Ramstein Double Platinum Blonde

Brewed by High Point Brewing Company
Style: Weizen Bock
Butler, New Jersey USA

on tap-pours a retaining thin white head and cloudy yellow color. Aroma is perfumy, banana, wheat. Taste is perfumy, sweet, banana, wheat, faint hops. Dryish and some alcohol and smooth at finish. Thick mouthfeel. Interesting. OK effervescence.

Tap at Ginger Man. Hazy pale amber beer, thin white head. Great fresh banana and wheaty bready character. Light peach and melon over a rich clove and sweet bready malt character. There is a lovely balance of crisp wheat, rich toastiness and light spicy yeastiness. Flavour is good, sweet banana, peach and lots of clovey yeasty spiciness. Lots of melon and peach fruitiness. Low acidity and bitterness. A bit of prickly wheat acidity on the finish. Doughy and toasty. Light noble hops on the back as well. Nice hefe.

Draft. Pours a hazy golden body with a wispy white head. Light spices and wheat like fruits, hints of banana and citrus. Mild and sessionable but very sweet and wheaty.

Tap at Spuyten. Pours a hazy deep golden/orange with modest carbonation and a fizzy white head that diminishes in the tulip. Aroma is frutiy and estery, light banan, more skewed towards the clovey phenolics, with hints of vanilla- doughy yeasty and wheat malts. Smooth and powerful wheat flavor with light esters, good phenols, dough, moderate sweetness, and light fusels as it warms. Smooth flavor and finish. Nice strong Hefe/ weizenbock.

Tap at Waterfront Ale House - a nicely balanced hefe, but the higher than usual sweetness gives away its strength, and makes it a little less refreshing than it should be - however, with just the right amount of phenolics, tangy wheat character, and notes of orange marmalade, it is pretty darn tasty - it scores points for not being over the top with banana and clove (something that a lot of american-made hefes do), too - overall a nice take on the style, but just a tad sweet.

Tap at Hop Devil, poured into a pint glass. Wheaty nose, lemony, spicy flavor. Very drinkable, perhaps a bit watery. Not as assertive as I like my hefes.

Growler from Brouwerji Lane: Hazy golden pour with a white film of head. Sweet and spicy aroma- light vanilla notes with a touch of sulfur. Some sweet banana is there as well and only a touch of clove as it warms. A bit slick in texture- not as lively in carbonation as other examples of this style. Flavor has a sweet & tart character. A lemony wheat malt tartness meshes with some vanilla and ripe banana sweetness with less spicy phenols than I expected. A bit less refreshing than I would like for the style, but still decent.

12oz handbottle, courtesy of artusory. Thanks, Ryan! Pours a hazy, orangish yellow color; off-white head with light lacing. Yeast and belgian sugars in the aroma. Relaxed carbonation. Medium, chewy mouthfeel: plenty of yeasts and sugar, with some creamy bananas and esters filling things out. Nothing remarkable here, but tasty with a pleasant belgian profile. Medium, sugary and yeasty finish.