Bayernbiere Bought and Drunk

And another one. A little gem I found today in my beloved local Getränkemarkt. Held-Bräu Hell from a really small brewery in the Fränkische Schweiz, between Bamberg and Bayreuth.
Now, look at this picture of the brewery from their website, isn't that just beautiful?

There's nothing spectacular to report from the Helles, other than that's a really good kind of its style. Nice grassy/grainy sorts of taste, a little too much carbonation maybe, beautiful head, and most notably, a very well noticeable taste of hops (more than usual for the style), yet perfectly balanced.

 

I'll bet their insurance premium for damage caused by rocks rolling downhill is higher than average.

 

Love that place! Just good solid beer in a great little area (though the tourists can get pretty thick in the summer).

 

Was about to write about the same beer, grabbed a six pack of that Schlappeseppel Winterbock at REWE a few days ago.

 

I was surprised to find it golden-colored, was expecting a Dunkler Bock as a "Winterbock". What you wrote about it pretty much hits the nail. I had to chuckle at the "Imperial Pilsner" remark, so true!
Are you sure, Schmucker also belongs to Eder & Heyland's? I thought they belong to the Brau Holding Intl./Schörghuber/Heineken conglomerate.

 

I was surprised to see this on the shelf in Chicago this morning.

 

My exact first thoughts. Report back @spartan1979 !

 

I don't know why the name change. I know Anheuser Busch had a beer named Faust a long time ago that was temporarily revived in the nineties. Faust was also associated wifhe Falstaff brand.

Unfortunately they did not have Pils or Schwarzviertler. Just the Doppelbock and a light and dark Weizen.

 

Where'd you spot that -- and what were you doing in my neck of the woods? We could'a had a beer!

 

At Binnys in Orland Park. I'm a Chicago native so I was visiting family for the holiday. Maybe next time!

 

I'm jealous. Kneitinger Dunkel was one of the best biers I had when I was there.

 

Received my order from Biershop Bayern today as well! One box with Bamberg beers that I wasn't able to find in any Getränkemarkt nearby. The other one a mixed box of Camba Bavaria beers.

 

Looking forward to the upcoming reviews! I just received a box of twenty Schlenkerla Eiche Dopplebocks. I'm pretty sure I've already reviewed them for everyone last year. Looking forward to cracking these over the holiday season. For now, though...

Paulaner Braumeister Münchner Revoluzzer:
Edition No. 01, 5.5% ABV, best before June 2014. More details given on my previous write-up of the label in the German Craft Beer thread, no need to repeat them here. New product. As of this drinking, this beer was not on BA's website. I really look forward to hearing what others have to say about this one.



Appearance: Surprisingly dark yellow to gold, not the straw I've come to expect from Helles Export/Spezial style(s). Big cloudy white head that settles down quickly.
Aroma: Also not what I expected based on the write-up. I had to go down deep in the glass to get something. Funny thing, though, I gave die Frau a sip and she said, "Wow, that's delicious. It even smells hoppy." She didn't know anything about this beer, none of the dry-hopping spiel from the label, no information given from me. And yet she picked it up right away, with one sip. She is better at this sort of thing than I am.
Mouthfeel: ?
Taste: This is where I had the most trouble. The beer is being sold as an homage to the Münchner Helles, and they call it a Spezial, but in reality it's an homage to Pilsner Urquell or maybe Jever. It's very dry. The label says it starts malty and finishes bitter, but I get nothing but bitter and dry all the way through. It really reminds me a lot of a skunk-free Pilsner Urquell. It's not bad by any stretch, but it's also not anywhere close to what I think of when I think Helles or particularly a Spezial or Export helles. I was thinking of doing a side-by-side with Edelstoff, but that is pointless. Better to do one with Pilsner Urquell. It's a good beer IMO, but it's not what it says it is.

Overall I'd say I have to buy a few more of these to get a better handle on a grade. For now, though, it's 3.25/5.00. Would happily drink again. I'll bet Jack H. would love this.

 

Hacker-Pschorr also offers a Christmas-Festbier called Superior. In September I only could find their Oktoberfest-Märzen which is the amber Märzen-style. Their golden "Wies'n"-style Oktoberfestbier wasn't available anywhere here. Now this Christmas-Festbier is golden, malty, a bit bready, slightly sweet, very moderately hopped. I wonder if it is the same brew as the Wies'n-Oktoberfest.

 

“I'll bet Jack H. would love this.” Based upon your review (and your wife’s comments) I suspect that I would indeed love this beer. I really like reading what your wife commented: "Wow, that's delicious. It even smells hoppy.". She used the Tony (boddhitree) descriptor of “wow”. That is so cool!

MJT, I took note of: “She is better at this sort of thing than I am.” FWIW, my wife has a more perceptive palate than I do. She does not always use standard words to describe flavors but she definitely can taste things that are too low level for me. We both drank a Firestone Walker Velvet Merlin (Oatmeal Stout) on draft at a local beer bar. We both liked the beer but she had an interesting comment about this beer. She stated: “It tastes a little bit tinny. I suspect this beer would improve with aging”. After hearing this I took multiple sips trying real hard to perceive this tinny flavor but I could not perceive it. I have absolutely no doubt it is there but it just didn’t register for me. The other great story was I did a detailed side by side tasting of Troegs Sunshine Pils and Rothhaus Tannenzäpfle. She walked by and with two sips (as compared to my multiple sips over many minutes) proclaimed that the Rothhaus Tannenzäpfle was good but the Troegs Sunshine Pils was much better.

Cheers!