Weihenstephaner - Korbinian

Purchased From: Canal's of Hamilton
Serving Type: 500 mL bottle, poured into a Pokal glass

Korbinian is a doppelbock from Weihenstephaner and it pours a clear, dark brown body with a mild wine-like glow. The head is a generous size with an airy foam and good retention. The beer is light on lacing, overall, though. The nose is sweet with caramel, backed up by earthy undertones. There are also slight alcoholic fumes rising from the beer.

The crisp carbonation produces an airy mouthfeel to go along with light hopping. The earthy body contains toasted malts that yield to a roasted coffee ground finish. The bitter hops fade nicely and produce a dry finish with a lingering hazelnut. The beer is clean and handles its alcohol well.

As it warms a bit some of the alcohol shows through with a bit of heat. The beer develops a mild Port wine character with a sweetness of dried dark fruits like plums.

Final Verdict: A-

Schneider-Brooklyner Hopfen-Weisse

Schneider-Brooklyner Hopfen-Weisse

Purchased From: Wallingford Wine & Spirit Company

Serving Type: 500mL bottle, poured into a weizen glass

Hopfen-Weisse is an interesting collaborative creation by Hans-Peter Drexler of the Schneider brewery and Garrett Oliver of The Brooklyn Brewery. The brew masters, fans of each other’s work, as the tale goes, decided to team up to produce a unique beer, using the other’s brewery. This is their experiment, as produced at the Schneider brewery. I’ll keep an eye out for, and hopefully review, the Brooklyn half of this equation.

The body pours with a light orange hazy glow, diffuse with silky yeast left over from bottle conditioning. The nose is extremely hoppy  and carries a slight must. The large head is full of tons of very crisp carbonation and produces considerable lacing.

There’s a slight astringency to the wheat malts. They produce a sweetness to balance out the bright hoppy character of this beer. There’s an intense and delicious citrus character to it, reminiscent of fresh grapefruit. The hallertauer hops used in brewing are clear, but they mix well with the wheat malt to create a very interesting and rare combination.

The beer is certainly strong, but hides its alcohol well. At 8.2% ABV, suppressing the alcoholic esters is a nice feat.

Final Verdict: B+

G. Schneider & Sohn - Schneider Weisse

G. Schneider & Sohn - Schneider Weisse

Purchased From: Wallingford Wine & Spirit Company

Serving Type: 500mL bottle, poured into a weizen glass

This is Schneider’s original hefeweizen and it pours a dark-for-the-style murky tannish brown with feathery yeast flowing throughout the body. What it most closely reminds me of is an unpasteurized apple cider. Great thought for the season. The base of the glass reveals a mild yellowy hue.

There’s a light dust to the nose along with clear banana scents and hints of citrus. The head is very light and airy, but keeps a moderate level throughout the life of this drink and produces light-to-moderate lacing on the glass. 

The beer brings characteristic banana phenols and yeast that give the illusion of banana bread augmented by clove and cinnamon spices. The mouthfeel is a bit thin, but goes out with citrus and fresh apples and gently fades to a somewhat tart aftertaste. The spices linger on to balance out the finish.

Final Verdict: B

G. Schneider & Sohn - Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock

G. Schneider & Sohn - Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock

Purchased From: Wallingford Wine & Spirit Company

Serving Type: 11.2 oz. bottle, poured into a large wine glass*

This is an Eisbock version of the incredible Aventinus that I reviewed late last week. An Eisbock is a special type of beer, allegedly discovered accidentally by a former brewer of Aventinus, derived by the freezing of a portion of the beer. Because water freezes before alcohol, the water portion is frozen and removed. What is left is a considerably more concentrated version of the original brew.

Aventinus Eisbock pours with an initially large dark foam head, but it quickly disappears leaving no trace of its previous existence. On the way out, the head flares out with tons of crackling carbonation. Likewise, there’s no lacing to be found with this beer. The nose is incredibly sweet. Sweet. There’s an aroma of candied plums and hints of red wine and a Port character.

The deep brown body with some floating yeast begins with a dry and musty flavor, but quickly moves into dark fruits like dates and raisins. There’s also a prominent and deliberate nut component. The flavors of walnuts and hazelnuts are the most clear and add considerable depth to this complex beer.

There are only mild alcoholic esters, but the incredible sweetness of this beer is a clear indication of its considerable alcohol content. The nutty finish lingers in the aftertaste and allows the alcohol to sneak up on you. At 12% ABV this beer is quite serious, and not something you’re going to drink more than one of.

Final Verdict: A**

*A Note on Glass Selection: More commonly you’d find this type of beer poured into a snifter, the type of glass most commonly associated with brandy drinking. Unfortunately, I don’t have one. An oversized wine glass can be used as a substitute, that’s what I’ve done here. Other possible selections for this beer may have been a fluted glass, or a tulip. Because of the complex aroma of this beer, I wanted to go with something more likely to concentrate the nose. As its getting to the season where strong beers are most commonly drunk, I’ll look into adding a snifter to my cabinet.

**A Note on My Rating: This beer fully deserves the rating I gave it, but for factors different than the A I gave to the regular Aventinus. Aventinus is both bold and drinkable. It’s strong and full-bodied, but is easily drinkable, a combo that lends to an excellent beer. Aventinus Eisbock, while quite enjoyable, is not what you’d call “drinkable.” This is an occasion of a beer, not something to stock your refrigerator with. The beers take very different approaches, but are equally deserving of high marks.

Ayinger - Weizen-Bock

Ayinger - Weizen-Bock

Purchased From: Wallingford Wine & Spirit Company

Serving Type: 500 mL bottled, poured into a weizen glass

The label of Weizen-Bock from Ayinger brings a cartoon version of the goat from Celebrator. Perhaps the cartooniness is a sign. The title and style of the beer suggests a robust and dark hefeweizen, I’m not sure they’ve really embraced that charge.

The cloudy orange glow of the beer sits above a chartreuse yellow base. The initial large white head quickly shrinks down, disappears, and leaves no lacing. The nose is huge on a citrus bouquet accented by coriander and clove. 

The taste is initially very sweet with some carbonation for body. It narrowly avoids what I sensed as a wateriness in Ur-Weisse, also from Ayinger. The finish is dry and the 6.7% ABV produces a slightly alcoholic follow-up. There’s just not a ton of depth of flavor to be found here.

While it doesn’t bill itself as a wheat doppelbock, this beer comes no where near Aventinus in either darkness or complexity. What I’m confused about is the difference between this beer and Ur-Weisse, Ayinger’s dunkel weisse. One step further, Ur-Weisse really wasn’t much darker than Ayinger’s Brau-Weisse hefeweizen beer.

Final Verdict: C+

G. Schneider & Sohn - Edel-Weisse Mein Grünes

G. Schneider & Sohn - Edel-Weisse Mein Grünes

Purchased From: Wallingford Wine & Spirit Company

Serving Type: 500 mL bottled, poured into a weizen glass

Mein Grünes is an organic Bavarian hefeweizen, brewed by G. Schneider & Sohn in Kelheim, Germany. It pours light from the bottle, but in the glass a musty orange clouded by tons of free-floating yeast gives a different impression. The large white head shrinks to about half a centimeter of foam before long. Alcohol esters dominate the nose, but they’re backed up by more subtle fresh grapes and clove spiciness.

The beer is very sweet on the front, but mellows nicely. The initial sweet wheat malts are evenly balanced by cascade and hallertauer hops. The mouthfeel is far from watery, but it’s not robust. The moderate carbonation gives it some body, and produces a crisp finish for high drinkability.

Final Verdict: A-

Ayinger - Ur-Weisse

Ayinger - Ur-Weisse

Purchased From: Wallingford Wine & Spirit Company

Serving Type: 500 mL bottle, poured into a Weizen glass

Ur-Weisse is a dunkelweizen beer. If recall yesterday’s posting about a dunkel lager and are familiar with the wheat beer hefeweizen style, you can easily surmise that this is a dark wheat beer.

The body is a murky brown with yellowish highlights and a fluffy head. The retention is moderate and the head shrinks slowly down to a light foam layer. What remains produces very little lacing. The beer carries a citrus aroma with mild astringency. Its backed up by notes of dark fruits and must. A moderate active carbonation seems to refresh the head.

Wheat malts blend well with clove spice and typical banana phenols. They flavors combine for a somewhat sweet finish. Light hopping adds a moderate edge to the beer, but the hops aren’t substantial. The mouthfeel is thin and somewhat watery. All considered the beer is tasty but not exactly satisfying.

Something is left to be desired here.

Final Verdict: C

Ayinger - Altbairisch Dunkel

Ayinger - Altbairisch Dunkel

Purchased From: Wallingford Wine & Spirit Company

Serving Type: 500 mL bottled, poured into a flute glass

Altbairisch is a German dunkel (German for dark) lager brewed in Bavaria, by Franz Inselkammer brewery in Aying (a/k/a Braurei Aying). The body is medium brown with red and orange glows. A large craterous head sits atop the beer like high-floating clouds. The medium retention saves a light foam layer that produces complex lacing.

The nose carries a soapy citrus tone with a slight musty aroma and light tannins akin to green tea. The toasted malts produce a mild sweetness balanced by a musty and earthy component. German noble hops lend a mild bittering that gives the beer a rounded character.

Final Verdict: B

Hofbräu - Maibock

Hofbräu - Maibock

Purchased From: Beers of the World

Serving Type: 11.2 oz. green glass bottle, poured into a mug

This Maibock pours a clear, but deep, amber with an impressively creamy foam head. Not unexpectedly, the head carries a slight tan hue and produces tons of lacing in the mug. The nose of the beer is incredibly fresh with hits of green grapes and plenty of toasted malts.

The beer is full-bodied with a strong malt character. There’s a clear hop character, but it is definitely second to the toasted malts. Characteristic to the style, this Maibock has a pretty high alcohol content, 7.2%. There’s a slight heat on the finish, but not strong enough to be off-putting.

The style is typically associated with the spring, hence the name Maibock (May bock) and is a member of the bock family of beers. There’s some contention whether or not the Maibock style is the same as Hellerbock, a similar beer also brewed in the region. I am yet to try a self-proclaimed Hellerbock, but from what I’ve read they’re generally considered to be the same style.

Hofbräu - Hefe Weizen

Hofbräu - Hefe Weizen

Purchased From: Beers of the World

Serving Type: 11.2 oz. green glass bottle, poured into a flute glass

Hofbräu’s wheat beer pours with a pale fresh straw color, a mild light haze, and some very faint grassy green hints. The pour produces a large fluffy white head that dissipates to a mild bubbly top lining. It leaves some considerable contoured lacing on the glass.

Typical banana and clove flavors are present on the taste and the nose. A citrusy lemon is also present, more so here than is usually found. A musty yeast appears on the finish combined with a slight dryness. The beer is very drinkable and easily enjoyable. Despite have almost no visible active carbonation the mouthfeel is full of body and depth.

Note on Reinheitsgebot: As with yesterday’s Hofbräu Original (and many other Bavarian beers) the bottle of this weisse bier proudly mentions the German Purity Law. The back of this bottle takes it a step further, exclaiming that it is “Brewed exclusively from water, wheat malt, barley malt, hops and yeast according to the famous Reinheitsgebot (Purity Law) of 1516.” As I pointed out in yesterday’sposting, the law has since been repealed and is simply a marketing tactic today.

The Reinheitsgebot reads exclusively to say that they only ingredients allowed for brewing in accordance with law are water, malted barley, and hops. You can read a translated text of it here. Yeast, an important ingredient in beer, is left out because when the law was written, yeast’s impact on the process was not yet discovered. Louis Pasteur wouldn’t figure that out for a couple hundred years. At the time, brewers relied on ‘spontaneous fermentation.’ Essentially, free floating yeast would land in brewing pots and work their magic to produce beer. So, the inclusion of yeast as an ingredient is acceptable even under the law.

What’s not acceptable, however, is the use of other grains in the brewing process. It’s quite clear, really. However, as I’ve pointed out, today’s Bavarian brewers love to tout the Purity Law on their packaging. And in this case, even on a wheat beer (which contains malted wheat), the defunct law is used as a selling point, even though the process of brewing this delicious beer does not follow the list of ingredients prescribed by the law itself.

My point here is not to say that this beer is not good, or that it’s not deserving of praise. It certainly is. However, just keep an eye out for these convenient marketing pitches. Accept them with a grain of salt.

Paulaner - Oktoberfest Märzen

Paulaner - Oktoberfest Märzen

Purchased From: Beers of the World

Serving Type: 12 oz. bottle, poured into a pint glass

The beer inspired by the historic Paulaner monks strikes again, and it’s still quite good. Paulaner is more than capable of producing a solid beer and their Märzen, released in celebration of the Bavarian Oktoberfest tradition, is a perfect example.

It pours with a large creamy head, most of which dissipates quickly. The foam leaves very sparse lacing on the glass. The body of the beer is a deep amber color and produces some sparkling copper tones in the light. The nose is mostly characterized by a musty, yet pleasant, yeast component.

This Fall lager is very drinkable and incredibly enjoyable. It’s got plenty of sweet toasted malts and a delicate hop balance. The carbonation is spot on and produces a crisp finish with a slight metallic bite.

Ayinger - Bräu-Weisse

Ayinger - Bräu-Weisse

Purchased From: Harvest Fine Wines & Spirits

Serving Type: 11.2 oz. bottle, poured into a flute glass, a Weizen glass would’ve been optimal, but I haven’t come across one that’s not meant for a .5L beer.

The Ayinger Bräu-Weisse is a traditional German hefeweizen (wheat beer) brewed in Bavaria, the heart of German brewing tradition. It pours a medium straw body with a light haze and cloudy appearance. The nose features prominent banana notes with hints of clove. 

The generally thin mouthfeel is balance by a light carbonation and complimented by the beer’s crisp malt character. The wheat lends a clean sweetness, which works perfectly with the clove and spice character of the beer. There is a very light hopping, which adds a depth of flavor, but clearly takes a back seat to the wheat profile.

Ayinger - Jahrhundert-Bier

Ayinger - Jahrhundert-Bier

Purchased From: Harvest Fine Wines & Spirits

Serving Type: 11.2 oz. bottle, poured into a flute glass

Ayinger is a privately-owned brewery in Aying, Germany, a well-known and prolific Bavarian brewer. Ayinger, as a brewery, traces its routes back to 1878, and the Jahrhundert-Bier was originally brewed in 1978 to celebrate the brewery’s centennial. You may remember that I recently reviewed Ayinger’s Celebrator doppelbock. I concluded that it was a world-class example of the style. It was no mistake to think that Ayinger is capable of producing excellent beer.

Jahrhundert-Bier is an example of a German Dortmunder beer (recall my recent review of the Russian-brewed Baltika #7 Export Lager), a so-called Export Lager in the traditional German Helles style. 

It pours a slightly-hazy medium straw with a light, yet tall, foamy head. The foam dissipates slowly and produces fair lacing. The nose, coming primarily from the head of the beer, has a bitter hop character and notes that remind me of green grapes. The hop profile of the beer is similar (as can be expected) to a Pilsner, so you can expect Saaz and potentially Perle hop bittering.

The body holds a light floating carbonation and prevalent sweet malts. The green grapes on the nose are present in the taste, complimented by honey and something like a sparkling apple cider. The hops are a bit muted on the taste, but keep the beer’s strong malt character from overtaking the palate. A clear and crisp finish makes this beer incredibly drinkable. This is definitely another reason to seek out products from Ayinger.

Note of comparison: If you have the opportunity to try this and compare it to what Baltika ships out and declares to be the same style, you’ll invariably notice the disparity in taste, quality, and enjoyment.