Bayernbiere Bought and Drunk

Grüße aus schöne mittelalterliche Miltenberg!

 

Picked up case of Augsburger from the monopoly. At least they deliver to anywhere in the country without any extra charge. It's nice to see that it's unpasteurised, that probably helps give it the fresh quality which I percieve in the Herrenpils, and which I percieved in their Commerzienrat and Dunkel. One interesting thing about Riegele's beers is that the label for their Dunkel listed hops and hop extract, whereas their Commerzienrat and their Herrenpils only lists hops (most likely pellets). Most other German lager beers sold here will list both hops and extracts, Warsteiner only listed extracts when it was available to me (although now they list both hops and extract on their website) and Jever even lists extracts ahead of hops in their ingredients list. So Riegele are obviously putting an emphasis on the hops in their Herrenpils, which shows in the flavor.

 

What area of CA are you in? On a side note, Rothaus is not available in CA yet. And, I do not know who imports Alpirsbacher, but I have also never seen it around anywhere.

 

Alpirsbacher Zwickl and Pils are godly.

 

Binny's here in Chicagoland used to carry it, but I haven't looked for it in a while.

 

I'm actually in Arizona. I know Alpirsbacher makes it to parts of the Midwest, as some buddies found it @ Binny's in IL. AZ is, sadly, an import wasteland. It's kind of a self-perpetuating cycle -- people don't buy it, so old stock sits on shelves, which makes (some) people (like me) buy it even less, which keeps old stock on shelves, which...and on it goes.

 

Just about the same story here. "Hey, is that an IPA? No? Don't want it."

 

I keep on hoping that somehow the next big trend is a renaissance for lagers. One of my favorite AZ breweries -- Dragoon -- is doing their part w/ various lagers almost always on the menu (a Vienna and Munich Dunkel are on currently), but they haven't started canning/bottling them yet, canning only their IPA. Fingers crossed that a new canning line will improve efficiency enough to see them start to make some of those offerings available.

 

Based on their website, a few of their offerings are available at select stores. I picked up some Pils in early October at the Schaumburg Binny's. It was still tasting quite nice at about 3 months old (bottled July). They had other Alpirsbacher offerings, but I passed due to their age.

 

As promised, I've transcribed my notes on the 2015-16 HB Winter Spezial into a review.

Since the importer and the label report this beer as the Delicator Doppelbock, I reviewed it there and reported an alias on the beer. What's odd is some of the other reviews on Delicator that describe it as a Helles color -- of which my samples were definitely not. Since @einhorn handles the distribution of HB in his area, maybe he can shed some light on the character of the kegged version he sells?

Either way, this new one (to us) from HB is a terrific Doppelbock, especially so since it's wonderfully fresh. If only it had better availability in my area.

 

I do not sell HB in our area, as the distribution rights are with a different wholesaler. I work for the company that is importing HB, but they only have the rights to sell in the Bay area.

 

That's confusing. Who sells in the rest of CA, if anyone?

 

Not really. They appoint distributors in areas to represent the brand. Very normal for an importer. Their distro in the rest of CA is Wine Warehouse, one of the largest in the state, if not the largest. They have always been big in imported beers along with wine and spirits.

 

Last night I had my first Kellerbier/Zwickel.  It's always exciting to get to try a new style, but I admit I'm not familiar with these beers at all.  So I thought I'd post some of my notes and hopefully some of you with more experience can chime in.

Fürst Wallerstein Zwickel



500 ml bottle, best before 8/26/2016.

Initially, I got toasted malts and bread combined with spicy hops in the aroma. The flavor was rich without being too sweet. Bitterness from the hops did a good job of providing balance. Almost like mixing the richness of a Helles lager with the sharp bite of a pilsner.

I thought there was a slight hefeweizen quality to it as well, as the yeast is fairly prominent, but lacking the banana/clove character of a hefeweizen. 

The best part has to be how creamy and smooth it is. The creamy texture brought all of the flavors together and created a softness that made it dangerously easy to drink. 

I did have one question:  I've read this is a style that traditionally served on-tap, fresh from the source.  But for bottled versions, is it typical to add in the yeast sediment at the bottom of the bottle (as you would a hefeweizen) or pour the beer and leave it behind (as I did)?

I enjoyed this beer and I'm interested in other versions - available in the US - I should be seeking out.  Thanks!

 

The true definition of Zwickel describes the little tapper at the bottom of a lagering tank that a brewmaster can draw samples from. A "Zwickel Beer" is a beer (of any style, really) that is drawn from this tap without going through any sort of filtration -- as you've discovered.

Without filtration (or complete settling of the beer) flavors tend to be a little more pronounced than is usual for the style. As for pouring the yeast from the bottle, I would -- it's how you'd get it on tap in beer halls -- usually in a clay Krug so you don't notice the turbid quality.

Best U.S. version I've had recently is Urban Chestnut's Zwickel -- if it's available near you. It's basically an unfiltered Helles style (which is what the Wallerstein sounds like, based on your description) and pretty tasty.

 

Well, as correctly explained by steveh, "Zwickelbier" or "Kellerbier" is not really a style. Though I would argue that, at least in Franconia, it is at least somewhat defined regionally, since as a general rule, people know pretty much what to expect when they order "A Keller".
And yes, as with Hefeweizen in germany, it usually poured with the yeast, though it is surely interesting try pouring it clear and seeing how it fares then.......

I'd personally say that the best "examples" surely come from franconia and yes, are best experienced at the source, but bottled versions can hold up farely well. They are most of the time more hoppy and less fizzy than their counterparts from the rest of germany. The best more widely aviable one is St. Georgen Kellerbier. You should try it if you have the chance.

 

I am a BIG fan of Furst Wallerstein Zwickel; I have two bottles in my refrigerator.

Below is something from a conversation I had with @boddhitree four years ago:

So, I popped open my bottle of Furst Wallerstein Zwickel. It is a large bottle (500 ml) so I had to get my biggest beer glass for this. It poured a nice tawny color and it had the unmistakable smell of a Franconian Kellerbier; a very pleasant combination of bready malt, subtle hops and some ‘yeasty’ smell. I haven’t even taken a sip and I thought to myself: this is going to be very good. My first sip realized my expectation; this beer is very, very good. I could describe the taste/flavors in my own words but your words fit the bill appropriately:

“The aroma is both lightly bread-malty & lightly hoppy, so they were right on the aroma hops, probably Tettnanger, Hersbrücker or another noble hop. The taste is both malty and lightly noble-hoppy, nothing terribly wowing, but really, really easy to drink. There's no one flavor that overpowers, and they blend together very well! Also the mouthfeel is neither too thick or too thin, maybe exactly in the Goldilocks zone needed to make a very süffige (pleasant to drink, drinkable), creamy beer. Damn, I'm usually not a Pils fan, but this is maltier than a Pils and less hoppy than, too. But then again, the warmer it gets, the bitterer the aftertaste. I can really dig this beer.”

I also discussed this beer on a New Beer Sunday thread: http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/new-beer-sunday-week-516.246648/#post-3159231



Are you close to Princeton? Triumph makes an excellent Kellerbier they call Aldstadt Lager; it is a rotating beer.

Southampton makes a summer seasonal of KellerPils.

Below is a list of other good Kellerbiers to consider.

Cheers!

· Urban Chestnut Zwickel

· Sly Fox Standard Pils

· Sly Fox Keller Pils

· Sly Fox 2nd Street Pils

· Sly Fox Tettnang Keller Pils

· Brooklyn Gold Standard Export Kellerbier

· Victory Braumeister Pils of various ‘varieties’: featuring Saaz, Hallertauer Mittelfruh, and others.

· Voodoo Pilzilla

· Tired Hands Yellow & Green

· Triumph Aldstadt Lager

· Southampton Keller Pils

· Mahrs Ungespundet-hefetrüb

 

It kind of sounds like the new turbid IPAs...

Are the bottles dated? Because typically I know you won't buy imports without some sort of bottle dating on them. I'd like to try these if I see them at my local.

 

The bottles have a best by date and a production code (where you need a secret decoder ring to decipher).

I only purchase these beers if they are fresher than the best by date and since their is live yeast in the bottles (the equivalent of bottle conditioning) the yeast aids in maintaining beer stability.

Cheers!

P.S. I drank a homebrewed Pale Kellerbier last evening that I bottled on March 2015 and that beer still drank beautifully even though it is over 10 months in the bottle.