Skip to content

abzapfen

to tap (a barrel), to draw off liquid

verb AP-tsap-fen Rare
Food & Drink Cooking

Usage Note

abzapfen means to draw liquid from a container via a tap or spout — most commonly beer (Bier vom Fass abzapfen). A skilled bartender in Germany is expected to pour a proper Pils in stages; the two-stage pouring technique for Pils is closely linked to abzapfen.

Examples

"Der Wirt zapfte das frische Fassbier gekonnt ab und setzte es mit vollem Schaum auf den Tresen."

Natural Translation

The landlord skilfully tapped the fresh draught beer and set it on the counter with a full head of foam.

Literal Translation

The innkeeper tapped the fresh barrel-beer expertly off and placed it with full foam on the counter.

Explore German by topic