Roggenbier
Bear Republic Brewing Co.

 

05/02/12 On tap at Rattle n Hum, NYC. Great body/mouth feel. Great balance of flavor. Top notch. Don't be put off by the Frankenstein sounding description, this is a solid beer.

 

 

 

 

Had on tap @ Driftwood-Plymouth. Poured into a pint glass

Appearance: gold in color, 1/4 inch head, hazy, moderate carbonation

Smell: toasted malt and light rye--not the strongest of smells

Taste: toasted malt, pumpernickel bread, some earth, and rye that is strong but not overbearing on the finish

Mouthfeel: medium bodied, moderate-low carbonation, sweet with slight earthy bitterness

Overall: Bear Republic know how to brew with rye. I enjoyed this one and is a good example of the style. I still prefer German versions of this style, but would pick this up again.

This brew was served from the tap at Rattle N’ Hum in New York, NY. It arrived in a generic tulip. It glowed a tawny-orange, sporting a one finger cream colored head of soft, creamy bubbles. Retention was nice, leaving rings of lacing around the glass. There was a mild haze, no sediment, and lower-appearing carbonation. The aroma was thick with wheat and phenolic clove. Belgian spices flourish, with coriander, cinnamon, vanilla, and raw honey. Sweetness came in the form of fermented Granny Smith apples, pale malts, and Belgian yeast. Our first impression upon sipping was that this brew was light and wheaty, very reminiscent of a classic wit. As we sipped, the taste opened up with mild Belgian spice, biting metallic yeast, and orange flesh inclusions. This sweetness continued to the peak, where dry caramel grain gave moderate bitterness. Paler malts crashed in with a slightly toasted end. The finish showed lemon bite and grass, spices of ginger, black pepper, cinnamon, and final clove bitterness. Adjuncty bite, with yeast and metals rounded out the very finish. The aftertaste breathed of wheaty malts, toast, and crisp metallic. The body was light to medium, and the carbonation was medium. The mouth was left wet and cooled, with a spicy coating. Each sip offered nice fresh slurp, pop, and froth. The abv was appropriate, and the beer drank rather easily.

Overall, what we enjoyed most about this brew was the malt profile, enhanced by all of those nice aromatic spices. The robust nose also helped lend an appreciation to the malt profile, but in the end, the flavoring was a bit thin around the edges, the total refinement was simply not there, all while missing those big, characteristic rye inclusions.

 

I have made it a goal to review all 104 styles on BA. This goal challenges me to grow my beer drinking abilities. The Roggen is one of the top four hard to get styles. I want to thank my friend Naugros for letting me know this was on tap at our local bar.

I had this out of beer mug on tap. They left about two fingers of head on the glass as it arrived. The body is golden, and it looks kind of like a pilsner.

The body was pretty thin. It is very drinkable. You can tell that the ABV is low on this Roggen. The flavors are an interesting mix of rye and pilsner. There is even some minimal hop presence.

I appreciate having this experience. It is not my favorite beer, but I like that I was able to get to try this new beer style.

Had on tap at the Cloverleaf, poured for me by Kim, who was in a surprisingly good mood. Enough so, that it was almost uncomfortable as we're used to her brooding nature and have come to accept it.

But the beer appeared to reflect her sunny mood, with a pale orange-amber glow to it. Topped by a tight, white head that left behind nice cascading lace.

If you're not familiar with ryes then you'd swear you had a Berliner weisse. The smell is sour with a touch of spiciness that is not clove. But if you know rye beers then you'll recognize the grassy, spicy, slightly sour aroma coming from this one. Quite good.

The taste follows, but not as strongly and I'm left wanting a little more flavor. But it does deliver on all the notes I'm used to in a beer brewed with rye. Unlike the mood Kim's in tonight, which I'm not at all used to.

This has got a pleasant tongue-coating viscosity to it and drinks a little lighter than it actually is. But at the end it leaves a bit of residue on the tongue, almost ashy, but not quite. Maybe more like talc without the taste of it.

I really did like this beer almost as much as the change in Kim's demeanor. She was quite pleasant tonight and, once we got used to it, it was pretty refreshing. The same can be said of this beer. If you get used to the rye coming through then you'll find this pretty refreshing as well.

Pours a bright copper color with a big white head; a good bit of lacing. The smell is mildly herbal, with some fruity notes and something like bread dough. The taste is a little spicy, with banana notes and some sweetness like shortbread; a little hop bitterness in the finish. It's crisp for an ale, with good carbonation and a thinnish body. A very nice beer, incredibly easy to drink. I'll get this if I see it again.

Had on-tap at Sunswick 35/35 in Astoria, NY on 2/14/12.

Review taken from notes.

This beer pours a cloudy brownish amber color. There is about a finger of white head resting on top. The head has good retention, and there is some scattered lace left behind on the glass. The nose has a good bit of rye and spices. There is also fruity juiciness to the nose, as well as some banana. I am getting a little bit of yeastiness as well. The taste follows the nose pretty well. It starts off with some rye and maltiness. There is a nice fruitiness and banana flavor. There is some clove and other spices present, as well as some yeastiness and a mild hop presence on the back end. The finish leaves some lingering rye and spices behind on the palate. This has a medium body and the carbonation is on the lower side. It goes down easy and has a really nice smooth feel to it. There is some rye spiciness and some fruity sweetness to it. There is a really mild hop bitterness on the back end. It has a nice refreshing quality to it. This has really good drinkability. It goes down really easy and has a really nice flavor. Overall, I think this is a just a solid easy going beer. It is almost like a rye hefeweizen. This is my first Roggenbier, but I am definitely looking forward to trying more. I definitely recommend trying this one out. I would buy more of this one.

 

 

 

 

Served in a pint glass at the brewery.

A: Murky dark iced-tea color with a thin scum of a head that didn't leave much lace.
S: Bit of citrus, minerally yeast, and sweet banana.
T: I get flavors of clove, yeast, and banana. The rye adds a nice spicy character that is noticeably different than wheat. The aftertaste is definitely minerally.
M: Tingly carbonation, medium body that drops off in the finish.
O: Clean and easy to drink and very refreshing but not super flavorful.

On tap at the brewery.

A: Cloudy tannish color. Clearly unfiltered. Thickset head with no retention and little lacing.

S: Rye, cloves and other spices. Yeast.

T: Huh. This reminds me of a hefeweizen but with a distinctive rye flavor. Nice spice notes.

M: Well carbonated. Medium bodied. Nice finish.

O: this is the first and only Roggenbier I have ever had. I am looking forward to tying a few more.

Served out of a pitcher at the brewpub in Healdsburg. Very nice appearance with lacing that runs down the glass. Not an overbearing Rye smell but enough to take notice. A welcome change when one gets tired of all the great IPA's in the area and a great choice when 3 or 4 beers are whats called for. Nice to see an underrated style get put on tap, and a great beer to enjoy on their patio... Glad we got it instead of 2 pitchers of Racer 5.