Weissbier for Kirtag

Small brewery is still big in business

Bräu Felix Gmachl took over from his father in August.

(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

The Weisse from Salzburg has officially been in new, old hands for a few weeks now. Felix Gmachl has taken over from his father Hans. Tradition will remain, but Gmachl junior is also thinking about the future...

Amber-colored wheat beer flows out of the tap and into the glass as smooth as butter. Freshly tapped, that's not possible. Felix Gmachl pours a sample of his new fall beer into the glass. "It's available for the first time every year on Rupertikirtag," says the boss of Die Weisse. Kirtag is just around the corner.

The wheat beer for Rupertikirtag is also available in swing-top bottles and on tap.

(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

In August, Gmachl junior took over the reins of Austria's oldest wheat beer brewery from his father. "It was time for me and my dad to take over," says the 37-year-old. Gmachl joined the business in Salzburg-Schallmoos in 2015 after years of training and working in Bavaria and the USA. He has now taken over the brewery.

Premiere at the Kirtag is approaching
In addition to the classic wheat beer, the Bayerhamsterstraße brewery has been committed to new types of beer for some time now. Spelt wheat beer, a bottom-fermented "Helles" and a Zwickl are brewed here. But the original wheat beer remains the bestseller. "We brew 500,000 liters of beer a year," says Gmachl. That's minimal compared to the beer giants. "For us, it really is still a craft."

Gmachl employs five people. Fritz Brandstätter is one of them, a young master brewer who did his apprenticeship at the "Weisse". For the future, Gmachl is thinking about a beer competence center with a hotel. But that is still a long way off. For now, he is looking forward to the Rupertikirtag and the premiere of his fall beer.