Dresden Christstollen

Stollen is a heavy yeast loaf with dried fruit, almonds and butter, dusted thickly with icing sugar, its shape traditionally said to represent the swaddled infant. Because it was baked for Advent, a fasting period, butter was forbidden and early versions used oil; the elector of Saxony petitioned Rome, and a papal letter of 1491, known as the butter letter, permitted its use in exchange for a payment. Dresdner Christstollen carries a protected designation restricted to bakers in and around the city, about a hundred and ten of whom produce it. A Stollen festival each December parades a loaf weighing several tonnes through the streets.

What you actually see

• The butter letter - a 1491 papal permission to use butter in the loaf.
• The protected name - production limited to Dresden-area bakers.
• The Stollen festival - a multi-tonne loaf paraded each December.
• The seal - a gold mark showing a certified Dresden producer.

When to go

November and December, when it is baked and sold; the festival falls on the Saturday before the second Advent Sunday. It keeps for weeks and improves with resting.

Honest expectations

Supermarket versions are not the protected product. It is very rich and heavy. The festival day is crowded and the loaf sold out quickly.

Nearby

Dresden's Christmas markets sell it; Meissen is northwest.