Troegs Cultivator Helles Bock

I hope you've read Mark Twain's The Awful German Language. I was in a Seminar in Freiburg where we talked about this and all the Germans just thought it was the most funny, illogical thing written about their language. German articles, genders, and case are really hard for us Amis to get down, but it's no because we aren't trying!

Also, for your viewing pleasure:


As for beer, can one US brewer please make a good Rothaus-esque German pils and a halfway decent tasting hefeweizen without the harsh, thin flavors I normally get from just about every US produced weissbier?

 

Unfortunately it is not distributed to your area but I would suggest a Troegs Sunshine Pils to you.

http://www.beeradvocate.com/communi...-and-american-pils.100623/page-2#post-1488005

Cheers!

P.S. I do not speak/understand but I thought the video was very funny! I recommend that the German version of "the' should be spelled "duh"; duh bus!

 

Sunshine Pils seems like just what I need. Pennsylvania really seems like a good state for German style lagers with the Victory Braumeister series and things like this.

 

It definitely is. Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are probably the best states for German-style beers. There are other breweries doing good work elsewhere (Old Meck, Prost, Devil's Backbone, Live Oak, etc.) but there are countless examples in those two states.

 

In addition to the lagers there are also some other high quality German style non-lagers like: Victory Kolsch, Victory Alt, Sly Fox Royal Weisse, Troegs Dreamweaver Wheat, Stoudts Heifer-in-Wheat, etc.

Victory: Braumeister series of Pilsners (Hallertau Mittelfruh, Saaz, Tettnanger, Sladek, etc.), Lager (a Munich Helles), St. Victorious (Doppelbock), Hip Czech Lager (Bo-Pils), Scarlet Fire Rauchbier, Zeltbier (Wiesn style Marzen), Sommerbock (Helles Bock), Baltic Thunder (Baltic Porter brewed with lager yeast), Prima Pils (German Pilsner) and others.

Troegs: Sunshine Pils (German Pilsner), Troegenator (Doppelbock), a number of lagers as part of their Scratch Series. And the new beer of Cultivator Helles Bock.

I am also a big fan of Sly Fox brewery: Helles Golden Lager, Charles Bridges Pilsner (Bo-Pils), Standard Pils (unfiltered German Pilsner with Spalt hops), Pikeland Pils (Northern German style Pilsner), Keller Pils (unfiltered Pikeland Pils), Oktoberfest, Rauchbier, Dunkel, Helles Bock, and others.

My favorite Oktoberfest/Marzen of this season (and past seasons) is Sly Fox Oktoberfest. I even prefer it to my German brewed favorites of Ayinger, Weihenstephan and others.

My wife is a big fan of Rauchbier. She really like Schlenkerla Marzen but she likes Sly Fox Rauchbier even more.

Stoudts brewery also makes a number of tasty lagers: Stoudts Pils, Oktoberfest, Stoudt's Gold and others.

Neshaminy Creek makes an excellent German Pilsner: Trauger Pils. In Spring 2014 this beer will be available in cans.

Cheers!

P.S. I am sure that I forgot some other tasty Pennsylvania brewed German style beers that are worthy of being listed.

 

It even happens here! I had the Braufactum Colonia some time ago. It had absolutely nothing to do with a Kölsch, in my eyes it was just a sort of softer Pale Ale. Even the color in their picture looks nothing like a Kölsch.
They call it a Rheinisches Bitterbier on their website, probably because using the term Kölsch is not allowed due to the Kölsch-Konvention. But if it is supposed to be anything else than a Kölsch, the name Colonia is misleading.

 

It must be a "craft" thing. As much as I desperately wanted to like Weyermann's beers, they were almost all hugely disappointing.

 

Touche. My biggest complaint is the Kölsch style. Finicky yeast and generally overhopped. Hefeweizen is a different animal, most brew a single infusion while this style likes decoction. In addition, yeast pitch, generation and open fermentation also big issues.

We distribute the Weltenburger helles hefeweizen which has become one of my favorites. Still have not tried the Live Oak which I believe is decoction mash.

 

Live Oak makes a very tasty hefeweizen. I have had it on draft a number of times in Texas. To the best of my knowledge it is a draft only product.

Cheers!

 

Chicagoans are a step ahead of the article consolidation.


(feel free to bow out after the first few minutes)

 

I don't think the United States in general is know for its mastery of language. We can't even get our own language right.

 

Just picked up my first 3-pack of this year's @OldeMeckbrew Frueh Bock. Best iteration of this beer I have had from them by far. Beautiful rich maltiness, amazingly smooth, with a perfectly balanced, herbal hop bitterness that is capped just below where the malt peaks. Man oh man, this is good....

Don't know how the Cultivator would compare, as I have yet to have it -- only the Troegenator, which I thought hit all the right notes (but didn't do much beyond that IMO).

 

I agree on this years Frueh Bock, I have already gone through two growlers of it. It is by far my favorite OMB beer. I am interested in trying the Cultivator, as I have been fairly impressed with several of Troegs other offerings.

 

Based on my extremely limited experience, Troegs obviously knows what they are doing -- and they are doing it very well.

Olde Meck seems to have hit on a magical formula with this one. IMO the Frueh Bock is a true standout...a rare thing indeed.

 

I haven't had that beer, but it still seems that it wouldn't be fair to compare the two beers. Troegs is definitely going in a different direction with Cultivator- it's still worth trying, but just don't expect anything other than a hoppier, easy-drinking big helles.

 

Yea, I suspected such. I don't think much good would ultimately come from a comparison here...though I may be wrong. Will seek out the Cultivator at any rate. Happy to now have access to both.

 

Michael, below is the Troegs description of Cultivator Helles Bock:

“Cultivator Helles Bock
Alcohol by Volume: 6.9
Hop Bitterness (IBUs): 25
Color (SRM): Pale Gold
Availability: February - April
Malt: Floor Malted Bohemian Pilsner
Hops: Hersbrucker, Magnum
Yeast: Lager”

So, at 25 IBUs, Cultivator tasted “hoppier” to you?

Cheers!

Jack

 

I'll quote myself from another thread:

although I did say something similar earlier in this one.

So in that sense, I'd say sure, Jack. It definitely doesn't come across as a traditional Heller Bock, is all I was saying.

 

ETA: dang double post!

 

I tried looking this morning on German websites to get a sense of what was an approximately normal IBU for German Bockbiere. I couldn't find much about Heller Bock specifically, but what I did find was that generally, bitterness for Bockbiere is between 18-30 IBU (here, auf Deutsch, from Brewery Research and Teaching Institute in Berlin).

I found an excerpt from a brewing manual (Ludwig Narziss: Die Bierbrauerei (2): Die Technologie der Würzebereitung) that explained:

Der helle hopftenbetonte Bock mit einer Stammwürze von 16,5%, einer Farbe von 7-8 EBC und einem Bitterstoffgehalt von 30-40 EBC-Einheiten wird nach den für das beschriebene Pilsener geltenden Prinzipien hergestellt.

(My translation: The lightly colored, hoppy bock with an original gravity of 16.5%, a color from 7-8 EBC, and a bitterness of 30-40 EBC units relies on the same qualities of the previously described principles of the Pilsener).

He also explains:

Die kräftiger gefärbten hellen Bockbiere (Stammwürze: 16,5-17%, Farbe: 10-14, 22-25 Bittereinheiten) leiten sich von den geschilderten etwas "sattfarbigen" hellen Lager- und Exportbieren ab...

(My translation: Richer lightly colored bock beers (OG: 16.5-17%, Color: 10-14, 22-25 IBU) can be differentiated from the "fully colored" lightly colored lagers and export beers.)

So I've seen anything from 18-40 IBU, but I would say that 22-25 IBU is probably more typical for your average German Heller Bock based on that last excerpt.

Also- as for the Heller vs. Helles Bock thing- here and here , but I think we can all agree that something like this (Andechser Bergbock Hell) avoids the argument all together.