Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse Dunkel
Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu

JonnoWillsteed from England

2.88/5  rDev -25.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3

L- Quite deep chestnut brown, slightly hazy, pours with 2mm off-white head that were it not for the glass having a foam-creating nucleation spot, would have cleared very quickly.
S- The expected weissbier smell plus some toasty malts.
T- Notably malty on the palate, but a bit of a light ABV% to support/balance it. Leaving it a bit rich with a sweet touch and thin tasting.
F- A bit rich yet pretty thin. Carbonation is high in the mouth, a bit higher than needed.
O- Too malty to be very refreshing, and too light in ABV and feel to be a good beer for winter-time. I appreciate this is a storied brewery, and they do do some v good beers, but somehow I think this recipe is trying to do too many things and failing. Two critical points, the Taste seriously lacks depth or character to me, it seems mono-dimensional, #2 the ABV%, it needs to be higher, say 5.7% or so?... Of course it's good enough that I'll finish the bottle, but it's not a beer I'll buy again. Bought from BeersOfEurope UK for home delivery. 500ml bottle/£2.08 BB: 04/2021

Jul 18, 2020

mothmanscott from Georgia

3.7/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

From notes 10/31/11: Pours a muddy dark brown producing a strong finger of tan, short-lived head which left little lacing. Aroma is roast, cloves and banana bread. Taste is dark bready malt, banana and cloves with a sharp, dry finish. Aftertaste is short-lived and minimal.

Nov 20, 2019

jazzandrea from Italy

3.21/5  rDev -16.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3.25

Si presenta naturalmente torbida, di colore ambrato scuro, con un bel cappello di schiuma mediamente persistente.
Aroma di malto, caramello, banana, lievito, con lievi sentori di limone e ananas.
Gusto di caramello, malto tostato, ma con meno intensità rispetto all'aroma; il retrogusto è ben equilibrato tra l'amarognolo dato dal luppolo e note dolci.
Si tratta di una birra non troppo carbonata, molto scorrevole (forse anche troppo) e dal corpo medio-leggero, comunque beverina.

It is naturally cloudy, with a dark amber colour and a strong head of persistent foam.
Aroma of malt, caramel, banana, yeast, with a light scent of lemon and pineapple.
Taste of caramel, roasted malt, but with a soft intensity compared to the aroma; the aftertaste is well-balanced between bitter (due to the hops) and sweet.
It is a beer not too carbonated, with medium-light body (maybe too light), but anyway easily drinkable.

Jul 07, 2019

thirstykrout from Delaware

4.02/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Very good even after the evil beer monopoly Budweiser inbev bought them they stuck to the recipe, unlike they did Beck"s here in the U.S beck's was my goto beer available most bars in the states . they changed it it undrinkable now !!!!

May 29, 2018

MacMalt from New Jersey

3.9/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

I had this on draught at Redd's Biergarten in Newark, NJ. 16 oz. pour served in a weizen glass. It pours a medium brown with ruby hues and almost two fingers of fluffy, ecru-colored head and serious lacing that persisted through the pour. Considering the temperature served the smell was robust and complex: roasted malt, clove, cinnamon, raisin, and hints of milk chocolate and caramel. The first thing I tasted was the roasted malt and brown bread with some sweet raisin and brown sugar; it was sweeter than I anticipated but there are pleasant spice notes at the finish. It's medium in body with moderate carbonation, and at only 5% ABV I finished the pint quickly and ordered another. Overall, this is a tasty and enjoyable Dunkelweizen that paired nicely with a plate of wursts, sour kraut, and red cabbage. I sometimes think we rate German beers too low. This one is really good.

Oct 05, 2017

Beersnake1 from California

3.73/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured from fridge temp. Very little carbonation on the pour, and the bubbles dissipated quickly. Look is a dark brown with some transparency. Nose is malty, some cinnamon, bready, nutty, and some raisin. Taste is surprisingly sweet upfront. Quickly turns to a subtle toast flavor. Raisins and a bit of caramel coming through. Definitely getting nutty notes. I think the sweetness is a bit high for me, especially following the nice soft nose. Feel is a bit dry and medium bodied. Overall, a nice drinkable beer.

Aug 13, 2017

Lone_Freighter from Vermont

3.91/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured into a weizen glass, the appearance was a semi-dark brown/dark red color with a two finger off white foamy head that slid off at a decent pace. Lace seemed to slide for the most part, somewhat stringy.
The aroma had some semi-sweet banana esters, some light caramel, then the clove, sweet wheat, a touch of dark chocolate and ended with a whiff of dessert crackers.
The flavor was moderately sweet through those prior mentioned aromas to carry the clove in fairly nice in a slight spicy sort of fashion. Wheat came in somewhat in that zesty sort of kick in the aftertaste as I expected it to.
The mouthfeel was about medium bodied with an accompanying sort of sessionably sweet grip. Carbonation felt fine. ABV felt appropriate. Comfortably mobile wheat-like to banana sweet finish.
Overall, pretty good as a dunkelweizen, one that I'd come back to. Good as is, but too bad they're owned by AB.

Aug 02, 2017

Bruno74200 from France

3.77/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

This classical dunkelweizen pours a hazy brown body with a huge white head.
Nutty and estery, this one does the job just nicely. Good drinkability but no complexity

May 31, 2017

Bruhaus71 from Connecticut

5/5  rDev +29.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

The best dunkel I've ever had. My favorite beer. Dark, but not so dark that you can't enjoy it year-round. Sadly, I'm told it is no longer available in the US.

Apr 26, 2017

Bombelsky from Poland

4.37/5  rDev +13.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Dark amber. Tall four fingers tall frothy off-white head. Fantastic lacing.
Bread crust upfront. Banana esters moderate high. Moderate high phenols.
Low grainy taste. Some medium-low malty sweetness. Moderate banana flavor.
Medium light body. Moderate carbonation. Creamy. Spicy. Long dry finish.

Apr 18, 2017

Ant777uk from England

2.24/5  rDev -41.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 1.25 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.25

Look's pretty good, dark and big creamy white head that forms a contrast.

Aroma is a bit unusual, not sure how to describe it really...not very inviting, quite gassy...kind of a carbon dioxide overload.

It certainly has some interesting flavours happening. But do I like them? Maybe. I am changing opinion as I continue to drink. Tastes are of maybe cloves, banana peel, lemon peel and banana. Better as it warms up.

Overall, it's pretty good. Just a bit heavy, from the wheat. Not easy to drink lots of these, due to the high gluten. At least there is good overall taste VS just malt and wheat, that adds more complexity when compared to many other similar style beers.

Mar 14, 2017

OlaB from Norway

3.86/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

L: gives a murky dark-brown color, with a medium top of creamy head that disolves slowly, decent lacings on the side of the glass.

A: caramel,bread,banana,cloves and other spices.

T&F: sweet and fruity upfront, with roasted malts in the background. in the middle gets more spicy where i feel the cloves a lot more, while i also feel the mlats get more stronger in the middle and in the finish.dry sweetness in the finish and decent lenght on the aftertaste.medioum bodied with medium carbonation. I think the mouthfeel gets a little to watery and it could have stronger flavours in this beer.

O: A good and easy drinking dunkelweissen, sure worth a try.I had no problem enjoying this one, but it is better examples of the style out there,

Feb 04, 2017

Lunruj from Czech Republic

3.93/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Dark brown color with regular but not so stable head. The smell is somewhat caramel and bready. Somewhat sweet in taste with banana aroma and some breadiness. Quite full body. Carbonation high as is common for the style. Drinkability is good.

A pleasant dunkelweizen worth trying.

Sep 21, 2016

rodbeermunch from Nevada

2.94/5  rDev -23.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3

Dark brown, small bubbled, small head beer. Oh yeah, I should prolly say that I'm not a dunkel fan, so this is my rating based on my subjective relative dislike of the style. Please don't beermail me if you're a cicerone homie concerned by a guy's opinion online not conforming to conventional wisdom or style guidelines. Nerd.

Aroma was mild, thankfully didn't impart the ton of alcohol I get from most in this realm. Taste has all kinds of dark fruit, banana, fruit yeast impact. Its like a batch of dark bread, with a bunch of clove and spice rack. I dunno, this could probably work with a heftier malt presence of barley, but so much of the spice rack dominates this, and you get weird yeast banana flavors that don't jive with roasted malt/wheat in this lacking proportion.

Sep 16, 2016

prost2hefeweizen from Oklahoma

3.83/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

L - 4 khaki head with dark brown body
S - 3.5 not strong but hints of toffe, caramel, banana
T - 4 caramel banana
F - 4 slight carbonation but still pretty smooth
O - 3.75 solid dunkel, not my favorite

Jul 06, 2016

911CROFT from England

3.85/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

500ml bottle into a tall weizen glass. Paid £1.79 for a single bottle.

Pours a dark, cloudy, brown-copper coloured body with masses of streaming carbonation visible when held to the light. A three-finger in height, thick, foamy ivory head with excellent retention, slowly reduces to a dense cap, leaving small amounts of soapy lace.

The hugely bready nose leads primarily with a mixture of sweet, doughy wheat and lightly toasted dark malts. Hints of caramel, toffee and banana esters are noticeable in the background, with subtle clove spices appearing towards the finish. Taste roughly follows suit. Upfront, crisp and bready malt sweetness leads above traces of caramel and toffee. Around the mid-palate, faint, sweet, fruity esters of ripe banana and slightly tart apple become apparent as the initial malt sweetness begins to fade. In the mouth a medium body and ample carbonation give a smooth, crisp and full feel. Towards the end, powdery clove phenols dry the palate slightly, finishing quick, clean and refreshing, without any perceptible hop bitterness.

Overall this is a good beer. The flavour is predominantly sweet and malt forward. While I wouldn't mind greater complexity, or at least a little more yeast character, it remains incredibly drinkable, enjoyable, refreshing and excellent value for money. Neither the nose or taste really open up much after warming. I find this one best enjoyed gulped down cold, straight from the fridge. Recommended.

Apr 13, 2016

davidperez from Mexico

3.79/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Served in a Paulaner Weissbier glass, it pours a dark brown with a slight orange hue, solid and murky, with a two-finger ecru head, foamy, with excellent retention. It dissipates and leaves a permanent thin layer of foam.
Streams of bubbles keep going to the surface all throughout.

The bouquet is of bread, caramel, toffee, banana and clove. Somewhat assertive.

Upfront a nice high carbonation alerts your palate. The flavor follows the nose, with toffee and a malty sweetness being the prominent flavors. Banana is very present as well. Spiciness.
A very mild bitterness balances the sweet profile. Not a very prominent finish, but pleasant.
Medium to light body, smooth.

This is a nice beer.

Mar 18, 2016

_drummer_ from China

4.29/5  rDev +11.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

I get this one every couple of weeks at a bar in my city in China. I switch back and forth between the dunkel and the regular. It is rich, very flavorful, and is a truly good wheat beer. It's darker, so it may be almost too dark for some (if that's the case, the regular is also amazing!).

Nov 09, 2015

SitkaSteve from Idaho

4.22/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

This was poured into my weizen glass.
The appearance was a ruddy almost dark brown color with a fluffy two finger-ed white to off white head. After it finally dissipated (boy, that took a while, almost like watching paint dry, the way that head died off), light stringy messy lacing roamed around the glass.
The smell started off with sweet doughy/breadiness sliding into an ample amount of sweet banana, light clove and then a little bit of ginger. Not sure if that was intentional, but hey, its there alright, I know the difference between clove and ginger. Not bad, just different, I guess.
The taste was the combination of the sweet breadiness, banana and a light cocoa (hey, that wasn't in the aroma, that's too bad, that would have helped for more complexity, oh well). Clove comes back but the ginger doesn't show its face, I'm okay with that.
The mouthfeel was about light to medium bodied with a nice sessionable feel to it. Carbonation feels fine and allows the clove to hit appropriately. Doughy/breadiness relieves the carbonation a bit to allow a nice smooth to somewhat creaminess to stroll over my tongue.
Overall, what a nice dunkelweizen for the most part. Ginger in the aroma, yet cocoa in the taste, one displace the other, sure, why not. I'd still have this again.

Nov 03, 2015

RyanK252 from California

3.85/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

On tap at BC's Pizza & Beer

A: Pours slightly cloudy amber brown with a frothy light brown head that settles to a thin layer and leaves a little lacing.

S: Bready toasty malt, caramel toffee sweetness, spice, banana, and clove.

T: Tangy wheat, spice, clove, a little banana, caramel toffee sweetness, and hints of dark fruit.

M: A bit on the lighter side of medium body, moderate carbonation.

O: Maybe a bit on the sweet side, but a really nice wheat beer for the fall.

Oct 03, 2015

Oleg85 from Russian Federation

4.02/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

L: Pours hazy brown, coffee-like color. Thick head 2.5 fingers tall.
S: Banana mostly.
T: Banana, roasted malts. Hops are hard to find.
F: Medium-bodied, crispy.
O: Common dark beer with hint of banana.

Sep 21, 2015

Gajo74 from New York

3.91/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Pours a murky medium light brown with a ring of thin creamy lace. Aroma consists of Bannanas, bubblegum, grain and yeast. A sweet fruity bannana taste, wheat malt, and a hint of alcohol. Very little hops presence. Slightly tart finish. Big mouthfeel, although it is a medium body overall. Soft carbonation. Smooth overall.

Sep 04, 2015

Zet from Netherlands

4.08/5  rDev +6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

A pretty dark amber colour with a decent head of foam, though this one was completely gone within a minute. A full smell of clove and caramel. These flavours stay in the taste and are accompanied by banana and citric. Very smooth mouth feel. A Dunkelweizen that does everything right; very rich in both smell and taste, with the right amount of balance. I usually prefer the Hefeweizen from a brewery, but for this one I gladly make an exception. This would make a very good dessert beer actually.

Aug 29, 2015

drmeto from Germany

2.98/5  rDev -22.6%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 2.75

-Typical Hefeweizen with Banana,clove,quite a strong wheat flavour.
-there was absolutely nomalt character here
-undercarbonated
-finish was too light

The fact that malt was nonexistent in this leads me to believe they used artificial darkener in this.Certainly wont put it behind ABInBev.
Tasted like a normal Franziskaner Hefe except with less carbonation and lighter-bodied
The Erdinger Dunkel wasnt great either but at least it tasted like a Dunkel

Aug 28, 2015

Smakawhat from Maryland

3.58/5  rDev -7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from the bottle into a wheat ale glass.

What an interesting looker. Deep classic hues of copper brown, with just enough light to get through to see pletinful carbonation. To the light it shines deep blood red, capped with a top head frothy and even thick at three fingers, it even has a purple tinge to it's relatively simple tan topped body. Great and neat looking brew.

Lots of powdery like malt on this. That real dryness gets an angle of clove and just a faint whiff of banana, but then goes to some faint almost woody tree bark like qualities as well. Almost makes me want to say smoke and rauch, but not quite. Different and a bit unexpected.

Palate comes off just a little to light. Not much wheat depth, and a bit of frosty and powder like caramel tones. Easy drinking but manages some weird like frosty and almost icy finish. Muted banana tones, and kind of hinting of malt powder which I just can't escape.

It's the easy drinking Dunkel it seems, but as drinkable as it is, it's not really memorable or something I can see myself gravitating to.

Aug 20, 2015