Go German with Paulaner Natural Hefeweizen

Walking through the store tonight, I came across the Paulaner Hefeweizen. I had not heard of this beer before, so I figured I would pick one up. With the summer heat kicking in, I've been on a Hefeweizen kick, so I was happy to come across something new.

Honestly, I write this particular review, not because the Paulaner sticks out as one of the better Hefeweizens I've had, but rather because it is one of the more interesting that I've had.

The Paulaner Hefeweizen is a true, traditional German hefeweizen, not the type that we are more familiar with in the United States. My first reaction when I tried it was that it was extraordinarily dry beer. At first, the taste is a citrus, sweet malty flavor, but it quickly evaporates in your mouth, drying up so much that it seems as if you didn't just put a liquid in your mouth. I've always been a fan of beers that have this level of dryness.

This beer is definitely worth a try. When I first tried it, I wasn't impressed, but the more I drank of it, the more my opinion improved. It is slightly sweeter than your typical hefeweizen.

Here is what the Paulaner website has to say about it's natural Hefeweizen:

"Paulaner Hefe-Weißbier is the best-selling beer by the Paulaner Brewery. Specially produced top-fermented yeast is what gives it its unmistakeable character: sparkling light, fruity, and just a tiny bit bitter. Because it is not filtered during the brewing process, it retains its originality and the many vitamins, minerals and trace elements.

Hefe Weissbier Naturtrüb:
12.5% original wort; 5.5% alcohol; 44 kcal/100 ml"

On another note, the Paulaner website is one of the more unique brewery websites that I have seen and is worth checking out at www.paulaner.com/

The Rarest Beer I Know...oh...and Probably the Best

Three Floyds is a diamond in the rough...Indiana. Every few years they produce just 70 cases of The Dark Lord, an imperial stout that typifies this style of brew. The beer pours thick, not Guinness thick, but "I put way too many grounds in the coffee maker" thick. The head is a dark caramel and the lacing is a very tight caramel web. The body is an opaque dark brown, nearly black. For a 13% abv. (depending on how long you have been cellaring your brew), it carries the alcohol well, leaving a mostly chocolate, caramel, and coffee mouth. The coffee tones come from Starbucks coffee used in the brewing process technically making this an imperial coffee stout.

Those lucky enough to attend "Dark Lord Day," a celebration held at the brewery each time the beer is released, will be the only owners of a case of this rarity. Each case (limit one per person) is signed and dedicated by the master brewer. You can see my friend Jake got himself a case (he shared...'cause I chipped in), and we have slowly enjoyed it over 3 years now. This beer ages WELL. The alcohol increases, the flavor develops and becomes even more complex, and it still maintains a smooth texture.

If you can get a hold of one of these...DO IT. Save it for a cold winter night and drink it to warm the soul.

I'm a Loser Baby: Elysian Brewery's Loser Pale Ale

Elysian Brewery in Seattle, Washington has issued special release Loser Pale Ale to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of Sub Pop Records.

I came across this beer last night in our local specialty beer store. Everybody had told me that Elysian makes great beers, but for some reason, their beers never really reached out grabbed me when I was trying to make that tough decision at the store. Some might find this surprising given the great labels on the beers, which have cartoonish god figures on the front.

But how can you resist a beer simply labeled "Loser" on the front? So I walked out of the store with my 24 ounce bottle. The label on this beer is great. It is a black and white image of the good ole grunge days of the early nineties. I'm not quite sure who is on the label, but it evokes images of Stephan Malkmus or Kurt Cobain.

When you pour this beer into a glass, it has a great copper/orange tone to it. The taste is well-balanced with a slight nod to the hops, which fits my general preferences. It starts with a hoppy, interesting grapefruit taste but finishes with a nice bitterness that is not too overdone. The grapefruit is mixes with some other spices that I can't quite figure out what they are.

Oddly enough, there is no mention of this special release at the Elysian Brewery's website.

I just tried this beer for the first time at 5 p.m. on a Thursday going into a three day weekend and I'm not sure there is a better way I could have started the weekend.

An Ale for the Slopes: Whistler's Classic Pale Ale

I have always associated pale ales with the spring and summer reasons for no particular reason other than the light, refreshing taste seems to fit well with the hot, summer weather.

I recently came across Whistler Brewing Company's Classic Pale Ale. I had never tried any of the beers from this brewery, but it the name recognition alone peaked my curiosity. For those who are not familiar with Whistler, it is a popular ski resort in British Columbia, Canada and will be the home of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

The Classic Pale Ale has a bronze color to it that is slightly darker than many pale ales.

The taste is more in tune with traditional brown ales and it has a bit of a smokey taste to it, which makes it an ideal drink after a day on the slopes in the sun. The smokey flavor may be the result of some sort of nut flavoring, but it is tough to figure out. The taste is pretty unique. It is one of the few tastes that I can not quite put my finger on, perhaps due to the mixture of the four types of hops used. It is a very crisp beer that has both a very slight bitterness and a subtle sweetness in the after taste.

Despite my tendency to categorize pale ales as spring and summer beers, the Whistler Classic Pale as definitely more accurately defined as a fall or winter beer, probably best consumed as the sun goes down in the late afternoon hours as is so typical in the northwest region of the continent.

Here is what the Whistler Brewing Company has to say about its Classic Pale Ale:

"Whistler Classic Pale Ale was developed with the ale lover in mind. This classic ale is brewed to exacting standards with no less that four specialty malts, 4 types of hop and of course, exclusively with Whistler Glacier Water. Bold and full flavoured, this is definitely an ale lovers ale.

BREWMASTER'S NOTES

Appearance:
Bright bronze with flashes of copper. A tan coloured creamy head that will lace your glass right to the last drop.

Aroma:
English hop aromas with light caramel and earthy notes.

Palate:
Characteristically crisp, slightly caramel with a wonderfully light bitterness.

Finish:
Clean, smooth and distinctive."