Top 10 Distilleries in Bavaria
Bavaria holds the densest concentration of working distilleries in Germany, a legacy of centuries of farmhouse Brennrecht — the legal right to distil a household's own fruit. Much of that activity runs under the old Abfindungsbrennerei system, in which a small farm distillery pays a flat duty on an assumed yield rather than metering every litre, a quirk of German excise law that has kept tens of thousands of tiny stills alive across the countryside. From the orchards of the Tegernsee valley to the spruce forests along the Czech border, those stills turn pears, plums, cherries and grain into clear schnaps every autumn. The southern Alps add something no other German region can: a cold, high maturation climate that suits whisky, and high-pasture fruit and gentian that the lowlands cannot grow. Layered on top of that deep folk tradition is a modern wave of alpine single malt and craft gin that has made Bavaria one of the most exciting spirits destinations in central Europe. These ten producers, spread from Schliersee to the Bavarian Forest, map it out.
1. Slyrs, Schliersee (Upper Bavaria)
Slyrs, founded by Florian Stetter in 1999 on the shore of the Schliersee, was the first serious single malt distillery in Bavaria; the name is an old spelling of the nearby monastery village of Schliersee. The barley is malted in the region and gently smoked over local beechwood, then distilled in copper pot stills and matured in new American white-oak casks in the cold, thin air of the Alps. The classic three-year malt, the 12 Year Old and the rotating Mountain Edition are the flagships, alongside port, sherry and Sauternes cask finishes. The lakeside visitor centre below the Brecherspitz peak, with its glass-walled still house, is one of the most scenic distillery stops in Germany.
2. Lantenhammer, Hausham (Upper Bavaria)
Lantenhammer, founded in 1928 in Hausham just down the valley from Schliersee, is the fruit-brandy house that anchors the modern Tegernsee spirits scene and the THE DUKE Munich gin partnership. Its single-variety Williams pear, raspberry and rowan-berry brandies are distilled gently in steam-heated stills to preserve the delicate aromatics of the fruit, then rested before bottling. The same family group is behind the Slyrs malt project, so a visit to Hausham doubles as an introduction to both Bavarian fruit distilling and alpine whisky under one roof.
3. The Duke, Munich
The Duke Munich Dry Gin, founded in 2008 by Maximilian and Daniel, is distilled in the Berg am Laim district of the Bavarian capital and was one of the first urban German craft gins. The certified-organic recipe runs to thirteen botanicals and leans on distinctly Bavarian ingredients — hops and malt from the beer tradition, plus lavender and angelica root — pulling the spirit away from the London Dry template toward something rooted in Munich itself. A Munich Dry and a barrel-aged version anchor the range, and the small city distillery runs tastings that make a neat counterpoint to the rural houses elsewhere on this list.
4. Liebl Destillerie, Bad Kötzting (Bavarian Forest)
Liebl in Bad Kötzting, a family Brennerei with roots going back to 1970, produces Coillmór, Gaelic for great forest, using Bavarian barley distilled in traditional pot stills. The cold, long winters of the forested uplands near the Czech border create a slow maturation, and Liebl is known for an unusually wide cask programme — bourbon, port, sherry and even rum and chestnut barrels — that gives the whisky a dense, malty backbone with shifting fruit layers. The house also distils excellent fruit brandies and a respected gin, making it a one-stop tour of Bavarian distilling styles for anyone passing through the eastern forest.
5. Penninger, Hauzenberg (Bavarian Forest)
Penninger, founded in 1905 deep in the Bavarian Forest, is the regional master of Blutwurz — a blood-red gentian-root liqueur that is practically the unofficial spirit of the area — alongside Bärwurz herbal schnaps made from masterwort root and a modern Gin 1905. The brand traces back to the Bärwurzquelle tradition of the granite uplands, and several of its herbal recipes are still macerated from wild-gathered roots. The distillery experience at Hauzenberg, with its granite-country setting and large shop, is among the best-organised in eastern Bavaria, and a second showcase site sits at Waldkirchen.
6. Schraml / STONEWOOD, Erbendorf (Upper Palatinate)
The Schraml family distillery in Erbendorf produces the STONEWOOD range, including the Drú single malt and the 1818 grain whisky, drawing on a brewing and distilling heritage that the family dates to 1818. The Steinwald — literally stone forest — gives the house its English name and its character: regional barley and granite-filtered water lend the whiskies a firm, mineral backbone, and the family still brews beer alongside the spirit, an old Bavarian pairing of brewhouse and still under one roof.
7. Bayerwald, Schaufling (Bavarian Forest)
The Bayerwald distillery in the hills above the Danube near Deggendorf is a classic Bavarian Forest fruit-brandy and liqueur house. Its Bärwurz, gentian and forest-herb specialities, sold in the rustic stoneware bottles typical of the region, are a staple of the local mountain-hut culture and a good introduction to the forest's herbal-schnaps tradition.
8. Höhler, Aschaffenburg (Lower Franconia)
The Höhler distillery near Aschaffenburg, on Bavaria's north-western edge where the region meets the Spessart and Rhine-Main, is a well-regarded fruit-brandy and liqueur producer working in the Franconian tradition. Its eaux-de-vie from local orchard fruit show the gentler, more Rhenish side of Bavarian distilling, distinct from the alpine south.
9. Drexler, Wettelsheim (Middle Franconia)
The Drexler distillery in the Altmühltal produces a broad range of fruit brandies, liqueurs and grain spirits from Franconian orchards and fields. As a classic mid-sized regional Brennerei it represents the working backbone of Bavarian distilling — the farm-rooted producers who turn each harvest into clear spirit and supply the local markets and inns.
10. Berchtesgadener / alpine farm distilleries, Berchtesgaden
In the far south-eastern corner around Berchtesgaden and the Berchtesgadener Land, a cluster of small alpine farm distilleries continues the Brennrecht tradition with mountain-pasture fruit, gentian and herb schnaps. These tiny stills, often producing only a few hundred litres a year for the surrounding valleys, are the living root system from which the whole Bavarian scene grows.
Bavarian distilling in context
Bavaria's strength is its range. No other German region offers alpine single malt, forest herbal liqueurs, Franconian fruit brandy and capital-city craft gin within a few hours' drive. The southern Alps and the Tegernsee valley lean toward whisky and Williams pear; the Bavarian Forest specialises in Blutwurz, Bärwurz and Coillmór; Franconia and the Spessart bring softer orchard eaux-de-vie. Behind the named brands sit thousands of farm distillers whose Brennrecht keeps the tradition alive, supplying the obstler — the everyday apple-and-pear schnaps — that follows a hearty meal in any Bavarian inn.
Visiting the region
The two natural touring bases are Schliersee in the alpine south and Bad Kötzting or Hauzenberg in the eastern forest. Slyrs and Lantenhammer sit within a short drive of each other below the peaks, easily combined in a day from Munich, while The Duke makes an urban add-on in the city itself. The Bavarian Forest houses — Liebl, Penninger, Schraml — are spread further apart and reward an overnight stay, ideally in autumn when the new fruit is being distilled. Most larger producers run shop tastings; the smaller farm stills usually sell direct from the yard. Pace yourself, plan a driver, and remember that a clear obstler or Williams is meant to be sipped, not knocked back.
Explore on the map
Use the map to trace Bavaria's distilleries from the alpine south to the forested east. You can see how Slyrs and Lantenhammer cluster around Schliersee and the Tegernsee, how Liebl, Penninger and Schraml line the Bavarian Forest, and where the Franconian houses sit to the north. Click any marker to plan a route — start with Bavaria on the map and follow the valleys from peak to orchard.