Braupakt 2024
Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan

12 oz bottle, poured into a glass.

Slightly hazy golden yellow with less than a one finger white head. Head fades fairly quickly but leaves some light lacing as it goes.

Aroma is a bit subtle at first. Light citrus, some grain, a touch of sweetness. As it warms, more comes through. I'm getting some banana and clove that adds a bit of depth.

Taste follows the nose. Light malt backbone with some grainy sweetness, balanced by a mild citrus hop presence. The yeast shows up but stays in check. Carbonation is medium to strong with a medium body. Finish is clean and somewhat abrupt, slightly dry with a bit of hop presence and no real aftertaste.

Everything feels integrated. Nothing sticks out or feels out of place. It drinks easy and does what it’s supposed to do.
Overall, this feels like a good representation of the style. My bottle may not have been the freshest, which could explain why it comes across a little more reserved, but it’s still a solid beer.

A: crystal clear; medium gold in color; 1+ finger finely pored white head that receded to a wispy cap with a thick tight collar; nice rings of lace;

S: clove and banana;

T: clove and banana from start to finish; mild to moderate bitterness at the end;;

M: medium bodied; moderate carbonation; moderately dry finish;

O: nicely done;

330ml bottle from Das Alpenhaus. Crystal clear golden body, one finger fluffy white head. Musty, bready aroma, light notes of Belgian yeast. Taste brings together full, biscuity German maltiness and flowery Belgian yeast. Sourdough character. Creamy with some mild aftertaste.

 

I’m not sure about the “retired status”, I just bought this one today from a restaurant with high volume beer sales. Although I don’t see a date on the bottle it tastes fairly fresh.
From a 330 ml bottle, pours a golden color with high clarity, an abundant head, and some light random lacing.
The toasted malt sweetness is accompanied by a grainy flavor. The hops profile is familiar, a blend likely of Hallertau, Saaz hops, and Northern Brewer, similar to other brews in northwestern Europe. Nicely bitter, crisp and clean.
A pleasant banana yeast flavor, faint caramel and clove spiciness is most enjoyable.
Way in the background there is an underlying tea and faint peppery capsaicin/flavor trying to get out. Very interesting.
The finish is a little off-sweet and fades towards dry, but doesn’t quite make it there.

RB transfer

 

Copenhagen 19/12 2024. 33 cl bottle from Beershoppen web-shop. Light blue label with the St. Bernardus Monk saluting with a Weihenstephaner female Catholic priest.

Pours clear golden yellow with a big white head. Stable. Settles as thin but unbroken layer of foam just covering the surface of the beer. Clinging to the sides of the glass. Moderate lacing.

Aroma is fairly intense with a fruity, slightly sugary odor mingling with a star, citric and grainy scent. Fermented peach, white sugar and alcohol. Citrus and grains.

Medium strong carbonation. Thin, oily, soft yet lively and tingling texture.

Flavor is medium intense with a rather strong sweetness followed by a medium strong sourish bitterness. Aftertaste is bitter with a sweet undertone. Lingers for a bit. Finish is rather dry.

Blonde with a strong touch of Wheat.

Extremely clear gold appearance with a lasting white head
Medium bodied without carbonation
Aroma is ashy,burnt vegetation, malt,banana, spice
Taste is very similar to aroma with that burnt taste lingering in the aftertaste

$2.59 for a 11.2 oz bottle from Blue Goat. Collab brew between Weihenstephaner and St.Bernardus. 6.5% ABV.
Pours out to a hazy deep blonde, forming a tall meringue like whipped white head with beautiful retention and solid sheets of lace. Carbonation is moderately brisk, ~3.0 carbs or so. Nose of cloves, ripe bananas, bready malts, a little sulfur and skunk (which I don't mind at all). Really nice inviting nose. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, crisp, refreshing, and super drinkable. The taste is a recap of the aroma with some green apple thrown in the mix. Very nice bready malt body very nicely balanced by a firm but very pleasant bitterness (without any hop flavor) which finishes with a dry and very clean bitterness lingering in the aftertaste. Super drinkable. Very interesting beer with great yeast character. Very well brewed.
Note to other reviewers who are getting this wrong. This is not St.Bernardus yeast. It's Weihenstephan yeast.

I really dig this. If it were reasonably priced here, this could be a go to in my fridge.

 

 

11.2 oz. bottle

Pours mostly clear yellow gold with a dense creamy white foam head. Smells like clean lemony citrus, sulfuric peppercorn, clove spice, coriander, hint of bubblegum, fruity esters, subtle banana, pear, apple, some honey, bready crackery malt, with herbal earthy grassy hops. Tastes slightly tart and refreshing with lemony citrus notes, banana, malic apple, pear, hint of apricot, fruity esters, subtle bubblegum, clove spice, mild sulfur, peppercorns, honey, cereal grains, bready crackery pale malt, and herbal earthy grassy hops. Feels medium bodied, creamy with smooth moderate carbonation. Overall a real great Belgian style blonde ale.

11.2 ounce bottle, big thanks to Brutaltruth for this one! Served in a chalice, the beer pours a mostly clear gold color with about an inch off-white head. Head retention and lacing are both pretty good. I like the aroma, the brew smells like citrusy hops, clove, coriander, white pepper and some bready/grainy malt. I think the taste is similar to the aroma, but there's also some pear and bubblegum flavors noticeable too. Mouthfeel/body is medium, it's smooth and easy to drink and has a good amount of soft carbonation. I thought this was a good overall brew, definitely worth trying if you get the chance!

Got a bottle from Sterk, Amsterdam

An excellent beer, brewed by two excellent breweries!
Look: Quite lively, with a good amount of head.
Smell: Very fruity smell, typical of St. Bernardus
Taste: Good maltiness from the Weihenstephaner side, and sweetness of the Belgian yeast.

A great collaboration, one that I would be happy to drink (a lot) more if I have the chance!

6er bottle pack from my trusted liquor store

 

Bottle from John’s poured into glass. Auto buy with this combo. Just yes - easy drinking blonde but with the Belgiany sweet bubblegum.