When people talk about “big events” in 2024 that “cast their shadows ahead,” one could think of the presidential election in the USA or the Olympic Games in Paris. Monumental moments in which contemporary history is written. Wolfgang Nierhoff, mayor of Pegnitz in Upper Franconia, said with these very words that he recently said Nuremberg News (NN) said, but a completely different event: the eleventh Franconian Bratwurst Summit. It may not be of global importance, but its importance for the region should not be underestimated.
“The whole of Franconia will be there on the day,” predicted Bernhard Sauer from the Upper Franconian Chamber of Crafts NN. Fortunately, it can be assumed that this prediction is a deliberate exaggeration, because if the entire Franconian population (4.1 million people) traveled to Pegnitz (13,736 inhabitants) next Sunday, the city’s infrastructure (a train station) collapse. But the event in Franconia definitely creates enthusiasm. One can even describe it – this time without any exaggeration – as identity-forming.
Since 2011, with the exception of the two-year Corona interruption, it has been all about sausage in Pegnitz, in two categories: best classic bratwurst and best creative bratwurst. Last year, visitors, around 12,000 according to the organizers, chose a product with the name Cheesy Gonzales to the tastiest reinvention. This year there are 16 creations to choose from, including a kebab and a wine-flavored wine-flavored bratwurst. A jury, which includes representatives from the butcher trade and mayors and district administrators from the region, decides which of the classic bratwursts is the best.
All of this may be difficult to understand for newcomers who despise food or Old Bavarians who love white sausage, but there is no need to fear this with the patron of the Bratwurst Summit. After all, this is a man who is very familiar with both: bratwursts (preferably Nuremberg) and summits (Zugspitze, Corona, Asylum). However, it is not known what Prime Minister Markus Söder thinks about the fact that a vegan sausage will be on the grill in Pegnitz for the first time this year.