Moon Mausoleum

Could a beer festival be haunted? Many have spoken about the ghost of an old brewer at Nockherberg haunting the beer festival, creating havoc to retaliate to what his descendants did to his brew.  

Nockherberg is the name of a small terrace on the slope of the eastern bank of the Isar in Munich, situated in the urban district of Au. An annual beer festival rich in tradition takes place there in the Paulaner Brewery called the Salvator-Ausschank auf dem Nockherberg. According to local lore, an old brewer is still haunting the place and the festival. 

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With its ale-benches, light music and huge crowd of visitors, today’s Salvator-Ausschank resembles the pole marquees at the Munich Oktoberfest. On the Nockherberg, beer is not served in usual beer glasses, but in Keferloher, tankards made of robust earthenware. The sturdy tankards keep the beer cool longer and also make ‘undemonstrative’ refilling possible.

The strong beer festival takes place annually during Lent in the Paulaner main hall at Hoch Street 77. It starts around Saint Joseph’s Day (19 March) and lasts for 17 days. The festival is associated with the traditional ‘Holy Father Feast’ on April 2, commemorating Francis of Paola, founder of the Paulaner religious order.

The Undead Brewer

The Paulaner monks have brewed beer in the monastery for their own consumption at least since 1634. Their nutrition was, on principle, very modest, even more so during Lent, and therefore they were permitted to brew a stronger version of their ‘liquid bread’ during this time of fasting. This strong beer, that has been brewed every year in spring since 1651, was named the ‘Holy Father Beer’ in honour of the founder of the order.

Zacherl was born in 1772, the son of a cook. In 1806, he became the tenant of the former Paulaner monastery brewery , which he purchased in 1813 along with all its associated properties. He continued the brewery’s strong beer tradition under the name Salvator.

The undead brewer Franz Xaver Zacherl is said to haunt this area. Because his descendants changed the name of his brewery after his death, contrary to his wishes, he is said to return to Nockherberg every year during the strong beer season and wreak havoc there.

Haunted Beer Festival in Nockherberg

So what is the havoc his ghost is doing? Every year, people gather to drink beer and party in this place, and sometimes, things go awry. And with a beer festival with alcohol at the center stage, a lot did go overboard. 

Originally, Lenten beer was considered to be strong enough only if a bench drenched with the beer would adhere to a person’s Lederhosen when he attempted to stand up.

Derblecken ,Bavarian for ‘making fun of someone’, can be traced back to the tradition of an innkeeper greeting his guests. In former times he was apt to know all the villagers by name and was quite familiar with all the local stories and rumours. Regular guests were frequently teased with those stories by humorous and self-confident innkeepers.

The only violent event in the history of the town festival occurred on 23 May 1888, when a trivial quarrel turned into a mass brawl between soldiers and civilians. When an artillerist drew his sabre, a fight broke out in which walking-sticks and beer mugs were also put to good use. The fight spread throughout the hall and into the garden. Neither the gendarmes nor the jail guard from Neudeck could control the mob. In a later investigation this was considered the reason for the inability to control the escalation. It was also claimed that irritation caused by an increase in the price of Salvator beer was the underlying reason for the wrath of the festival guests. The ‘scandal year’ 1888 remained a topic of conversation in Munich for many years.

So when the next brawl breaks out, or if the beer in the mug suddenly vanishes, perhaps it could be the ghost of the old brewer at Nockenberg? 

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References:

Franz Xaver Zacherl – Wikipedia

Top 10: Gruselige Orte in München und der Region 

Nockherberg – Wikipedia