"Riedenburger" at the Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse Oktoberfest: The story of a little-known German organic brewery
"Authentic Autumn" comes to Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse again this September🍻🍂
Minatomirai, Yokohama, where the sea breeze feels pleasant. The season has arrived again when beer tents will line up in front of the Red Brick Warehouse.
The Yokohama Oktoberfest 2026. The event will run for 17 days, from Friday, September 18th to Sunday, October 4th. Live music by a German band, huge steins, the aroma of sausages... this event alone makes you feel like you've "come to Munich for a bit."
By the way, it was actually the Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse that first held a large-scale Oktoberfest in Japan. It began in 2003 when 200,000 people flocked to a five-day event. Since then, for over 20 years, it has continued to prioritize an "authentic atmosphere," making it, so to speak, the "originator" of Oktoberfest in Japan.
At the Yokohama venue, there's a beer I'd particularly like you to look for this year. It's the organic beer brewery known to connoisseurs even in Germany: **Riedenburger**.
◯ Be sure to look for "Riedenburger" at the venue.
Only six major breweries are allowed to serve beer at the authentic Oktoberfest in Munich. However, at venues like Yokohama, where beers from all over the world gather, it's fun to encounter a wider variety of beers from unique producers.
Among them, Riedenburger holds a somewhat special place. That's because **all the beers it produces are "organic."**
"Organic beer" is actually an amazing thing!
While many people are familiar with "organic" vegetables and eggs, "organic beer" might not immediately come to mind.
Simply put, organic beer is beer made exclusively from barley and hops grown without relying on synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. It can only be called organic if it receives certification from the field stage and consistently adheres to standards throughout the brewing process. This requires a lot of effort and cost, so it's still a minority worldwide.
Riedenburger has seriously walked this "thorny path" for over 30 years. When talking about the profound depth of German beer, this is an indispensable story.
◯ Founded in 1756. An 8-generation family brewery in a small town.
Riedenburger is located in the small town of Riedenburg, in Bavaria's Altmühl Valley. It's a tranquil countryside surrounded by rich nature.
Founded in 1756. This family has been brewing beer since the mid-Edo period in Japan, when people still wore topknots. The Krieger family has continuously passed down the business, now in its eighth generation. Over an immeasurable amount of time, the same family in the same town has relentlessly pursued delicious beer.
Its annual production is approximately 30,000 hectoliters. Compared to global beer giants, it is a truly small brewery. Nevertheless, its prowess extends beyond Germany, and it is now exported to 17 countries worldwide. "Small but authentic." This very sentiment embodies the charm of German beer that we at SCHMATZ value so much.
◯ Why is it called a "pioneer of organic beer"?
Riedenburger is special not just because it's old. It's because it has a history of being at the forefront of the industry as a pioneer of organic beer in Germany.
The challenge of "all organic," when no one else was doing it.
In the early 1990s, the idea of making beer "organic" was only whispered by a very few in Germany.
In 1992, Riedenburger released its first organically certified (Bioland) beer, and by 1994, it had completely transitioned all its products to organic production methods. It is said that this brewery was the first in Bavaria to go so far, embracing a comprehensive environmental concept.
Today, "sustainable" and "organic" are common terms, but for a company to have made such a drastic shift over 30 years ago truly speaks to its foresight.
◯ In the land of the Beer Purity Law, they dared to choose a difficult path.
Germany is the land of the "Reinheitsgebot" (Beer Purity Law), which has existed for over 500 years. It dictates that beer must be made only from malt, hops, water, and yeast, a tradition that is arguably the strictest in the world. We've talked extensively about this in our column on the Beer Purity Law.ビール純粋令のコラムでたっぷりお話ししています。
It's already challenging enough to adhere to the Purity Law, but then adding the condition "all ingredients must be organic" makes it like a double-bind, even more stringent.
But Riedenburger has instead taken pride in that difficulty. They refuse to compromise on both "deliciousness" and "environmental responsibility." Such craftsmanship is truly alive in every glass. To further understand the philosophy at the root of German beer making, you might find it even more interesting to also read our column "What is German beer?"ドイツビールってなんだろう？のコラムもあわせて読むと、ぐっと面白くなりますよ。
◯ Ancient Grains and the Bounty of the Altmühl Valley
Another aspect of Riedenburger is its beer made with "ancient grains."
Emmer, Einkorn... grains that sound ancient just by their names.
Emmer, einkorn, spelt (Dinkel). These may sound unfamiliar, but they are all "ancient grains" that humanity has cultivated for thousands of years.
Compared to barley and wheat, which are the main ingredients in modern beer making, these ancient grains yield less and are more difficult to handle. That's why they had completely fallen out of use. Riedenburger, however, has deliberately revived these forgotten grains and crafted them into beer.
The distinctively nutty and complex flavor that only ancient grains can provide is a unique characteristic of Riedenburger, rarely found in beers from larger breweries.
◯ Connection with monasteries
These ancient grains are cultivated in collaboration with nearby organic certified farms associated with prestigious monasteries. They work together from soil cultivation to brewing, preserving traditional grains unique to the region and transforming them into beer.
It's not just about producing delicious things; it also carries the larger narrative of **"preserving the land's nature and culture for the future."** There's such depth in every glass of Riedenburger.
Brewing water, as nature intended 💧
Their commitment to water is also unwavering. Riedenburger uses only water from the **artesian well** on its own property. It's pure water that springs forth from deep underground.
Furthermore, it is used for brewing almost in its natural state, with very little chemical treatment. This thoroughness truly embodies the principle "good beer comes from good water." Organic grains and unpolluted water. Every single ingredient is handled with such care.
◯ Unfiltered, a luxury
And there's one more thing. Riedenburger's beer is fundamentally **"unfiltered."**
The yeast and other elements are deliberately not filtered out of the finished beer, and it is bottled as is. This gives it a slight cloudiness, and the full flavor of the malt and yeast is preserved. While it takes more effort, the resulting taste is richer and fuller. It's a vibrant flavor, close to freshly brewed beer. This philosophy of "cherishing nature as it is" deeply resonates with SCHMATZ's four commitments to brewing beer.ビールづくりの4つのこだわりとも、深く通じ合うものがあります。
◯ A Special Beer in Yokohama
Founded in 1756, an 8-generation family business. A pioneer in organic beer, even bringing ancient grains back to life—after reading all this, you can probably tell just how "rich" Riedenburger brewery is.
In fact, we at SCHMATZ once offered Riedenburger's Weizen as a limited-edition "first-time in Japan" beer, and its deliciousness left all our staff in awe.
You can easily encounter such a connoisseur's choice at the Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse Oktoberfest. Savoring organic beer in the sea breeze while listening to a German band is quite a luxurious experience. Be sure to look for "Riedenburger" at the venue!
If you want to know what it tastes like before heading to the venue, we'll be introducing how to enjoy Riedenburger's beer in detail in the next column.
And if you want to enjoy the Oktoberfest atmosphere at home, we'll introduce tips on how to recreate it by combining the best of the authentic festival and Yokohama in the final installment of the series (Enjoying Oktoberfest at Home). If you're wondering what the Munich Oktoberfest, the "original" of the Yokohama festival, is all about, check out this complete guide.こちらの完全ガイドもどうぞ。
Before or after visiting the venue, if you want to further immerse yourself in the German beer spirit, please check out ▶︎SCHMATZ's online shop or our list of beersビール一覧. If you feel like toasting in an authentic lively atmosphere, please visit ▶︎your nearest SCHMATZ restaurant.
