1809 Berliner Style Weisse

Brewed by Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan
Style: Berliner Weisse
Freising, Oberbayern, Germany

16.7 bottle

Since I got to La Cave Du Vin an hour before opening I had some time to kill. While sitting at the Winking Lizard down the street I found out this was available. I’ve been curious about it for some time now. The price may have been a little high at $6.75 but I figured what the heck. I’m glad to have given it a try both with and without syrup. This rating is before I dumped in the raspberry; howver it was good both way.

Aroma / Appearance - The body was transparent as one would expect for this type of beer. There was a head though it was hard to look convincing in the giant shaker they provided me. Banana, laffy taffy and an overwhelming tartness make sure this thing does not sit meekly. The tartness was strong enough to overpower everything else on the table.

Flavor / Palate - Orange, lemon and wheat are evident but once again the main feature is the tartness. It is a little harsh on the throat but not terrible. It reminds me of the artificial flavoring of a Jolly Rancher dipped in the sugar from a bag of sour patch kids. The finish is short lived but enjoyable. Overall this grew on me the more I drank. Were it easier to find I may stock some around the house; on the other hand I’m not sure what kind of shelf life you can get from a beer like this. Try to find a fresh bottle and give it a try!

Bottle courtesy of BeerBelcher. This one is supposed to act as my gateway to the other sour styles. Pours a cloudy blond/gold, with a big white head. Tart and acidic aroma of apple and citrus. Flavor is about the same with a thin finish. Not bad. I’m by no means ready to dive into Lambics with both feet, but I can drink this.

Bottled. Beer is light cloudy yellow with a small, white, frothy, mostly and rapidly diminishing head.<P>The aroma is malty with a light note of toasted grain/toasted wheat bread; Hoppy with a moderate note of herbal grassy, lemon/lemon zest; Yeasty with a light bready basement note. Dry, lean, citric.<P>The flavor is moderately acidic/sour, trace bitter, trace sweet with a long, light/moderately acidic/sour, trace bittersweet finish.<P>The body is light, the texture is watery and the carbonation is lively.<P>First sample of the style. Liking it a lot.

500ml. bottle at Spuyten Duyvil. Cloudy pale yellow color with a large fluffy white head. Aroma of wheat malt, citrus, light clove and banana. Fruity flavor of biscuity malts with a light lactic tartness. Some citrus and clove as well. Nice clean refreshing beer, I just wished it was more tart like Kindl.

500ml bottle. This beer is fun. Hazy bright pale pink pour with a slightly pink tint, I think. Bubbly frothy white head. Yeasty tart lemon, zest, and yeast as well as citrus and bread. Lovely sour dry finish. Refreshing as hell. If this were cheaper, I’d drink it all summer long...

Bottle courtesy of theisti. Very beautiful golden pour with a big foamy head. Wheaty nose with lemon, apples and a tart aromatic quality. Taste is a lemony treat with a nice pilsner flavor. Very refreshing and enjoyable. Thanks Tim.

A very drinkable berliner weisse. Still tart and tangy, but not overwhelmingly so. Serious lemon and lime notes, with a delightful effervescence. Top-notch stuff.

Bottle.

Berliner Weisse is good shit. I never think I’m in the mood for one (unless I’m amazingly hot and thirsty) but whenever I end up having one I really enjoy it (so long as I finish it before it gets too close to room temperature.)

Anyway, I was quite happy to get a bottle of this one after all the good things I’d heard, and after an hour of heavy lifting out in the yard I was even happier to crack this one. Pours light straw yellow with a beautifully fluffy white head. Lemon and lactic nose, plenty of fresh-cut hay, some mild spicing. More going on here than in most of the other Berliner Weissen (is that the plural?) that I’ve had. Flavor follows, lactic and lemon, extremely dry but not heavily acidic, simply thirst-quenching. Yeast character, rising bread and a bit of spice, again that fresh-mown hay.

This one comes together really nicely. I’d confess that if I was in the mood for one these I would be even happier with a really good saison, but this is really nice nonetheless and it’s also the best Berliner Weisse I’ve had to date.