Andechs Monastery on the "Heiligen Berg" (Holy Mountain) The church houses valuable relics brought from Jerusalem in the 10th century, which made Andechs the most important pilgrimage site in southern Germany alongside Altötting. The relic treasure is still to see today in the Holy Chapel of the church, under it a late Gothic monstrance with the once very venerated Holy Three Hosts - gifts from Pope Gregory the Great and Pope Pius IX. Also worth seeing is the interior of the church itself. The magnificent stucco work and the ceiling frescoes by Johann Baptist Zimmermann, one of the most famous artists from the Rococo period. The monastery building, which is under the care of the Benectine monks, cannot be visited. Most pilgrims today do not come because of the relics or to admire the interior of the church, but because of the first-rate strong beer that the monks brew here for more than 500 years. The monks have the privilege to brew strong beer all year round, which is only allowed in Munich during the strong beer season from Ash Wednesday to Easter. Today are produced 7 varieties of beer. Most famous is the dunkle Doppelbock (dark double bock). It is served in traditional 1 Liter steins in the Bräustüberl and in the monastery restaurant (Klostergaststätte). The kitchen offers traditional Bavarian style food. Try the crispy Schweinshaxn (pork hock) or one of the Andechs cheese specialities. How to get there? With the S8 (suburban train) to Herrsching at Lake Ammer. From here by RVO bus 951 or better a 50-minutes walk up trough the Kienbachtal (Kienbach Valley).