Brauberger Zwickelbier
Traditionsbrauerei Brauberger zu Lübeck

enjoyed at the brewery’s brewhouse in Lübeck, an incredibly yeasty beer, which imparts very unusual minerally flavours onto the beer, floral and herbal, a nice sweetness to it, a caramel, maybe even orangey, white and brown bread malts, low bitterness on the finish, medium bodied with medium carbonation, really quite unusual, but not bad

 

A: Served a hazy copper color with a small head and good lacing.

S: Fresh grain and a bit of fruit aroma,with a hint of spice.

T: Has a distinct bittersweet taste. Malty with caramel and a nice bitterness. Has a clean finish.

F: Medium body, smooth and well balanced.

O: Good cask beer. Worth a day trip from Hamburg to Old Town Lubeck.

Had this on tap in Lübeck (oh, what a beautiful city). It was a late summer evening, meaning that the sun was arching horizontally toward the horizon, giving that great twilight ambiance signature only to the far northern cities. Saw the brewery/restaurant in my Lonely Planet guide and that's all I needed.

Unfortunately, I write this review with no tasting notes, only a simple picture of the beer in the official "Brau Berger zu Lübeck" mug.

I do remember, though, very distinctly, the "über-lager" flavor and presence of this beer... I had been drinking plenty of run-of-the-mill German lagers and hefeweizens - they're certainly better than our American consumerist offerings, but they simply don't compare to this. I'm certainly not a lager lover, but it was easily the best, the most complex, and the richest lager I've ever had. It was deep and sweet while retaining that lager-esque malt and yeast; it was hazy and real, it ran smooth off the tongue and invited you to dig in to the schnitzel and potatoes that laid in front of me. It was the perfect companion to the quintessential German dinner, and it's what finally made me realize why German beer tastes the way that it does.

Every now and then I'll pick up an American micro-brewed lager off the shelves (drinking a DFH My Antonia right now), but they simply don't compare.

I know that maybe 3 people will read this review in the next 5 years, but if you're one of those, and you'll be in or around Hamburg, make the day's trip to Lübeck, and you won't be disappointed. It's the shining exemplar of the pure northern German town, complete with this excellent brewery, restaurant, and above all else, beer, the defining culinary output of my favorite country.

Brau Berger zeickelbier, or Keller bier.  Brewer is Thomas Rosenhahn and seems to be a really nice guy.  This beer is quite different from the bottle as from the tap or small cask. I've had all three and prefer the cask/tap.  

A copper red hazy nice big head that lasts the whole glass. 4 

S Bready yeasty biscuity aroma. 4 

T This is a very yeasty beer. Nice thick yeast flavor, absolutely wonderful. A little sweetness. 4.5 

M thick from to yeast/wheat very Keller bier like. 4 

D  Really a good beer. Drinks good all might Long.  4.5