Brooklyner-Schneider Hopfen-Weisse

Brewed by Brooklyn Brewery
Style: Weizen Bock
Brooklyn, New York USA

This is a robust brew from the opening pop of the cork. A whoof of hops hits you in the nose as it is opened. The hop force side by sid e with its opposite number out weigh the subtler German borne weizen bock. The Ammarillo and allisade combo form an intense citrussy blend that nearly goes sour on the finish but is bolstered by the malt body into a reasonable finish.

750ml caged&corked bottle. Pours a deep, cloudy, glowing orange gold with a very thick, though short-lived, white head that never dissipates completely and leaves a few strings and spots of lace on the glass. The aroma is a big whiff of fresh hop leaves - citrus and freshly-mown grass. After your nose gets through the hops, there are spicy phenolic aromas (allspice), subtle fruit (plums, peaches), and a subtle sweet malt aroma. The flavor starts in a very complex fashion: alcohol, grassy hops, chewy malted wheat, and spices. Fruitiness and funkiness grow as the beer ventures towards mid-tongue. Hop bitterness also grows. The finish is somewhat dry, bitter from both hops and ethanol, and very complex with fruity esters and spicy phenols. The mouthfeel is luxurious - creamy, sudsy and soft, full-bodied, and densely carbonated. Overall, an absolutely awesome beer. I don’t think weizenbock, however, is a remotely suitable appellation. More like an American Strong Ale (tastes more like a Belgian Strong Ale thanks to the funk from the Schneider yeast). Regardless of style, this beer is awesome - a total home run (and it comes only one day after the last home run I tasted: Allagash Hugh Mallone...)

Sampled at a beer and food pairing with Garritt Oliver. Poured golden with off white head. Aroma was banana, clove, yeast, and peppery hops. Had a medium mouthfeel with a lot of carbonation. Flavor followed the nose. This was paired with a jerk chicken. I never thought I would drink a hot spicy beer before. The spice in the chicken brought out peppery hot spices from the hops. Simply amazing.

Draft. Pours with a large head, gold yellow, lots more hops than fruity weizy sweetnes..

Bottle, 75cl. Pours an unclear amber beer with a white head. The aroma is fruit, spices and sweet. The flavor is fruit, banana, sweetness with notes of coriander. The palate is dry and sweet. Overall a really good beer.

[draught @ Sunset Grill] Cloudy yellow color. Strong bubblegum aroma, with plenty of citrus hop character. Very interesting flavors, sweet wheat and banana. Impressive hop bitterness. Overall, very interesting and tasty stuff.

Last year I had the Schneider version of the beer, and this year I decided to try the Brooklyn version instead. The bigger bottle filled domestically was corked and caged, and had embossed lettering below the neck to give a very classy presentation. When opened, the aroma of fresh hops assaulted me before the pour even began. The body in a Weizen glass was golden in color and the head was three finger tall and foamy. As good as it looked, the smell out of the glass was intoxicating. The hops were obvious at an arms length, but as I drew it closer, the banana, clove, and orange smells almost overpowered them. The taste was richly layers with the Weizen roots providing a fruity, phenolic base, on top of which hop cones were piled on. This was a superlative assault on my taste buds from all directions. The body was medium thick, yet fluffy, and every sip had a long lingering aftertaste showcasing all of the flavor elements. Drinkability is off the charts good. I am now kicking myself for only having bought one bomber. It would be interesting to pick up this one together with the German bottling, and do a horizontal.

750ml bottle: Aroma has a really nice spice to it, pine hop presence, orange zest, and a somewhat heavy clove aroma. Pours a cloudy yeasty orangish/golden color with a huge fluffy white head. (almost a light brown color) Taste has got a nice citrus note with orange, the pine comes later, then near the finish you get the clove note that bursts through. Somewhat of yeasty wheat flavor as well. Palate is nicely spicy/sweet, rather flat on the tongue, lively when it going down. Aftertaste has sweet fruit and clove intermingled with the slightest bit of hop. Overall, A very nice brew. I enjoyed this one thoroughly! Cheers!