Thursday 16th May 2010

Bob Thompson

The German state of Baden-Württemburg is to found in the south of the country, left of Bavaria. Its southern border is with Switzerland, and most of its western with France, both are the other side of the river Rhein.

The state capital is the industrial city of Stuttgart, in the north. As explained it has one important river boundary but there is another, as this is where the mighty Danube rises as a small stream. In the beautiful city of Ulm with its stunning cathedral, it has already become a river and its opposite bank is in Bavaria. Our destination in this article is south of Ulm but maybe a small mention of the drinking opportunities on the city are worthy of note.

There is only one major regional brewery and that is Gold Ochsen (Gold Oxen). Their beers are pleasant enough and can be found all over the area, including the railway station bar. In the city centre is a branch of the Barfüsser (Barefoot person) chain. Yes, the name is somewhat odd. The beers from this branch are somewhat mediocre in this writer's view. Standard range is a light and a dark, with occasional seasonal specials.

However there is a little gem in the city but it requires a short ride. There is only one tram route in Ulm and this, not unsurprisingly, is the No 1.

It runs past the station and one of the two termini is Söflingen, and this is where you will find the Kronenbrauerei (Crown brewery), founded in 1887, that has a pub attached. The brewery supplies a few other pubs in and around Ulm.

The tram terminus is but fifty metres from the brewery. See the photograph above of the tram passing the brewery just before stopping at the terminus. You walk through the yard to get to the pub which is Zur Krone. It is a warm and homely house with many rooms although those at the front of the pub seem to be those that the drinkers occupy.

As always in places like this, the food is exemplary; however this visit was for drinking purposes only. This was my second visit and there was an innovation as they now offered a sampler tray, similar to those in the U.S.A. Four beers in 10ml glasses were offered in a wooden carrier.

These were the core beers from the brewery: Spezial-Hell (5.1%), Urtrunk Dunkel (5.1%), Kellerpils Naturtrüb (4.8%) and Natureisbock-Dunkel (7.2%). Respectively, these are a standard light beer, a malty dark beer, a cloudy Pilsner made with organically ingredients, and strong dark beer that has been matured for a long time. I thought they were all good in their own way and I had a half litre of the Hell before heading back into the city.

To summarise, a great little pub that is well worth the ten minutes it takes to get to.

Important Information:

Zur Krone (Kronenbrauerei Söflingen), Uhrenmachergasse 10, Ulm-Söflingen 89077
Tel: 07313 84635

Open: Tuesday to Saturday 10.00-24.00; Sunday and Monday: Closed.
Exceptions: The pub is open on the first Sunday of each month from 10.00-14.00, otherwise closed on Sunday. The pub is also closed for two weeks in August and two weeks over the Christmas / New Year period.

As mentioned earlier it is a ten minute ride on Tram no 1 from the Hauptbahnhof (Main Station). The pub is less than 50 metres from the terminus tram stop. See top photograph of the tram passing the pub which was taken from the stop itself. Ulm has rail connections throughout the country and is on the network of high speed ICE trains and also the TGV high speed trains to and from Paris.

Update October 2017. Hours: Now opens at 11.00 on the first Sunday of the month.