Beer in Austria

Austrian beers come in a wide variety of styles, and many small breweries are scattered across the country, though a few larger breweries dominate markets. Austrian brewers were never subject to the tight restrictions of the Reinheitsgebot, and as a result more variety remains in Austria than in Germany. The most common style of beer is similar to the German Märzen, though the Austrian style is distinct.

Among Styrian breweries, in the south, are the popular Gösser, Puntigamer, and Murauer brands. Hirter is produced in the town of Hirt in Carinthia. In Lower Austria, Egger, Zwettler, Schwechater, and Wieselburger predominate. In Vienna, Ottakringer is brewed.

From the more westerly parts of Austria come Kaiser, Zipfer and Kapsreiter in Upper Austria. Upper Austria is also home to famous Freistadt beer (Freistädter Bier). The brewery's organization is unique in that the brewery is a commune-owned and operated by those individuals who own a house within the city walls, thus the name of the town Freistadt (free-city). Continuing West, Salzburg is home to Stiegl, as well as Augustiner Bräu (not related to the German one) and Edelweiss. Weissbier (wheat beer) is the most popular type of beer in this region. From Tyrol and Vorarlberg come Falkenstein, Frastanzer, Mohrenbräu, Starkenberger, Zillertaler, Fohrenburger and Der Wilde (Wildschönau Brewery).

Freistädter - "Frisch. Frei. Freistädter." ("Fresh. Free. Freistädter.").

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