Is the issue you're identifying that the hypothetical secondary fermentation would take place in the shipping tanker as opposed to in the cask?
i really need to get my distributor to hook me up with matthias from b united so i can find out first-hand how they're handing all this stuff. from what i have heard (and seen...the tanker truck used to park on my street), they are filling refrigerated tanks with unfiltered beers from schlenkerla. i assume those beers are fully fermented when filled. they def aren't filtered tho. so the products b united is canning in CT (iirc) are simply the beers they filled the tanks with. i would therefore also assume the "casks" they're filling are the same: unfiltered versions of the originals. ive had some cans of helles and märzen and can confirm this. they don't taste like what you get over there at the source. nor does that barrel look anything like the barrels they serve from at the tavern. im guessing b united filled something it had on hand. is it pitched? raw oak? dunno. as far as personal preference goes: i don't particularly like the canned b united versions. too...rustic. then again, i don't particularly like the bottled schlenkerla märzen compared to the gravity served stuff either. something about the packaging process strips it of flavors (and can add some umami with age).
as far as how it compares to UK cask. i guess bayerischer anstich is analogous in some ways. but it's by no means identical.
I'm not trying to say there's an issue... I'm really just asking "what is this?" Is it actually any different from a 16oz B United can (maybe with different carb)? I don't know. My first guess would be that it's a metal container with the wood applied over it to give it a "traditional" appearance. I don't know - that's purely a guess. I believe you can find examples of the same in Germany. Is everything served at the Schlenkerla tavern done so via gravity from a wooden barrel (besides bottles)... or is this reserved for special tappings?
Safe to assume B. United is allocating the containers between kegs and bierfass’. Presumably, the differences lie within temp & CO2 output, but nothing in regards to the fermentation profile…
all märzen is served by gravity from pitch-lined wooden barrels (unless those run dry for the night, then they supplement with bottles in order to not leave tapped kegs open overnight). other beers are from bottle but i don't believe they have any CO2 taps installed at all. least they didn't ever when i lived there. other places (us included) use the steel-lined gravity kegs. looks from above like B united are using the combo gravity and spear kegs.
Thanks. I appreciate you chiming in. I imagine that the seasonal offerings (Urbock, Eiche, Fastenbier, Kräusen) are served from the barrel as their website claims (at least at the start of the season or for a ceremonial event). Their site also claims that they keg the Märzen for other taverns in Bamberg. BTW - I see that their site now features a bottled "special edition" of the Märzen - it's unfiltered... perhaps a case of B United inspiring them.
Since there has been some discussion about Schlenkerla beer being served from wooden barrels I thought that some of you might be interested in the below video that Jeff Bradford constructed four years ago documenting his visit. The packaging of the barrels is shown starting around the 6:15 mark and Matthias verbalized that the Märzen is also packaged in modern (steel) kegs for sale to “normal taverns”. Prost!
yeah, the seasonals get gravity barrels at the tavern too. talked to matthias a few years back about mahr's moving away from pitch-lined wooden barrels at their tavern, and he said "we will never do that at schlenkerla." made me feel all warm and fuzzy. or maybe that was the sixth seidla of rauchbier. either way....
Yeah. In their brand portfolio, Kräusen = Helles Märzen. I assume B United wanted the name change when they finally brought that one to the US... but if that was the case, they picked a fantastic name if their goal was to cause confusion.
It's not a Helles Märzen... or a Märzen. It's made by using a Helles and a Märzen. On top of that, the name causes plenty of brand confusion with the Schlenkerla Märzen. No business would want that. Kräusen fit it nicely.
At Mohave, the only brewery in the Vegas Valley with a regular cask handle. I had a 5% ABV Brown Ale earlier, but the bartender claimed this is slightly different, so I will rate. Mohave Brewing Sir Fuzzy Wiggle Brewery Notes: Brown Ale 5% ABV. Appearance: Dark brown base, creamy tan white head leaves fine bubble lacing. 4.25 Aroma: Chocolate roast malt, coffee notes, smells like wood burning / a warm fire. 3.75 Taste: Milk chocolate, several squirts of Hershey’s into warm milk. As this warms and I get accustomed, the roast malt emerges, hazelnut / chestnut. Very similar if not exact to their London Brown Ale. Per confirmation with the bartender, they used a slightly different yeast and fermented it a little longer. 4.0 Mouthfeel: Light, fluffy cask pour, light but creamy and easy drinking as expected nice dryness. 3.75 Overall: Solid cask pour, flavorful, roast chocolate and malt, creamy. I likely couldn’t tell the difference side by side vs. Lindon Brown Ale, but I enjoyed both. 4.0
Another JWF thread entry, where the temperature stabilizes accordingly: at an ideal level + the practice in commonly pulling a smooth & even draw typically ends...“just proud of the rim” - JWF (Cask Marque Accredited) New York, USA 2xActive Beer Engines (Angram) Cask-conditioned Cask Tapped: Feb. 7th, 2023 (Both) Pub Visit: Feb. 9th, 2023 Best Bitter: Baker Street Brewery: Seneca Lake ABV: 5.0% Aspirator: No Sparkler: No Visuals: 2 English IPA: Merri Man Brewery: Seneca Lake ABV: 6.0% Aspirator: No Sparkler: No Visuals: 2 --- Doorway: Best Bitter: English IPA:
