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A lovely region full of lush meadows and pastures, plus good soil and a friendly climate: Saxony-Anhalt's agriculture produces great products for good cuisine. The state also offers specialties that are widely known and loved - the sparkling Rotkäppchen sparkling wine, for example, and good wines, the protein-rich and low-calorie Harz cheese or sweet Halloren balls from one of Germany's oldest chocolate factories. Here are five genuinely delicious tips for high enjoyment during your vacation.

1

Tangermünder beers: According to old tradition

At the Hofbrauerei Schulzens Hofbräu Tangermünde, visitors experience warm hospitality in a loving ambience - and the unique flair of their own craft brewery
At the Hofbrauerei Schulzens Hofbräu Tangermünde, visitors experience warm hospitality in a loving ambience - and the unique flair of their own craft brewery © www.AndreasLander.de

"Music from bagpipes, lutes and drums, plus plenty of swill and grub" is how the Zecherei St. Nikolai welcomes its guests. The restaurant in the 800-year-old former church building with its meter-thick walls and candle lighting is one stop on the expert guided tour of "Tangermünder Biere" through the historic center of the town of 10,000 inhabitants in northern Saxony-Anhalt, an hour's drive from Magdeburg. Until 100 years ago, barley juice was produced here in 82 breweries at times, such as the "Kuhschwanzbier" (cow's tail beer), which is now served to guests of the city tour in the Zecherei St. Nikolai - because cattle once also bathed in the river used as brewing water, the beer was given its name. 

After exactly a century, the Schulzens brewery has now revived Tangermünde's old tradition. In the lovingly restored estate ensemble with its glass brewery, restaurant, cellar bar, Elbe garden and small museum, visitors can sample beer varieties such as Altmarkgold, Hell, Ziegelrot and Porter, created according to traditional craft methods from regional malt, selected hop varieties and yeasts. The good barley juice is bottled in distinctive bottles with swing tops. If you are very thirsty, reach for the "Dicken Dörthe®" - the bulbous two-liter bottle was named after a cat, now very well-fed, that once ran to the brewmasters. More information is available here.

By train comfortably and without traffic jams to Tangermünde: Plan arrival.

2

Baumkuchen & Co: Regional brand "Typically Harz

After a hike in the Harz it strengthens itself best with a hearty meal with Harz cheese
Typical Harz: After a hike, it's best to fortify yourself with a hearty meal of Harz cheese © HTV / M. Gloger

The production of the Harzer Baumkuchen is an art. A biscuit-like dough is applied layer by layer to a horizontally rotating roller and baked in a special oven to create the structure that looks like the annual rings of a tree trunk. This can be easily observed in the show baking room of the Harzer Baumkuchenhaus in Wernigerode and the treat, which has been produced locally since 1749, can of course also be enjoyed. Both the product and the manufacturer are certified with the regional trademark "Typisch Harz" (Typical Harz), thus signalizing the quality of this specialty from the low mountain range to the consumer in advance. When awarding the label, the principle of "class instead of mass" applies, whether for animal or plant products, for refined foods or handcrafted offerings. 

The range is large. Would you like more examples? Glittering, mouth-blown treasures from the Derenburg glass manufacturer Harzkristall, for example. Sausage and ham specialties from Brocken farmer Uwe Thielecke with his organic farm slaughter in Tanne near Blankenburg, who keeps 400 cattle of the rare breed "Harzer Rotes Höhenvieh" in a species-appropriate manner on mountain pastures. Or Harz mountain honey from beekeeper André Koppelin from Hüttenrode: For the nectar of a 500-gram jar, his industrious insects travel a distance of at least 40,000 kilometers - and pollinate around 6.5 million blossoms along the way! More information is available here.

By train comfortably and without traffic jams to Wernigerode: Plan arrival.

3

Halle (Saale): Highest cocktail lounge and chocolate experience world

In the highest cocktail lounge guests can enjoy the most beautiful sunsets
Guests can enjoy the most beautiful sunsets in the highest cocktail lounge © Maike Glöckner

After 225 steps the ascent is completed, the highest cocktail lounge of the beautiful city of Halle an der Saale has been reached. You make yourself comfortable in red "Verliebt in Halle" deck chairs and enjoy the magnificent view over the city and the countryside. To lounge music at a height of 44 meters, cocktails mixed by expert hands are served in a relaxed atmosphere, the sunset approaches and the romance takes its course. The distinctive "Hausmannstürme" of the Market Church (also known as St. Mary's Church), which was built in 1529, is one of the city's landmarks - where the "Hausmann" used to blow the evening chorale and keep watch over the city, today haljito and sunset cocktails are sipped with relish on certain dates (advance reservation required).

Another particularly sweet highlight in Halle is a visit to Germany's oldest chocolate factory. What began more than 200 years ago with the business of confectioner and gingerbread maker August Miehle has grown into a world of experience of the first order. Products such as the famous original Halloren balls (optionally in Sea Salt Caramel, African Style or Lemon Buttermilk version) are produced in front of the customers in the show workshop "Pralineum", can be nibbled in the café and purchased in the factory outlet. The highlight of the adjoining museum is the unique chocolate room - in 5,000 hours of work, fascinating showpieces were created here from more than 1.5 tons of chocolate!

Take the train to Halle (Saale) comfortably and without traffic jams: Plan arrival.

4

Magdeburger Börde: "Sweet Tour" - the Sugar and Beet Route

The Holunderkontor in Niederndodeleben near Magdeburg is one of the highlights on the sweet tour © MD TV Elbe Börde Heide /Ronald Floum

"Hope is like sugar in coffee. Even if it is small, it sweetens everything," says an old Chinese proverb. This is the motto of one of the most modern sugar factories in Europe. Nordzucker AG is located in Klein Wanzleben, a town in Saxony-Anhalt with a population of 2,300 and the regional "sugar capital" about 25 kilometers west of Magdeburg. A small, fine sugar museum also resides here on the upper floor of the town hall, inviting visitors on a virtual journey through time to discover the almost 870-year history of this local industry. The "white gold" has been growing in the Magdeburger Börde for over 180 years, and there were once a proud 188 beet sugar factories. Today, production sites and museums are stops on the "Sweet Tour" - those who follow it can learn a lot about the history of sugar, get to know its processing and also enjoy the typical regional cuisine and local products.

The route leads to more than 20 experience offers from various areas, ranging from local companies and exciting collections to tourist businesses and sights. Among them are romantic country inns as well as dignified star hotels, feudal Renaissance castles and 1000-year-old moated castles. You don't have to follow the entire 400-kilometer route - you can, of course, also use parts of it or visit individual attractions. More information is available here.

By train comfortably and without traffic jams to Magdeburg: Plan arrival.

5

Saale-Unstrut: Discover the wine routes

In the vineyards of the Saale-Unstrut wine-growing region, there are plenty of tastings and events to do with the fine wines.
In the vineyards of the Saale-Unstrut wine-growing region, there are plenty of tastings and events centered around the fine wines © Saale-Unstrut-Tourismus e.V. / Falko Matte

Wide valleys, a glittering river, vines climbing up the mountainsides: Germany's northernmost quality wine-growing region is reminiscent of Italian landscapes, and it is not for nothing that the Saale-Unstrut region is also known as the "Tuscany of the North. Vineyards have been cultivated here in the mild south of Saxony-Anhalt for centuries. Thanks to the mineral-rich soils of the vineyard terraces, excellent grapes thrive in the 760-hectare region with its more than 60 estates. The wineries and wine taverns are connected by three large themed routes - a great way to test the quality of local wines.

The best known is certainly the Saale-Unstrut wine routethe most northerly of its kind in all of Europe. Over 60 kilometers, it follows the course of the two rivers that give it its name, with striking fortresses and opulent castles towering over their valleys. From Posa Zeitz Monastery to Trebnitz, the 17-kilometer wine route then follows the White Elster River, where many estates as well as a goat farm offer regional specialties. Finally, the Mansfeld Lakes Wine Route connects seven wine communities and three enchanting inland waterways, with 25 kilometers of the rarest inns. Common to all routes is the quality of the products on offer. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe particularly appreciated the region because: "Life is far too short to drink bad wine." 

In collaboration with IMG - Investment and Marketing Company Saxony-Anhalt

UNESCO World Heritage, the Brocken in the Harz Mountains and the Garden dreams and historical parks are good reasons for your vacation in Saxony-Anhalt. Even more? Sure! This way:

Vacation in Saxony-Anhalt

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