Beiträge

Alpine Farmers Gathering in Schliersee for 71st Almbauerntag

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Last weekend, the farmers of Schliersee and of Oberbayern joined together to celebrate Almbauerntag. This year the council of farmers, who work the high pastures, gathered at one of our local Alms to discuss alpine farming issue both social and political. It was due to this fact that the 71st Almbauerntag for this region was happily celebrated this year here in Schliersee.

Almbauerntag is always celebrated on the second week in October two weeks following the last Almabtrieb, which is normally the 29th of September. I am sure these dates have been established due to the weather, as we seem to get a light snowfall on the peeks during the first week of October.

After a Sunday morning church service at St. Sixtus church in Schliersee, a procession including the local farmers, decorated animals, our local marching band, town council and the various trachten groups. This colorful parade wound around the downtown area and ended up in an autumnal beer tent on the green near Vitalwelt. Locals and visitors alike gathered and lined the streets in colorful trachten, giving our alpine lake town a timeless appearance.

Many of our village farms including Jörgenbauer, Unterriß, Anderlbauer and Kirchbergerhof were in attendance. Franz Leitner of Kirchbergerhof brought along his beautiful black Bergschafe who were led through the bustling streets with only a handful of feed. Bringing up the rear of their group where a pair of tail wagging baby lambs. Hartl Markhauser and his children displayed several historic harvesting equipment. Carriages festooned with ribbons and colorful flower bouquets; impeccably groomed horses with glistening livery were all in attendance as well.

With traditional music filling the air, a small static display on the grass allowed visitors to capture plenty of photos before everyone headed into the cool shade of the tent. A deliciously fragrant lunch was catered with Bavarian efficiency to a packed crowd and refreshing drinks were quickly dispatched. Our fellow contributor Angelika Prem from Hennererhof with the help of local Sennerin served slices of cake from a table awash in delectable deserts.

 

 

To find out more about our local farms and possibly plan your next farm friendly family holiday here are a few links from our farms.

 

http://rixnerhof.de

https://www.hennerer.com

https://www.unterriss-hof.de

https://www.biohof-joergenbauer.de

http://anderlbauer.schliersee.de/unser_hof/unser_hof.php

https://www.kirchbergerhof.info

https://www.schliersee-touristik.de/bauernhof-urlaub/

 

 

Laura Boston-Thek

American artist, photographer and professional wanderer who, after 20 years of roaming, put down roots in a 100 year old Bavarian farmhouse and fell in love with the Alpine village and its residents (both 2-legged and 4-legged).

 

 

 

 

 

Ratskeller Schliersee Not a Wild Goose Chase

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What does paying taxes and roasted goose have in common? In the middle ages, November 11 was pay day and often taxes were paid with a goose. As crazy as that sounds, in this day and age, the tradition of roasted goose on November 11 still lives on in Germany.

Presently, November 11 is known in Germany as, Martinstag (St. Martin’s Day)and it is celebrated by German children with a parade of handmade lanterns in the evening and after a roast goose dinner. The most well-known legend connected to Saint Martin is when he is said to have cut his cloak in half to share with a poorly dressed beggar which later he believe to be Jesus. Making his action a great example for German children to be good samaritans in their lives.

My family loves an amazingly juicy roast goose but I hate to clean my oven after cooking it. Thankfully this year we made reservations to enjoy our deliciously traditional “Martinstag” goose at the Ratskeller in Schliersee. The Ratskeller is located next door to the Rathaus or town hall. It is traditionally where the Mayor and town council would eat so you are always guaranteed a great meal at a good price at your local Ratskeller.

Sadly it is too late to order roast goose  this year but I highly recommend making your reservation for next  St. Martins day at the Ratskeller. Schliersee. The goose we ordered was perfectly prepared with crisp crackling skin and the portion size seemed enormous for only being a quarter of the goose. Fragrant and tender red cabbage and potato dumplings accompanied our magnificent meal. The knowledgable servers can also suggest for you  the perfect wine to pare with your goose.  Petra, Matthias and the entire Ratskeller team were warm and wonderful hosts.

 

 

If you are unable to get to our Schliersee Ratskeller here is a recipe you can try for yourself at home.

 

Ingredients

               
1 Oven ready goose (4-4.5 kg)
hearty pinch of salt
fresh ground pepper
1 bunch of fresh marjoram
4-3 slightly sour apples
2 onions
2 carrots
250 g of celery root
150 g of mushrooms
2-3 tsp cornstarch
1-2 tablespoons creme fraiche
wooden skewers
kitchen twine or cotton string
heavy bottom roasting pan
roasting rack

 

Preparation

Remove giblets and extra fat from the goose. Wash innards and goose and pat dry. Rub goose inside and out with salt and pepper.

Second

Chop marjoram. Quarter and core apples. Mix both together and stuff in the goose. Close neck and belly opening with skewers and yarn. Tie the legs and wings tightly to the rest on the goose body.

Peel the onions and quarter them. Peel carrots and celery, cut up roughly. Clean mushrooms and wash if necessary. Toss everything with the giblets into the drip pan and place in the preheated oven at 175 ° C or 347°F.

Put the goose on a rack over the dripping pan. In the pan, pour 1/2 liter of boiling water. Roast the goose for 4-4 1/2 hours. Prick the skin to release the fat about a half hour into roasting time.

Approximately 30 minutes before the end of the roasting time, pour about 1/8 of boiling water onto the drip pan and switch on the oven 225 ° C or 437°F.

Dissolve 1 teaspoon of salt in 3 tablespoons of ice-cold water.

Brush the goose about 15 minutes before end of roast twice with the salt and ice water mixture.

 Once done lift the goose off the grate and let it rest.

 

Put the apples and vegetables from the pan through a sieve. Then deglaze the pan with a little hot water scraping up all the baked on bits and put that through the same sieve.  Remove as much as possible of the extra grease off the top with a spoon.  Put sauce back into roasting pan.  Make a mixture of 5 tablespoons of water and starch together till smooth. Pour this into the sauce. Add the creme fraiche and mix till it makes a smooth gravy.

 

If you are in our area and would love to try a traditional Martinstag goose, please contact Petra & Matthias at the Ratskeller to make your reservations.

 

https://www.facebook.com/ratskeller.schliersee/

http://www.ratskeller-schliersee.de

 

 

Laura Boston-Thek

American artist, photographer and professional wanderer who, after 20 years of roaming, put down roots in a 100 year old Bavarian farmhouse and fell in love with the Alpine village and its residents (both 2-legged and 4-legged).