Bayernbiere Bought and Drunk

I would rather see efforts being made by the brewery in tandem with the importer of making sure the beer is fresh and in good health when it is put infront of the consumer. But if that isn't an option, or the last chain in the link breaks (i.e there is a lack of sales/insufficient sales) then the alternative of not selling at all would be preferable from my perspective as a consumer (not to the brewery of course which loses out on exports). This month there was a limited release of Mahr's Bräu Ungespundet which I skipped completely since I remember what the beer was like when it was sold here last summer in a similar limited release. The beer was several months old and tasted old too, it was a completely different beer from the Mahr's U I bought via biershop bayern which tasted really fresh and distinctive. So if that is the beer the brewery and importer are okay with selling over here I wont be buying it and it may as well not exist (however briefly) in the Swedish beer market as far as I am concerned.

Both of the examples you mention, crazily long shelf lives and even lack of a shelf life (which to me as a Swede is mind boggling) are certainly deplorable. But the breweries obviously feel that as long as the beer pours out crystal clear and doesn't referment in the bottle all is well.

 

FWIW that is my 'strategy' as well. When it comes to drinking European style lagers my personal strategy is to brew my own or purchase locally (Philadelphia area) brewed European style lagers. I am fortunate that there are a plethora of local breweries that produce high quality European Lagers. Some have been doing so for 20+ years (Sly Fox, Victory, Stoudts,...). In a couple of months Victory will be canning their Czech Pilsner (Hip Czech) for the first time (coincident with the NHL season); I am looking forward to that beer release. There are an ever growing numbers of more recently opened small, local breweries making high quality European lagers (Root Down. Saint Benjamins, Tired Hands, ...). I am all for more European Lagers being exported if I can obtain them fresh. I was able to purchase a fresh 4-pack of canned Schlenkerla Helles a number of months ago. I have my fingers crossed that I will be fortunate with the other lagers that B. United is (or will be) canning.

Cheers!

P.S. I am looking forward to trying a new beer from Yuengling called Yuengling Pilsner that has just been released in my area a few weeks ago.

 

That sounds like a good strategy and one I would pursue were I in a similar marketplace (and if I felt the local offerings were delivering the quality and flavor that I want from my favorite lager beer styles). I haven't had a single Pennsylvania lager beer that I can recall, so I can only imagine the variety you have access to.

I'll be interested in hearing your thoughts on the Yuengling beer Jack.

 

I will be discussing it in an upcoming NBS thread and I will tag you. Needless to say but I have to buy some first.

Cheers!

 

I’m curious as to what stabilizer is used, can you tell us?

Some of these breweries being talked about are small when compared to larger US craft breweries. Mahr’s makes about 20,000 hectoliters a year, which is ~17,000 bbl.

 

It's listed as E405 on the label, i.e propylene glycol alginate.

 

Opa's Liebling Kellerbier from Braumanufaktur Hertl. Picked up this bottle at Die Bierothek Bamberg and enjoyed it last month. My notes read: "Best before 31/10/18. Fresh-baked white breat, touch of Munich malt sweetness, balanced, quenching, quaffable. Old man beer of the best kind."

Worth seeking out if you're looking for a change-of-pace Zwickel. I would purchase again if I had regular access to it. Prost!

 

Local good beer bar put Schlenkerla Märzen on tap. Bar tender says it's not easy to get, so it won't be a regular.

Poured into an 8 or 10 ounce snifter (a little surprised that they didn't have glassware, but since it won't be regular they probably didn't try). The Märzen looked as dark as the Ür Bock in the snifter and proved difficult to get a good nose.

Beer was much smoother and softer than the bottled Märzen and the smoked character was bigger and more astringent, but there was a nice malt sweetness after the smoke and thru the finish. I can't compare back to the Schlenkerla I had in Bamberg proper, but when the bar tender said it was an "acquired taste," I told him I'd already acquired it.

I may go back for another, but $8.60 for the snifter is pretty freaking steep.

 

@steveh Especially considering the half liter bottle is and has been available in stores for some time now. The draft per oz pour cost is not THAT much more than a typical import, too bad your bar guy is gouging due to scarcity.

 

I picked up this Festbier I’ve never seen before. It just says, “Hofbrauhaus Festbier”. It’s 6.1%.

Brewed in Friesing.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/ratebeer/?path=/beer/hofbrau-freising-festbier/26024/

Anyone know what beer this is?

 

http://www.hofbrauhaus-freising.de/produkte/hofbrauhaus/sortiment/festbier.html

 

Currently drinking Ayinger Altbairisch Dunkel Unfiltriert which apparently was a beer brewed for their 140th jubilee, though the specs are the same as the original dunkel as well as the claim about the five different malts and the double mash. So it's their dunkel minus the filtration I guess. Going by the best before date this could be from august 2018, but I'm hoping that the other code is a julian date of 346th day of 2018 which would put the bottling date in december.

The beer doesn't taste old at least. The color of the beer is more reddish brown than I expected, I was expecting the color of Celebrator pretty much. The aroma has a predominant roasted malt smell but is otherwise clean. The roasted aroma carries over into a predominantly roasted malt flavor combined with some sweetness and a mild but balancing hop bitterness which doesn't stand out. It reminds me a good deal of Carnegie Porter which has the same kind of roasted aroma and flavor only Carnegie is sweeter with a more noticable bitterness than the Ayinger. They most likely have pilsner malt, munich malt and a strongly roasted coloring malt in common, aside from the two other malts in Ayinger.

My first impression is that it could be a bit richer, the strong roastedness makes it feel a bit one note, but I'm sure that during an evening drinking these the flavor would develop with the sweetness building by the glass up to a point, at which point the sweetness and bitterness reach an equilibrium. That has been my experience at least with similar types of beer. I wish there was a stronger flavor from the Munich malt which is undoubtedly in there, but I'm not sure if there's an issue with the percentage of munich malt in the grist or if the issue is the percentage of roasted malt. I would suspect the latter, and that it is easy to overwhelm even a sizable amount of munich malt when using darker roasted malts.

 

This post from the 2018 Oktoberfest Release thread seems to indicate that it was bottled on the 346th day (based on response from Ayinger representative):

https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/2018-oktoberfest-releases.581631/page-7#post-6146406

That said, many German brewers give their beers a one-year best by/drink by date...

 

Thank alot for pointing me to the thread. I had tried searching for information on their date coding but the search came up empty. Good on the importer for going with the tail end of the jubilee bottling.

 

Is there any information on if the Unfiltriert will be making its way to North America?

Then again, their normal Dunkel is very difficult to find to start with...which is a shame, as I think it's the best Dunkel out there.

 

And their "normal" Dunkel is also called Altbaierisch Dunkel so I can see very confused distributors and customers.

 

If you are seeking a German brewed Dunkel that is available in the US permit me to suggest Hofbrauhaus Freising Dunkel. I discussed this beer in yesterday’s New Beer Sunday thread:

One of my favorite beer styles (but they can be hard to find)

Last December I discussed two beers from a ‘new’ brewery to the US: Hofbrauhaus Freising. Now, this brewery is not exactly new since it was founded in 1160 but it is new to the US:

“Hofbrauhaus Freising to Begin US Distribution - Jul. 8, 2018”

I have not heard about this brewery before so here is a snippet from the press release:

“Founded in 1160, the Hofbrauhaus Freising brewery is among the world’s oldest breweries. Located in the “Cathedral City” of Freising, Germany, the brewery sits in the heart of Bavaria.

Hofbrauhaus Freising beers are superbly brewed according to Bavarian Purity Laws, using only premium ingredients (no preservatives) from the surrounding Alps and Hallertau regions. Hofbrauhaus Freising is one of only a select few breweries to be designated as a “Slow Brewer”, which guarantees a quality brewing process that ensures maximum flavor and freshness.”

https://www.brewbound.com/news/hofbrauhaus-freising-begin-us-distribution

I can only guess at what “slow brewer” means – maybe they lager for a long(er) time?

Today I will be discussing Hofbrauhaus Freising Dunkel. While I am a fan of the Dunkel beer style it would seem that others aren’t since there are not a lot of these beers available. Sly Fox in the past had a year-round beer which was a Dunkel (Sly Fox Dunkel) but they stopped producing it due to slow sales. I will occasionally see this beer on draft at the Sly Fox brewpub and I will get a pint (or two) when I see it.

Let’s learn more about the Hofbrauhaus Freising Dunkel from their website:

“Dunkel Export

Truly Bavarian. Our Dunkel Premium has an irresistibly malty flavour and light tones of caramel. Very tasty, very refreshing.

• Type: bottom-fermented
• Alcohol: 5.2 % vol.
• Original wort: 12°”

My personal preference of the Dunkel (Munich Dunkel) beer style is that it has a depth of malt flavor from the use of Munich Malt and just a tiny hint of flavor from dehusked specialty malt. Some breweries choose to use some crystal malt in these beers which is not a preferred aspect for me.

Let’s see how Hofbrauhaus Freising chose to brew their Dunkel.

Served in my Spiegelau Lager Glasses:

Appearance:

A deep mahogany color with a garnet hue. There is a two finger tan head.

Aroma:

Mostly dark bread crust but there is some caramel as well.

Taste:

The flavor to large measure follows the nose. There is a notable dark bready flavor and some caramel. There are subtle hop flavors of herbal/spicy in the background. This beer has a low-medium bitterness.

Mouthfeel

A light/medium body, a aubtle aspect of softness and an off-dry finish.

Overall

I really enjoyed drinking this beer! The flavor is predominantly malty: mostly bready (dark bread) but some caramel as well. The hop flavors of herbal/spicy is very subdued.. This beer is very good – excellent.

Cheers to Hofbrauhaus Freising for brewing this Dunkel!

P.S. A domestically brewed Dunkel that I am a BIG fan of is Von Trapp Dunkel.

 

Well, it was marketing that failed on me; I bought 4 of the Freising labels because it was new to my area and based my opinions of the beers on my taste buds. Never mind that my taste buds happen to agree with the "bullshit;" HB Freising makes some good beer.