Weissbier
Hoppebräu

Dating format of best before 16 30 10 ( which doesn't match European format or this beer is old as shit ) , something

Pours an effervescent & clouded gold with 2+ fingers of pearl colored head. Below average head retention & lacing

S: Pears, bread, faint yeasty, white pepper notes

T: Pears, grassyness, light dry bready notes up front. Some green banana notes once warmed up, along grassiness white pepper yeastyness & white grapes. Finishes fruitty, a little dry with woody/herbal hops

MF: Medium body, soft carbonation, slight grainyness

This one is a bit off & the dating format just has me confused. Either old as hell( figured it would've gushed ) or just not on style. It did have a long journey. Certainly expected more yeast character. Not horrible, but not what I was looking for in a Hefe. Way too much pear

 

 

Nice carbonation, beautiful color smells like bananas on the nose and I like it because it’s not too sweet Summer brew

 

Poured from 500mL bottle into a dimpled mug. Bottle has the rather cryptic date code of “21 22 23” printed on it.

Appearance: medium yellow-orange hue with a moderate haze and a thin layer of ivory foam atop. A bit more head and haze would be welcome, but it’s not bad.

Smell: slightly grainy malt aroma with light whiffs of the classic banana and clove. I like it.

Taste: nice wheat flavor with, again, light clove character. There’s something a little thin here, though; it feels almost more like an American pale wheat than a German hefeweizen.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a good level of carbonation and creaminess.

Overall: the thinness is more in the flavor than in the body. There’s just something, I don’t know, too light in this beer, although it is otherwise not bad.

Appearance: Pours a mostly hazy (30% clarity) medium and bright orange color with a strong white head. SRM of 8. (4.25)

Aroma: Strong aromas of sweet bread, banana, bread, some yeast and bread spices.(4.00)

Flavor: Strong flavors of sweet bread, banana, bread, some bread, spices. And of sweet orange citrus. Finishes sweet. (4.25)

Feel: Medium to heavier body, average, carbonation, smooth and sweet. (4.25)

Compared to Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier 12/2023: Pours darker, similar aromas. More sweet bread and banana bread. Less bread spices, yeast, citrus, and carbonation. Sweeter and more smooth.

Overall: First try at this one. It leans a touch breadier and sweeter with more banana. Very smooth. A touch sweeter and maltier, but I thought excellent bread and banana flavors. Excellent, and among the best. (Rating: 4.14)

16.9 oz bottle stamped 21 22 23 into a tall Weiss glass.
L: Pours yeasty dark corn yellow with a 1" + creamy rocky drifted eggshell white head that has excellent retention, low carbo, head recedes to a small center cap & edge foam, light spotty lacing.
S: Banana bread, yeast, a hint of fruits, distant peach.
T: Banana bread, light clove, sweet malts, lightly fruity, yeast, a hint of grains. Not overly sweet and is lightly rich.
F: Gentle, soft, very smooth medium-bodied with a medium-length gently drying finish.
O: The bottle I purchased tasted extremely fresh. Very pleasant tasting and EZ drinking traditional Weissbier. Hits all the style marks spot on. Quite balanced & smooth and is excellent in its style.

Best head I've ever experienced on a beer, it's like whipped cream. Lemon scented. Lots of lemon and clove on top of sweet wheat and banana bread. More zesty than sugary

 

From the 0,33 l bottle, it pours a hazy amber color with a modest head that soon diminishes to nothing. The nose gets bread, which the mouth also gets. Overall, this seems slightly sweeter to me than a normal weissbier with little to no carbonation continuing.

0.5 L Can
Glass: 0.5 L Weizen Vase
ABV: 5.4%


Look:
Extremely opaque straw yellow. I can barely make out the shadows of my fingers through the narrow part of the glass. The creamy and fluffy off-white head starts at 2+ fingers and hangs around for quite some time. Lacing is excellent.

Smell:
Bananas (though not overmuch), dough, and spices. The spices combine with the high carbonation to provide a sharp clove note in the aroma. There is also a touch of citrus.

Taste:
A nice dose of bananas and sweet citrus start off and are quickly joined by that sharp spicey note. That note carries some zest with it. There is a spritziness here as well. The sip finishes citrusy and a touch spicey and zesty. Quite refreshing.

Feel:
Smooth but also well carbonated to the point of being spritzy. The body is between medium-light and medium.

Overall:
A refreshing hefeweizen that hits all of the right notes for the style.

 

 

Hoppebräu "Weissbier"
16.9 fl. oz. brown glass bottle coded "Best Before Date: 23 25 22"
$5.29 @ Total Wine & More, Claymont, DE

Notes via stream of consciousness: A very hazy gold colored body is capped by a thumb's width of white foam. The aroma suggests a lightly sweetish and wheaty malt with moderate banana and clove esters and phenols. The taste confirms that the yeast was kept in check although it still has more banana and clove than some examples of the style. It's lightly sweetish but not really that malty although the wheat is clear. It's pleasantly bready, and there's no tartness to it. It's not that bitter nor is there a whole lot of hop flavor to it although there is a lightly floral and herbal character. Some spiciness from the yeast lends it extra depth. It finishes mainly dry with some sweet malt and banana/clove lingering. In the mouth it's medium bodied and crisp but not bristling or zesty. It's an easy-drinking hefeweizen that some Germans have told me they prefer in the summer. One gentleman who's favorite beer is Spaten's Franziskaner told me very clearly that a beer like this was what he switches to in the summer. I'm not 100% sure but I think that beer was Fischer's hefeweizen from Mössingen, DE. Some older women at the table next to us chimed in agreed with the sentiment. If there's a negative to this beer it's that the head retention and lacing could be better, while at the same time that's at least partially due to the fact that it's got a softer carbonation which lends to its drinkability.
Review #8,559

Glad to see a new import braving it to Chicagoland. Bought this copy at the Beer Temple.
Poured into my classic weizen glass, Hoppebrau's rendition Looks pretty good. But the nice foam could last longer and the spicing comes through; yet Smells could have more of the banana yeasty the style is famous for. I'm getting a balanced Taste, just not a distinctive one. I'd say, more fruit. Soft in my mouth, refreshing.

I drank half of this copy while eating a simple lunch and it did the trick; cleansed the palate, yet let the food flavors play. However I saved some for dinner (an Indian dal that I often drink Weiss beers with because the softness calms the palate.) Hoppebrau's Weiss was less effective.

I'd like to try more from this four year brewer. They are very accomplished for that age and their website is sophisticated. Their story is very similar to American micros, just a different location for the beer passion. And I think I'll wait a while for a repeat of this Weiss. It is hard to rate Hoppebrau's Weissbier against the Bavarian masters who have a few more generations of experience. Time will tell. Prost !

Weissbier pours a hazy golden color with a big, long-lasting, frothy head. The aroma is vibrant, with banana and clove notes. The flavor is rich, creamy, banana and clove, with a heavier, thicker body. Overall, a great hefe, not as sugary sweet, or thin as others, a nice different hefe.

 

16.9oz bottle. Label has best by date marked as '23 25 22'.
Unfiltered, straw colored body. Two fingers of white pillowy head. Leaves behind some short strings of lacing.
Aroma is wheat malt, banana, cloves, and lemon. Nose not as strong as the flavors.
Taste follows the nose and features slightly sharp wheat malt, banana, cloves, lemon, and a touch of orange citrus. Has a little pencil eraser in the aftertaste.
Medium mouth feel, with a fuller texture, Dry finish. Very good carbonation.
Well balanced for style, and quite refreshing.