Simon Hell
Brauerei Simon

 

 

Half liter bottle picked up at a getrankemarkt in northern Bavaria dated best by 10.10.24. A rich, aromatic Helles with all the highlights of the style. Grainy, yeasty, barny nose. Same with the flavor with the addition of a hint of hops in the finish and a creamy, full body and feel. Quite good, would drink this again without hesitation. This brewery is underrated.

 

500ml can - there's more than a bit of confusion around this one in its Canadian market release - is it the Weissbier, or is it the Helles? Since their website was of no help (and not because it was only in German), I poured it first, and had to choose this entry.

This beer pours a mostly clear, medium golden yellow colour, with three zaftig fingers of puffy, finely foamy, and creamy bone-white head, which leaves a bit of streaky land bridge lace around the glass as it quickly abates.

It smells of bready and doughy wheat malt, a further pale graininess, indistinct generic citrus rind, a subtle earthy yeastiness, weak clove and white pepper notes, and some plain leafy, weedy, and floral noble hop bitters. The taste is bready and grainy caramel malt, an equal to the task edgy wheatiness, some orange and banana (knock knock!) fruity esters, a fading earthy spiciness, slightly phenolic yeast, and more understated musty, leafy, and dead floral hoppiness.

The carbonation is adequate in its timid-seeming frothiness, the body a solid middleweight, and generally smooth, with a nice airy creaminess seeping in once things warm up a tad around here. It finishes off-dry, the big malt character kind of lording it over any other lingering essences.

Overall - this is obviously still a Weissbier, through and through, the problem existing in that old-world habit of not displaying all of the pertinent info on the native label (French wine, anyone?). It's a decent German wheat beer, and bright, so there's actually no fail on the label in front of me, that was probably tailored, for me, and my North American ilk.