Franziskaner Weissbier (Kristall Klar)

Brewed by Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu (InBev)
Style: German Kristallweizen
Munich, Germany

Pretty bland offering from this old Munich institution, I wonder if it has anything to do with the ugly folks working behind the InBev war machine. Well charged; upon cracking it I had to aim it at the kitchen sink to take the brunt of expanding foam, whatever made it to the glass assumed a 50-50 mix of a huge dome-like white head atop a crystal clear, palest straw-gold body with a lot of carbonation keeping that crown in it’s place. Pleasant ’across-the-board’ nose showing sticky lemonade, husky grains, fresh crushed banana and some salted fish (?). Overly subtle and desperate for character in the mouth. Thin in body and mostly sweet for flavour. Sugary, tangy lemonade and palest starchy barley flavours shine right through to the short, lightly sour and heavily soapy swallow. Becomes lightly gummy as it warmed, and also becomes increasingly soapy with a detergent flavour coating the tongue ruining it completely. I’m not huge on Filtered wheat beers, and this just didn’t excite me at all. Average. (50cL, BBE 04/06, Int’l Beer Shop, W. Leederville)

500 ml bottle. Very clear very clean. Huge head that kept forming from a constant stream of bubbles coming off the bottom. Aromas were weak, almost like a pilsener. Flavors were still pilsenery, but the hefe flavor came through a bit. I just think something is missing... oh, it’s the yeast...

Bottled. Clear golden-yellow pour, huge white head. Laced. Normal wheaty aroma but lacking in bananas. Clove. Crisp, smooooth mouthfeel with similar taste. Thin-bodied and obviously filtered, a very good Kristall, but doesn’t match up to the "normal" Franziskaner.

Bottle. Pours a light golden hue with a nice long lasting head. Tastes like an almost weiss beer. Flavors are almost there but not quite. Mostly watery and although hardly unpleasent, still not great either.

Bottle at home (031012). Light amber with a large white head, almost lasting, fine lacings. Aroma moderate malty and yeasty, light hoppy (coriander, citrus). Flavor moderate sweet and acidic, light bitter. Light body, watery, lively carbonated. Not as full a flavor as the unfiltered version.

From the bottle, pours a clear, somewhat pale golden color with a bubbly white head that doesn’t last too long. Smells kinda sweet, a bit fruity, really no bananas or bubble gum in this one. More malty aromas than anything. Tastes malty as well, and a bit heavier than expected. I much prefer Franziskaner’s hefe-weiss over this one.

(bottle) Clear and pale golden colour with a big lacy foamy white head. Dusty and yeasty sweet wheat-malty aroma with strong notes of banana, slightly clovy. Sweet wheat-malty and banana-fruity taste, cripy mouthfeel, moderate body, dense clovy notes in the slim finish. All in all a nice Kristallweizen.

500ml bottle. Malty, fruity aroma, plenty of wheat and citrus with lighter additions of white bread with butter and honey alongside touches of clove and spicy hop. Light sparkling golden color with a voluminous white head that settles. Flavor profile is lightly sweet and malty to start, becoming fruitier throughout and culminating with some gentle tartness, banana, clove and lemon, perhaps some lingering tea leaf, herbal hop flavors and cake. Highly effervescent, gently acidic mouthfeel with a light-medium body. Mild and unassuming.