refurb within, making it ultra smart and stylish and eliminating every last bit of character from what was once probably a trad town centre gasthaus.
After struggling to describe the beers they had and bringing me a taster, I ended up with a zwickel brewed by Priatbrauerei Thomas Konig of Gersthofen.
I let Google maps direct me through the streets to the north of the market square, eventually reaching my final beer destination in the city.
It didn't have quite the architectural looks of the other bars today, but it promised me good beer, if only I could find the way in. (Probably not the one with all the doorbells for flats, you numbskull)
The Wingman is a U-shaped bar with the counter at the back and seating areas to each side lit by the big picture windows. It's a neatly designed place - perhaps with the exception of the sliding door to the toilets - always a challenge to work out a door slides after a couple of double IPAs.
Beers were listed on a chalkboard to one side of a bar with a choice of 8 on tap, plus lots more in the fridge and a fearsome selection of spirits.
I ordered a beer brewed by Atelier Vrai who are based in Heidelbach, Hessen - the name is a bit of a mouthful - 'Das Ozeanische Gefuhl Parallel Ego Series 1/5'.
I think I just saw 'Oceansize' and thought: Janes Addiction.
I think I just saw 'Oceansize' and thought: Janes Addiction.
Then another deviation from Germany for my last beer in Aachen - I went for the quite marvelous Polish Moon Lark 'Ghost' black IPA, getting a nod of approval for a choice well made.
If I lived in the flats above Wingman I suspect I may 'accidentally' go through the wrong door and end in the bar a fair few times on my way home.
150 bottled beers, you say? I'll catch my return train just as soon as this fella finishes sweeping up all the leaves...
I couldn't fault the enthusiasm of the two guys running this place - one of them popping back and forth to a beer tasting event on one side of the bar, giving the punters the run-down on the latest bottles he'd picked for them to sample.
If I lived in the flats above Wingman I suspect I may 'accidentally' go through the wrong door and end in the bar a fair few times on my way home.
150 bottled beers, you say? I'll catch my return train just as soon as this fella finishes sweeping up all the leaves...
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