Holy Brew: Germany’s Oldest Monastery Beer Changes Hands

Beer has been brewed at Weltenburg Abbey, an active Benedictine monastery dramatically located along the Danube, for almost a millennium. While the abbey remains the property of the Catholic Church, brewing operations were transferred around 50 years ago to lay staff employed by the nearby Bischofshof brewery. That brewery, also owned by the Regensburg diocese, is included in the sale.

According to local reports, the decision follows several loss-making years for Weltenburger, during which the church was forced to subsidise operations. The diocese of Regensburg and Schneider Weisse reached an agreement after concluding that consolidation offered the best chance of survival.

Till Hedrich, managing director of both Weltenburger and Bischofshof, said the deal would prevent the breweries from being dismantled or sold to outside investors with no regional ties. Instead, he argued, it preserves a cornerstone of Bavarian brewing heritage for the long term.

Financial terms have not been disclosed, but the transaction is expected to close by January 2027. All 21 Weltenburger employees are to retain their jobs. Regensburg’s bishop, Rudolf Voderholzer, said maintaining employment in the region had been a key priority alongside preserving tradition.

Bischofshof, founded in 1649 and employing 56 people, will cease brewing at the end of this year, with production of its beers relocating to Schneider Weisse’s facilities. The diocese said efforts are under way to find new roles for displaced workers.

Weltenburger beer will continue to be brewed at the abbey itself, a site that today attracts around half a million visitors annually. The brewery notes on its website that it has survived centuries of upheaval, including fires, floods, secularisation and war, narrowly escaping total destruction during the second world war.

As the brewery marked its 975th anniversary last year, Abbot Thomas M Freihart reflected on the spiritual value of enjoyment, quoting Friedrich Schiller: “Those who cannot enjoy themselves will eventually become unbearable to others.” He added that beer, in moderation, should be regarded as “a gift from God”.

The sale comes against a bleak backdrop for German brewers. National beer turnover has fallen by around 25% over the past 15 years, according to industry figures. In 2025 alone, consumption dropped by five million hectolitres — the steepest decline in three-quarters of a century — as drinkers increasingly turn away from alcohol.

Germany remains unusual in its loyalty to regional brands, with about 1,500 small and medium-sized breweries competing alongside a handful of national names. Unlike other markets, global giants have struggled to dominate, leaving Germany without a single beer among the world’s top 10 sellers.

The country still hosts the world’s largest number of monastic breweries: nine run by monks or their staff, and one — at Mallersdorf Abbey — operated by Franciscan nuns who sell only what they do not consume themselves.

While beer has been brewed since at least Neolithic times, medieval monasteries transformed it into a commercial enterprise. Today, however, traditional German beer faces an identity challenge. Bound by the centuries-old Reinheitsgebot purity law, innovation has been limited just as consumers increasingly favour non-alcoholic and alternative drinks.

For Weltenburger, the hope is that new ownership will ensure its ancient brewing tradition endures, even as the industry around it is forced to change.