In Beer & Bread, two people compete against each other in a friendly rivalry. As the heads of a small village, they compete over six years to produce the most delicious beer and bake the best bread. Players share the fields and resources, but their own actions determine victory and defeat. Only those who create a balance of beer and bread will be victorious, because only the less lucrative resource is scored.

A game of Beer & Bread runs over the course of six rounds, representing six years – which alternate between fruitful and dry. In each year, fields are first seeded with resource markers, then cards are distributed. In the action phase, cards are then played in turn. Each card has three sections: Harvest & Store, Produce & Sell, and Upgrade & Clean. However, only one of the actions can be used at a time. The players must therefore think carefully about which action they want to use next. The fruitful years are particularly challenging, because in these years the card hands are swapped after each turn.