Zwickel Bier
Rugenbräu AG

The best importI’ve tried in California.

Poured into a Stone Gargoyle flute. Pours a lightly hazy, light to medium golden amber, with a fine, one finger white head with good retention and nice lacing. Aroma of bready malt, light caramel and ripe stone fruit. flavor is bready and caramel malt, faint over-ripe light stone fruit and a little residual caramel in the finish. Light to moderate grassy bitterness. Medium bodied with moderate creaminess, nice mouth feel. Classic bready and caramel keller/zwickel matl with some pleasant fruit flavors, but everything somewhat attenuated. A bit hard to rate, because I wanted a little more depth to the flavor, but this style is meant to be light and less intense than a keller bier. I rarely get to sample one of these, and it seems to be a nice example of the style.

 

RB transfer

 

Cloudy yellow appearance complete with a full white head. Aromas of musty yeast, flowers, grassy hops, and grains. Taste has a honey malt added to the proceedings, but yeast rules these lands, botanicals are somewhat muted. Feel is airy and light, again malt here is heavier than expected though, weighing down the beer

 

Swingtop bottle on a cruise of Lake Thun, Switzerland. Poured out a slightly cloudy, straw-yellow color with a small, white head of foam. It left sudsy trails of lace. It smelled of caramel, bread crust and toffee. Sweet caramel taste with a mild bitterness.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Colour is pale yellow, with some head and gives average lacing. Aroma is quite faint and mostly malty, but could not say it is pleasant. Flavour is much better, low carbonation with spicy bitterness and weak notes of lemon. Unfortunately aftertaste is not very long lasting, but does have a pleasant bitterness in it.

Overall nice beer, but not very distinguishable from others.

Picked up a .5L at Drinks of the World in Bern.

Appearance is yellow with a short white head and lacing. The aroma is a touch musty (cellar-like) with a touch of sulfur and minerals over malts. The flavor has a bit of those earthy mineral notes with light, yet slightly creamy biscuit malts and a hit of peppery hops. All in all a fine zwickel. Don't like Rugenbrau Lager think this brewery only makes light lagers.