Favorite German Hefe-Weiss

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by AlexanderSelby, Jan 20, 2013.

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  1. acevenom

    acevenom Initiate (0) Oct 7, 2011 Louisiana

    Weihenstephaner is probably my favorite, but there are a lot of good choices here. Of course, a trip to Germany would probably open my eyes to other weizens that I can't get here.
     
  2. dasenebler

    dasenebler Initiate (0) Jan 26, 2008 Maine

    This. But that does not diminish the greatness of fresh Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier or the standard Schneider Weisse. Franziskaner is okay, but always too powdery-sweet for me. I was also a big fan of Paulaner Hefetrüb when in Germany; it was always solid and pretty much available everywhere. Prost!
     
    trevorjk likes this.
  3. Nectar

    Nectar Initiate (0) Jan 17, 2013 New Jersey

    This x10
     
  4. herrburgess

    herrburgess Grand Pooh-Bah (3,053) Nov 4, 2009 South Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society

    I've had more than my fair share, and the standouts have both been from Hofbrauhaus Traunstein: the basic Weisse is beyond excellent and the Gastro Weisse is world-class.
     
  5. Head-high

    Head-high Initiate (0) Jun 15, 2012 Virginia

  6. MoistPope

    MoistPope Initiate (0) Jan 10, 2013 California

    Weihenstephaner, hands down.
     
  7. BigCheese

    BigCheese Initiate (0) Jul 4, 2009 Massachusetts

    No love for Paulaner? Thats my favorite.
     
  8. BoneyardBrewer

    BoneyardBrewer Initiate (0) Apr 24, 2005 Michigan

    Schneider Unser Original
    for a dunkelweizen, Erdinger.
     
    einhorn likes this.
  9. IamMe90

    IamMe90 Initiate (0) Sep 4, 2012 Wisconsin

    Pretty sure the thread calls for "German Hefe-weizons" not US ones, but Dancing Man is obv the best US hefe
     
    YogiBeer likes this.
  10. mintjellie

    mintjellie Initiate (0) Oct 2, 2005 Canada (ON)

    I would gladly drink Weihenstephaner, Franziskaner, Ayinger, Paulaner, Schneider, and Hacker-Pschorr without really picking one preferentially. I enjoy all of them, and sometimes will pick up a varied selection of them in one trip. There are a couple of bars where I live where Erdinger is the best choice on-tap, but I really only value it as a fallback option when nothing else decent is available. If I were forced to pick one though, it would probably be Hacker-Pschorr for sentimental reasons - it was the one my Onkel Hans would regularly buy. I do remember my Tante Erica telling me that his favourite was actually Andechser, but it's not available here in Ontario.

    It gets mixed reviews on BA, but I also really like Kapuziner Schwarz-Weizen. Black weissbier. :grinning:
     
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  11. kingofhop

    kingofhop Initiate (0) May 9, 2010 Oklahoma
    In Memoriam

    I don't mind any of them, as long as you age 'em long enough to get rid of the wretched banana and clove flavors.
     
  12. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,030) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Proof? Until then, I'm not buying it. I have noticed no real difference and have been drinking Franzi for almost 30 years.

    One thing that's been discussed here recently is that there has been new labeling on Spaten-Franziskaner beers and the shelf rotation has gotten better. Speculation is that drinkers are now getting fresher beers and they taste a little different to them.
     
  13. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,030) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Maybe, but there was no answer to my question.
     
  14. boddhitree

    boddhitree Pooh-Bah (1,765) Apr 13, 2008 Germany
    Pooh-Bah

    Frankziskaner is crap. Really, it's a faded remnant of its former self after Inbev gutted it of all taste in the name of mass-marketing it worldwide and profit-margins. Sure, it's not completely horrible, but there are hundreds much much better version of this style. Schneider Weisse, Tap 5, 7, etc run rings around Fransizkaner, and that's only talking about beers purchasable in the USA. There are hundreds of better examples of a Hefeweizen or Weissbier still being brewed by smaller brewers.

    Might I suggest reading the below post as what to me a sublime Hefeweizen is like. I wrote this in a thread of the Germany Forum here at BA. It's not the best I've ever had, but I have to say it was a helluva lot better than any industrial beer like Fansizkaner.
     
  15. BradtheGreat7

    BradtheGreat7 Savant (1,034) Jul 22, 2011 Ohio

    1. G. Schneider & Sohn - tap 4 mein grunes
    2. Weihenstephan - Hefe weissbier
    3. G. Schneider & Sohn - tap 7 Unser original
    4. G. Schneider & Sohn - tap 1 Mein Blondes
    5. Aying - Brau-Weiss
    6. Paulaner - Hefe Weissbier NaturTrub

    These are the only weiss brewers from Germany I buy from and these are the best German hefes I've ever had. Another German brewer I look for is heller-trum, but they don't make Weiss beers
     
  16. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,030) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Once again, show me proof.

    Sure, I agree that there are a lot of Weizens out there that are better (many you can't find in the U.S.), but Franziskaner is still a good, easily found and highly enjoyable Weizen.
     
  17. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,030) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Society

  18. BradtheGreat7

    BradtheGreat7 Savant (1,034) Jul 22, 2011 Ohio

    G.schneider, weihenstephaner, Ayinger, are the Germans who make the World's best hefeweissbiers, dunkelweiss, weizenbocks. Paulaner make a few good brews but when it comes to German wheat, I wouldn't ever stray from these guys. And all are very affordable here at home
     
  19. boddhitree

    boddhitree Pooh-Bah (1,765) Apr 13, 2008 Germany
    Pooh-Bah

    I wish I could get into the books to see what changes have been made to the recipe, what (cheaper) ingredients are now being, or what what other (chemical) cost cutting measures have been used compared to when I first drank Fransizkaner in the easly 80s, but I don't think they'll let me, so there's no way to prove/disprove it other than my tastes buds and memory.
     
  20. boddhitree

    boddhitree Pooh-Bah (1,765) Apr 13, 2008 Germany
    Pooh-Bah

    I think if you look at the winners every year of the World Beer Cup and the European Beer Star, none of these companies make the list except for Schneider Weisse.
     
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