Hops and malts come from God, or so goes an old Bavarian proverb.

 

If this is true, then Munich's Oktoberfest, the world's largest beer or food festival, is truly a religious experience – and in more ways than you might imagine. In fact, the 195-year-old festival, which in 2005 runs from Sept. 17 to Oct. 3 and will attract some 6 million revelers from around the world, owes much of its heritage to the Catholic Church.

           

The church dominated the European brewing industry for centuries and making beer was a common vocation for the monks who dedicated their lives to Christ. It was a rather vital service, too. In the days when impotable water spread diseases through the burgeoning cities of Europe, nutritious, sanitary beer was the main source of sustenance for millions of people. This dependency goes a long way toward explaining the passion for beer northern Europeans have today.

           

Monastery breweries are still common in Europe, especially in Bavaria, as are secular breweries that began as monastic operations. Nowhere is this tradition more prevalent than in Munich, the world's most famous beer-making center and a city whose name in German – Muenchen –  is derived from the word for "monks."

 

Two of the six Munich breweries that participate in Oktoberfest (only Munich breweries are allowed at the festival) were founded by beer-making clerics. And Oktoberfest itself began as a Christian sacrament – the October 1810 wedding of Bavaria's Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Sachsen-Hildburghausen.

           

The city's residents were invited to the wedding in a field outside the city gates. They returned the following year to celebrate. The rest, as they say, is history.

 

The festival is still held in Theresienwiese, "Therese's meadow," and Bavarians frequently refer to the festival simply as "Wies'n" (pronounced VEE-sin). For years, horse racing was the main attraction of what grew into an agricultural fair. And though beer and food were always a part of the festival, the beer tents that now symbolize Oktoberfest did not make their first appearance until 1896.

 

Today, 30 percent of all the beer produced each year by Munich's six breweries is poured during the two-plus weeks of Oktoberfest and served under the cover of 14 massive, colorful and highly ornamented tents. (The tents are so large that one was shipped to Afghanistan in 2002 to house the "loya jirga," or tribal council where the fledgling Afghan government began to take shape.)

 

What kind of beer will you find in Munich? Well, Bavarians are primarily lager drinkers – lager referring to any beer made with bottom-fermenting yeasts. These yeasts ferment the beer more slowly and at cooler temperatures than top-fermenting, or ale yeasts. (Contrary to popular opinion, color or strength has no bearing on whether a beer is an ale or a lager.)

 

Lagers were traditionally stored in beer caves to age. In fact, the word "lager" comes from the German verb "lagern," which means "to store." These beer caves are still found throughout Munich and the Bavarian countryside. A tour of the Paulaner Brewery, for example, will include a look at its lagering caves.

The six breweries of Munich each produce a helles (light) and dunkel (dark) lager, and usually a pilsner, a bright gold, effervescent, highly hopped and aromatic lager. Munich breweries do produce ales, most notably cloudy, unfiltered wheat beers called hefe-weiss (literally, "yeast wheat").

 

Bavarian breweries also make a number of seasonal beers, such as double bock in the late winter (it's traditionally associated with Lent) and Maibock in May.

Oktoberfest beer is, however, the most popular Bavarian seasonal. It's also the source of some confusion, as the word Oktoberfest refers to both the festival and the beer style.

 

Oktoberfest beer is also known as "Maerzen," or March beer. Traditionally, Maerzen was brewed in March, stored (or lagered) in cool beer caves through the summer, and served in the fall. Oktoberfest beers generally range in color from burnished gold to rich copper. They're sweet, malty and lightly hopped strong lagers, with about 6 percent alcohol (alcohol is a natural preservative, and the strength traditionally helped the beer age through the summer.) Oktoberfests are noted for their warm, bready aromas, toasty maltiness, and toffee-like sweetness.

 

However, the dark Oktoberfest beers of the past are no longer served at the festival. They've been replaced by lighter-colored lagers. The original dark Oktoberfest beers are still shipped to overseas markets, primarily America, where they're snapped up by beer lovers looking for a taste of old-style Bavarian beers. In other words, you get the original fest beers in America, but not at Oktoberfest.

 

Almost all Munich beers are flavored with Hallertau hops, a particularly pungent and spicy hop variety that grows in abundance along the Isar and Donau rivers. The vast vineyards of the Hallertau Hoplands are visible for miles along the autobahns north of Munich.

 

The breweries represented at Oktoberfest each have their own storied tradition.

Augustiner is a former monastery brewery and Munich's oldest, founded in 1328. It's also the most beloved by Muencheners. They seem enamored with its rich lagers and the fact that its beers are still served from large wooden barrels. Augustiner is also known for its "steckerlfische," a whole mackerel roasted in spices and an Augustiner specialty that's served in the brewery's beer gardens and its Oktoberfest beer tent. Its helles lager is sold in limited quantities in the U.S., but not its Oktoberfest.

Hacker-Pschorr is a 585-year-old brewery that is closely affiliated today with Paulaner brewery. The breweries share a location on Munich's Hochstrasse, and have various other affiliations. Hacker-Pschorr beers are routinely spectacular, and underrated. Its Oktoberfest beer is a reddish bronze, creamy and sweet and can be found in better beer stores in most major American cities.

           

Hofbrauhaus was founded in 1589 as the royal brewery of Bavaria by Duke Wilhelm V, who apparently grew tired of paying for all the beer demanded by his 600-strong royal court. Today, it's owned by the State of Bavaria. Hofbrauhaus is famous for its raucous beer hall in downtown Munich, one of the city's most popular tourist attractions. Locals, however, prefer the more sedate Hofbraukeller, a beer garden east of the Isar River. Its Oktoberfest is found in several major U.S. beer markets, such as Boston, where it's imported and distributed by Harpoon Brewery.

Lowenbrau, the "lion brewery," is said to date back to 1383. Today, it's probably the most recognizable Munich brewery in the States, courtesy of several earnest efforts to tap the American market. The Lowenbrau beer sold in America, however, has always been made places other than Munich. Consumers seemed wise to the difference. In September 2002, Lowenbrau began shipping beer to the U.S. straight from Munich, but not its Oktoberfest.

Paulaner was founded by Paulist monks in 1634, making it the youngest of the Munich breweries. Paulaner makes up for its youth with great beers, particularly its Pils, which may be the very best pilsner in the world. Paulaner Maerzen Oktoberfest is Germany's most popular Oktoberfest beer, and it's easy to find in the U.S. It comes in 12-ounce bottles, and in a self-tapping, 5-liter mini-keg that retails for about $16.

Spaten, founded in 1397, offers its own beers, and those under the Franziskaner label. Spaten's Oktoberfest beer has the distinction of the being the first tapped at each year's festival. Since 1950, the mayor of Munich has done the honors, announcing "O Zapft is" – "It is tapped" – as he hammers a tap into the first keg.

The opening ceremony takes place in the Schottenhamel tent, which seats some 9,300. Its Oktoberfest is also easy to found in most major American cities.

 

In Bavaria, lagers like Oktoberfest beer are served in half-liter or hefty liter mugs. They're also consumed in great quantity. The average Bavarian drinks more than 160 liters of beer a year. Of course, that's easy to do when you consider it a religious obligation. Oktoberfest is simply their high holiday.