Bayernbiere Bought and Drunk

And listed as a Munich Helles here at BA, but I can't get them to change Jahrhundert.

 

I believe I've seen both 5.2 and 5.5 on the bottles, it could vary batch to batch. I've seen various ABV's on Schlenkerla's bottles as well.

 

Are you talking over a long period of time? Most breweries print a ton of labels for their bottles because quantity is cheaper in the print biz.* It would be pricy to bounce back and forth with new labels every few batches -- especially for a difference of .3%.

*I don't know if you remember JessK talking about Import Brands Alliance getting permission to use up the rest of the Spaten labels with Spaten North America printed on them -- just because they had so many and it would have been crazy pricy to trash them all and print all new.

 

Apropos... I am in a FB group of German craft beer drinkers and even Augustiner is considered "Konzernbrauerei" in their eyes. So weird actually...they produce about than 1 mio HL/yearly (800K bbl) and are privately owned, but somehow it's still too commercial for them. Maybe because they only make mainstream beers? Schneider, on the other hand, is "völlig OK" and has everyone's respect. Bizarre.

 

As it pertains to contemporary Germany Export beers it seems like you have at least two different kinds. One kind is a circa 12% OG and circa 5% abv offering which acts as a maltier less hoppy alternative to the brewery's pilsner (with a slightly elevated OG and slightly lower IBUs). Then you have the other kind where the OG is more elevated, in the high 12s and the abv is in the high 5s, and where the hops may be more apparent/prominent than in the other type. For this latter type I would expect a range of abvs of above 5% into the high 5s. Depending on the abv relative to the OG and depending on the hopping rate I would expect either a sweeter or drier taste, and a maltier or hoppier taste profile (with the beer either offering "more of everything" or "more of one thing").

 

I'll quote the English guys I partied with in Munich one year, the group that hopped to Germany every few months for the best "loight lagah" anywhere, But with all the great beer you have in England, aren't you happy to drink there? "Real ale is for our grandfathers."

Funny how it all goes round and round.

 

Off topic, but anyone know what happen to our resident curmudgeon, @Stahlsturm ? His profile shows last active 04JAN16....

Prosit!

 

Dave,

I can't remember to last time I saw a post from him. Maybe shoot him a beermail? (or I suppose your tag does the same thing).

Cheers!

 

We are missing more than one curmudgeon around here these days.

 

Fortunate enough to have a couple glasses of Brauerei Ott's Export Bier alla spina last night. Really fantastic stuff, with perhaps just a touch of sulfur. Would have kept at it too, had the bar owner not finished the keg off himself pouring the final liter or so into his pitcher...
Molto beverina, as we'd say around here.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/5949/122473/

 

This character (a light touch) is common in very fresh beer using good Pils malt -- though DMS and Sulfur are similar and difficult to differentiate, but DMS is also common in fresh, light lager.

 

Did you perceive an aroma/flavor of a struck match? If so what you noticed was Sulfur Dioxide:

Sulfur Dioxide (SO2): struck match

Cheers!

 

Yea I suppose it was close to the smell of a struck match. From my perspective it was closer to that than DMS, which I'm familiar with having drunk more than a few mediocre homebrews/Italian "craft" beers.
It was very subtle and really added a little something extra. Reminded me of drinking fresh lager from the source in various places around Austria and Bavaria, so I would assume it was a very recent batch.
Now to just get my hands on some more!

 

Michael Ott is an old friend of mine... we went to Doemens together. I'll pass along your accolades!

 

Tell him to send more beer south of the border!

 

I have picked up Sulfur Dioxide a few times when drinking various German Pilsners. I notice it on the nose (aroma) and after a few sips the smell of struck match seems to dissipate. I assume because it is 'out gassing' from the beer.

I personally find the aroma of Sulfur Dioxide to be rather pleasant.

I am not a big fan of DMS. For me it comes off like creamed corn and while I have eaten creamed corn a fair amount as a kid (a loooong time ago) it was never a favorite of mine.

Cheers!

 

Douglas, can you please confirm that this beer has some Sulfur Dioxide?

Cheers!

 

I'll see what I can do... haha... actually I'd like to be drinking it in Bad Schussenried with my old friend and a big chunk of Leberkäse and find out first hand.

 

I followed up with a Witzgall Festbier. Brownish-amber color and nice toasty and bready flavors. Quite tasty but seemed to be lacking some yeast character, though that might just be because the Ott I had beforehand had such nice yeasty notes.
In any case, both good beers, and two different styles, but all things considered I preferred the Ott.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/16328/81940/

 

A lager with yeasty notes? Was it unfiltered? A good lager ought to be nice and clean, letting the malt do it's talking with hops standing alongside saying, "Yeah! What he said!" Like a good sidekick.