WCCO Viewers' Choice For Best Oktoberfest In Minnesota
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- In the town of New Ulm, Minn., you might notice a slight German influence.
OK, a lot of German influence!
If you want to know New Ulm's Oktoberfest and why it's the best, just look for the guy in lederhosen.
His name is George Glotzbach, and he's as German as they come. Ask him anything you want, but be ready for more than a short story.
"New Ulm is the only place in America where you can walk around dressed like this and nobody gives you a second look," Glotzbach said. "New Ulm was founded by Germans, for Germans, and it's still very much that kind of a town."
Its people are 67 percent German, and the town is 100 percent with buildings, restaurants and monuments celebrating German culture.
New Ulm has a giant clock and bell, with a 10-minute show every day at noon, 3 and 5 p.m.
There's also Domeier's, which is an entirely German shop.
"When you take a look at the buildings, and the cultures and the institutions here ... this is real German. This is not invented for tourists."
But the town swells with thousands of visitors for two weekends to celebrate Oktoberfest.
"If you just let yourself go and say I'm just gonna go with the flow and have a good time, people will sing with you, they will dance with you and drink with you," Glotzbach said. "As long as you are friendly with them, they will be friendly with you."
New Ulm's Oktoberfest has all the classics: German food, song, dance, and of course, beer.
So when you go, you now know a great guy you can share a pint with. But you might want to call home and tell them you'll be a little late.
New Ulm's Oktoberfest was voted best by a landslide. The celebration spans the entire city, with four key locations: downtown, Morgan Creek Vineyard, Holiday Inn and Shell's Brewery.
It starts next weekend and runs the second weekend in October, as well.