Please help me with a wiener!

[Rosiepigs]

A long time ago, I visited Munich right before Christmas. While strolling the Kristallmarkt, I encountered the most delicious sausage ever. It was red and roasted on a spit and flat-out delicious. I ate two that night and then a bunch over the next few days in Germanic Europe, even finding the ones at train station more than satisfactory.

Sadly, I have never found this wiener's equal in the United States. in fact, I'm not even sure what it's called. Net research has informed me that the traditional sausage of Munich is the weisswurst, but that's not definitely not my wiener. What is this blessed thing called? And can I find it anywhere in the burgeoning LA sausage scene?

[Rosiepigs]

More to update--I've followed many of your suggestions and still haven't come upon the exact wiener. Peripatetic, my sausage was redder than that. The nice ladies at Continental Sausage Company thought it might just be a knackwurst. I tried their knackwurst and it was good, but not what I was looking for.

That was yesterday. Today, I happened to be in Montrose and consulted a nice lady behind the counter at Schreiner's. Again, the guess is the knackwurst, but while theirs was good, it was not the red beast of my memory.

I will continue looking. I'm betting the people at either the sausage place on Olympic or the folk at the hidden-behind-a-warehouse on Coldwater Canyon can help me. Otherwise, I'd better come into some money so I can journey back to Munchen.

[GroovinGourmet]

Perhaps a nice jaegerwurst?

http://www.foodspotting.com/places/29...

[Peripatetic]

Was it at all spicy? If so, maybe it was a paprikawurst, a German take on Hungarian sausages. They are the reddest sausages I've come across. By "spicy" I mean very mildly spicy, as traditionally German food isn't spicy at all.

Here's a visual aid:

http://www.grillsportverein.de/forum/...

[Rosiepigs]

I think we have a wiener! I asked an Swiss friend and he thinks that I'm looking for the cervelat, the national sausage of Switzerland! (I swear one of the places I've been to was actually Swiss and no one suggested it.) It is red enough, and often grilled, and I do remember eating stand sausage in Germany. Now, just to test his theory.

[condiment]

I was rooting for parky.

[Peripatetic]

No idea where you would find that in LA or even by mail order in the US. I guess cervelat/cervelas is also used to describe some types of salami, so that will make things more challenging.

[ocshooter]

You could check with these guys:

Mattern Sausage & Meats
[phone]

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Mattern Sausage & Meats
4327 E Chapman Ave, Orange, CA 92869

[kevin]

i like this place too.

[chris1621]

Third for Mattern. My parents were both born and raised in Germany and swear by this place.

[A5 KOBE]

I love their smoked ham hock sausage.

[wienermobile]

Here is an older Chowhound link that may help you:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/438991
Hope this helps.

[Rosiepigs]

thanks! That discussion was mainly about weisswurst, but the wiener I'm looking for was red and pork, I believe. I'll check the European Sausage Company on Olympic. Anyone else have any other leads?

[Peripatetic]

It sounds like you might have had Bockwurst (pork and veal) -- this is typically a very red sausage. I'd check the meat counter at Alpine Village Market near Torrance. They have many other Würste besides Weißwurst, including hard-to-find specialties like Käsekrainer, Schreiner's Fine Sausages in Glendale (near Montrose) might have it, too, but their selection is smaller.

[JBC]

If your right about it being a Bockwurst - the 2 following restaurants, also part of the L.A.-Uberopolis sausage scene, have it:

http://www.steingartenla.com/

http://www.currywurstus.com

[Peripatetic]

Good point. Adding Berlin Currywurst to the list:

http://www.berlincurrywurst.com/what.php

I really like Berlin Currywurst. Haven't been to Steingarten or Currywurst yet.

[Rosiepigs]

thanks so much! will check them out!

[Peripatetic]

I'm curious to find out what sausage you had in Germany. Let us know if you find out.

[Rosiepigs]

Sadly, my long-sought wiener is not the bockwurst. I went to Currywurst yesterday and ordered one, and was shocked when a gray sausage on a bun was delivered unto me. It was a fine wiener, but not what I was looking for. (also, it was cold inside.)

Google images has confirmed that a bockwurst is light grey, or sometimes orange. The thing I'm looking for was red, like kielbasa, maybe, but didn't taste like kielbasa. The search goes on.

[Peripatetic]

This is the sort of bockwurst I remember from my time in Germany:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Boc...

Was the sausage you had at the Kristallmarkt redder than this?

[Servorg]

This place may be of help in your quest: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/8309...