Brauerei Schlössle

Today's Offenhausen was just a collection of a few farmhouses. It was not until 1811, as a result of the post-Napoleonic division of the country, that an independent municipality and the state of Bavaria were added to Neu-Ulm. The name Offenhausen probably goes back to the fact that here - in the Schlössle or in the "Bauerngarten" inn in the local street - you always found an open house to stay in if the gates of Ulm had been closed since nightfall. View of the Schlössle around 1900 View of the Schlössle around 1900 The restaurant of the Schlössle was formerly not a closed room, but was used as a storage space for horse-drawn carriages. Only after the magistrate of Ulm bought the "Schlösslein" in 1673 was it converted into an inn and in 1690 into a brewery in order to sell it for a profit. The brewery is one of the oldest and most traditional breweries in Bavaria. Unfortunately, the quality of the beer at the time - if you believe the traditions - left something to be desired. After the snack in the "Schlösslein", the Ulm grammar school professor Johann Herkules Haid scolded: "The beer smells of sulfur liver!" Despite the beer quality at that time, the Schlössle was always a popular destination, Mecca for the thirsty. This earned Offenhausen the nickname "Affenhausen", probably because some people took a little noise home with them. However, the beers brewed today - e.g. the traditional Schlössle Märzen, the cellar-cloudy gusset and the wheat beer - also meet the highest palate demands. Since mid-1995, brewing has been the sole responsibility of the master brewer, Volker Tillmanns. The French emperor Napoleon is also on the guest list of the Schlössle. On October 14, 1805, he galloped in - coming from Leibi - to observe the battle situation in the conquest of Ulm from the winter garden on the upper floors. In the following, however, he did not make himself very popular because he used around 3,500 local farmers to do forced labor. George I and his wife Apollonia George I and his wife Apollonia The Schlössle has been owned by the Zoller family for more than 135 years. Georg Zoller (I.) acquired the Schlössle and its brewery at the age of 25 in August 1879. After he died at the age of 52 (1906), the business went first to his wife and then to Georg Zoller (II. ) and wife Lina Zoller. George II with his wife Lina and their children George III and Lina Georg II with wife Lina and their children Georg III and Lina During the time of George II and Lina Zoller's possession, a new garden hall was built, which soon served as a popular entertainment venue for all kinds of festivities. This hall, which stood on the site of today's garden terrace, was hit by a fire bomb in 1944. It burned down to the ground with the beer garden seating in the attic. Traces of this fire can still be seen today on the nearest chestnut tree, which could only be saved by targeted masonry. Ice gallows in the 60s Ice gallows in the 60s After the war, the garden hall was rebuilt in 1952 by the third generation, the son Georg Zoller (III.) After the death of Georg Zoller (III.) In 1988, his wife Maria Zoller and the children Christa and Werner Zoller took over his share. In the meantime, the fourth generation, Christa and Werner Zoller, is running the family business and Maria Zoller, as senior manager, is watching over the whole thing. Oil painting by K.Mündler, 1927 Oil painting by K.Mündler, 1927 In 1993/94 major renovations took place. An intermediate building was created between the old listed building and the hall, in which the new kitchen, toilets and storage rooms were accommodated. The old wood-burning kitchen became a cozy adjoining room. Brewers in front of the old brewhouse Brewers in front of the old brewhouse in 2003, the old copper brewing kettle from 1920, in which the beer brew was still brought to a boil with wood firing, was finally allowed to retire. Instead of it, if elsewhere, a more modern brewing kettle was purchased and the brewery was also renovated in other areas. The fears of the regular guests that the in-house "Biermanna" loses its independent, extremely delicious Schlössle flavor have been refuted. Not a single guest really noticed when the transition from the old to the new boiler had actually been made. In 2000 the readers of the Südwest-Presse voted the Schlössle beer garden “the most popular beer garden in Ulm and Neu-Ulm”. With 8000 entries, the Schlössle won with a convincing distance with over a quarter of the votes. The Schlössle then won the same competition again in 2004 and 2006. In addition, in 2012 a German-wide competition even won the 1st prize. So the Schlössle was, is and will remain a down-to-earth “feel-good inn” with excellent, home-brewed special beers, a rustic traditional company with a cozy atmosphere, which hopefully will still be around in 50 years.