The Bruery Hottenroth Berliner Weisse

Brewed by The Bruery
Style: Berliner Weisse
Placentia, California USA

750, only capped, from the first batch to hit Indiana’s shelves. Nose is lightly tart but very wild, sort of dusty barnyard, pastry notes, and mild but creamy yeast starter. Hazy, very pale yellow body with a creamy and dense (miniscule bubbles!), heavily lacing, sparkling, brilliantly white head. Taste is much tarter than expected but superbly balanced, a little lemon cleaner in with the lambic-y sourness, but the smooth aftertaste is the real story, waves and waves of lightly-baked bread with stronger sourdough and pretzel overtones. Extremely long-lasting milky/ lacto tone. Well-attentuated, dry goodness, slimy but full and smooth, creamy body. Avoids all of the harsh metallic notes that Kindl offers but still lacks some of the wild spontaneity of Schtltheiss. So, on the whole, YES! We finally have a great (great) Berliner in the States.

pours a hazy cream yellow with a frothy white head. looks like grapefruit juice. aroma of playdough, lemmon, dusty cobwebs, slight bretty funk. Flavor of zesty lemons, grass, mold, earth, hay. Flavor is really nicce while you’re drinking it, but it leaves a mildew spoiled milk kind of taste in your mouth. Gotta keep drinking it to prevent that. By far the best sub 4% abv beer i’ve ever had. So it is possible to make a flavorful superlow abv beer. how many calories in this bad boy? I’ll guess this has 74 calories in a 12 oz sample. How did the Bruery think hottenroth was a better name for this beer than bruery 74?

Exciting that bottles of this showed up in OH recently. This one is a 750 and the liquid that pours out is surprising, to say the least. As it pours it is almost clear... as it collects in the glass it looks more like champagne than beer (well, without the big fizzy head.) There’s a little bit of white fizz on the surface, but nothing like a good champagne. I’m definitely interested at this point, but the aromas seem a little lacking. A bit of sweet (huh?) apple juice, a touch of oak or something that gives it a little bit of funky and edgy earthiness and that’s about it. Flavor is a bit of a letdown, too. Maybe I was expecting too much with all the raving that has been done about the brewery, but I expected a grand slam here. As is, this is a fairly watery berliner weisse... it has a nice little tart edge to it, but has quite a bit of apple and bread sweetness to it as well. It comes across as a watery lemonade with some apple juice splashed in there for good measure. Nothing really stands out and asserts itself or takes control of the palate. Maybe it will get better as it warms... we’ll see.

Bottle from Stateline... Pours a cloudy, hazy yellow. Almost a lemonade color. Good two finger sized head. Aroma of musty flowers, lemon zest. Taste is funky... Not as tart or sour as I expected it to be, the after taste is this bready/fruity sweetness. Almost a sour milk taste but I guess thats the lacto coming through. Hay/grass taste with a light tartness to it. Texture is light with a bubbly carbonation level. I think Berliner Weisse beers are very interesting and I am glad I tried this one but probably wouldnt get it again.

on tap 9/3/2009 at papago... hazy pale yellow color with a very short lived white head. there is a light pale graininess on the nose followed by soured milk and lemon. in the far back is a mineraly funk which goes unnoticed until the beer warms a touch. the flavor is the same along with herbal grassy notes and some white peppercorn. it is light to medium bodied and prickly from the tartness yet it creates a phlegmy film in the throat. it’s refreshingly delicious when cool but, as it warms, it becomes a bit watery and boring. 7/4/7/3/15/3.6

the red raspberry syrup smells and tastes artificial though noted is a woodiness akin to real seeds?. it actually adds tartness to an otherwise tart drink (yay!) but creates a fake sugary mouth feel. 3.6

the green woodruff syrup kicks much ass... it smells herbaceous and of cocoa butter. it tastes of vanilla christmas cakes, green dyed cherries and artificial vanilla flavored marshmallows! also, it adds a richness and depth to the texture. cool! 3.9

Thanks fogdog for the share. Pours hazy yellow with a bone-white head. Nose is bread, grain, tart citrus and vinegar and sourness. Flavor is palate-cleansing tartness with heavy emphasis on vinegar and lemon. Medium body and great berliner-weiss overall.

Pale straw color, very unique funky aroma. The flavor was dry with mild tart sourness. This woulda been a great summer sipping beer. Nice effort.

On tap at the Thirsty Monk in Asheville. Pours light cloudy yellow with white head. Nose of tart lemony goodness, wheat, and wild yeast. Barely brett, but it’s there. Taste brings out a little more sourness and earthy funk. Lively palate. I love this beer and would drink it all summer long. I’m an unabashed fan. Here’s to hoping more breweries will offer such wonderful low-ABV beers.