Bayernbiere Bought and Drunk

What Rauchbier is it?

 

Göller. I have never heard of it before, but Mahrun's has a "Franconia" section in their beer store, so my brain said "Franconian" aisle plus "Rauchbier" on label equals "Purchase".

 

That one was OK the one time I had it. Definitely worth trying, but IIRC just mildly smokey.

 

Schlenkerla really is the standard for these, as I'm sure you know and we all know. I've had a few brew-pub seasonal Rauchbiers that were light on the Rauch, which is just not what I expect or want in this style (once in Dresden, once in Heidelberg). However, I'll give it a fair shake and hopefully I'll enjoy it.

 

After trying quite a few witbiers in my days, I really asked myself why this isn't (or couldn't) be a popular "new" beer style in Germany. Like it or not, Blue Moon is a huge success, was a gateway beer for many beer and the citrus-y and refreshing style is similar to the Hefeweizen.

 

Never had a chance to try it myself, but isn't the Wiess (not Weiss) style of unfiltered Koelsch similar (without the spices, etc., of course)?

 

Traditionally there is the Belgian Wit yeast strain which is probably the strain of choice, whereas the Koelsch yeast, if fermented properly, is much cleaner.

 

Yes, but maybe too similar?

 

Started my batch off with Kesselring's Urfraenkish Landbier. I was not super impressed. In fact, considering that this is a Franconian beer (I think?), I was downright disappointed. It tasted like an Industriebier version of a dunkel. Perhaps the Eckbraeu Wilderer dunkel set too high a standard. Oh well, we can only go up from here. 2.5/5

 

Roger Ebert once said of Tarantino wanna-be's, "they know the words, but not the music". With that in mind I present my take on Faust's Auswanderer 1849. First I'd like to talk about the story that comes with the beer. It is about the founder(s?) of what would become Schlitz brewery in America (Georg Anton Krug and his son August). The story goes that August emigrated to the US in 1849 (hence "Auswanderer 1849") and the father brewed this sort of beer for his trip to the US. They go on to add that the recipe was taken from Georg's records. The story has got to be 90% false, if not more, but it highlights to me just what Faust thinks they have to do to sell a non-traditional beer to a German crowd (at 11 euro per 750 ml, I guess you should at least get an entertaining story). Heck, I think they're giving Germany credit for inventing the (D)IPA! (perhaps Germany is the IPA capital of the world! )

Anyway, I'm not going to give this one a number review. Why? Because I don't know what to make of it. I could give it a 4.0. I could give it a 3.0. I think it would hold up well to any American IPA. It's 7.5% with 80 IBU (according to the same paper tag that had the nice story). It looks right. It tastes right. But it's not "sueffig", to steal a word that Boddhitree likes to use, and it's not anything different from an American IPA. Perhaps I'll try it again sometime when I'm more in the mood for one. It's worth noting that this was about 9 months old if I'm guessing correctly, but their best-before date is 5 years(!!). Although I'm sure the beer would hold up for that long, US brewers seem to want you to try this sort of beer as fresh as possible. Faust knows the words, but not the music.



Cheers.

 

We're going to Miltenberg in October, but I'm not looking to drink IPA's, especially since it will be our first two days!

 

YMMV, don't let me discourage you from trying it. My wife really liked it FWIW.

 

It's not that. It's just that we're not going there to drink IPA's especially at first. If it was later in the trip and I needed a change of pace, I'd probably try it. I want Schwarzviertler!

 

I know we have had long discussions about non-German styles being brewed by Germans, this one just seemed to be closer to what a German already knows and what he/she might drink. A wit could be the full ABV form of a radler, or Biermischgetreanke, i.e. beer + ______________ (fill in the blank cactus juice, passionfruit, dragonfruit, grapefruit, etc).

On that note, why do we talk about heresy in German brewing when these things exist?

 

I don't think I've ever had a Wit that came as close to the sickly sweetness of a Radler. I like Wit, I tried Radler once in Munich because I didn't know what it was.

I've often groaned about the likes of Diesel -- I couldn't believe what I was seeing when I saw people drinking them.

 

Because at least the Germans don't hold such things up as "innovative" or claim that a Weizen with banana juice added is better than one without because the former has more flavor?

 

My in-laws live near Alpirsbach and they mix red wine with Coke in those parts. Pfui Teufel.

 

Not to get into a pissing contest, but that's exactly what they are doing. For the last 20 years Biermischgetraenke have been the German brewery's version of innovation and the only source of growth in a dwindling market.

 

Perhaps the marketing folks are doing so, but the "beer advocates" certainly aren't.

 

What's the German word for "yuck?"