Kupfer
Goose Island Beer Co.

 

 

 

12oz Bottle

Batch #6158

Another thanks to Matchew for passing this bottle along. Good people right there! Kupfer pours burnt orange. After the swirl and addition of yeast it darkens up quite a bit and becomes opaque. Orange still glows around the edges of the glass.The beige head is bubbly, a little soapy even but shows incredible staying power.

The nose is a little doughy upfront with a surprising dose of citrus that's reminiscent of coriander seed. Raisin and prune add a touch of sweetness while the yeast throws off a ton of esters, bringing both banana and spicy notes. A faint hit of clean alcohol livens it up. There's a lot of depth in this dunkelweizen without the offputting, to me, clove spiciness.

The flavor profile isn't as complex as the nose but it is snappier and brighter. Citrus, again, pops upfront and lingers throughout. The doughiness is soft while prunes and raisins are bright. There's a pleasant herbal and spicy hop character along with soft banana notes. The more I drink the spicier it gets, and I like it.

Mouthfeel is soft and it's an easy beer to put away. The body weighs in a notch shy of moderate while carbonation adds a bit of snap and the clean alcohol adds to the dry, lingering, but soft, hop bitterness.

This is a damn fine beer. I have to admit, I don't pick up dunkelweizens very often but if this was on the shelf that would probably change. It's not over done in the ester department which is usually what I'm not crazy about. This version has citric notes, fruit, bread...depth overall. It has a dry, softly bitter aftertaste that highly boosts drinkability.

 

This is a Dunkel Weizen, per a Goose Island brewer. Kupfer = copper.

Into a tall Weizen glass it pours a murky dark reddish copper color, with orange edges. It has a billowing head of creamy meringue foam that rises above the rim of the glass momentarily. After defying gravity, it recedes but remains for a long time, leaving behind clumps of foamy lace all around the edges.

Aroma is faintly yeasty, slightly spicy, grainy and a little green.

Flavors of baked apple, bitter greens, and toast. Creamy texture and somewhat light bodied. Bitterness lingers a bit into the dry aftertaste. Overall it's pretty drinkable, and I'm working on a second already.