Earlier in September we walked 23 km along country roads and trails through forests and apple orchards to the Swiss Historic Hotel in Oberstammheim. The apple and pear trees we passed were loaded and it seemed that just looking at them had them falling off the branches. These trees had been producing for many years. We passed many different colors, shapes and sizes of fruit.
We weren’t just walking any old trail to Stammheim, we were walking along a beer trail. So it wasn’t surprising that as we walked into Stammheim we walked passed hops. The local beer is the Stammheimer Hopfenbräu, unfiltered, fresh, golden and full of flavor. The “liquid gold” as they call it, is sold in pretty blue bottles.
The Gasthof zum Hirschen in Oberstammheim is the historic hotel of the year 2014. Built in 1684, the house is filled with history. The floor boards creak and the tiles quietly clunk when you walk over them. The doors and ceilings are beautifully painted. The hotel itself is a lovely half-timbered house surrounded by other pretty half-timbered houses, granges and pastures.
The menu consists of ingredients grown locally (there is a list at the bottom of the menu stating where the products are from). The creative dishes are full of flavor and artfully plated. At breakfast home-pressed apple juice and homemade jams are served. It’s easy to over-eat at dinner and breakfast because everything is delicious!
And if you’re lucky to wake up in the early morning when the fog is still hanging over the pastures, go out and watch the horses graze.
