Weisses Brauhaus - Munich - Beer Bar

Summer is almost here and it is near time to start cracking caps on some refreshing and thirst quenching wheat beers.  Of course nobody makes a finer wheat beer than the Germans.   This past spring I was lucky to find the time to make the trip to Munich in order to taste some of those awesome hefeweisse.  

The location I enjoyed the most while in Bavaria was Weisses Brauhaus.  Located just off Munich's main square, Weisses is owned by G. Schneider and Sohn, makers of the prolific Schneider Weisse.  Schneider no longer brews beer actually in Munich, but you sure can drink a ficken ton of it at Weisses.

The atmosphere at this beer hall is awesome.  Not touristy at all.  Lots of real Germans; eating, laughing, drinking and talking with random strangers.  The decor is straightforward.  Plenty of old and rustic looking items, long beer hall style tables and plenty of seating room.  The waitstaff are all decked out in the traditional Bavarian garb.

The food menu looks equally as amazing and authentic.  How many beer geeks wouldn't want to try suckling pig braised in Aventinus?  Not really any health conscious choices, but seriously, its a beer hall in Munich....not a tofu type of place.

The beer list is as you would expect.  Plenty of wheat beers with some pilsners and some bigger / darker offerings.   I made an effort to try a couple of beers I don't usually see at home (or do I????).

First up was the Hopfenweisse (below left).  I'm not entirely sure how similar in terms of recipe this is with the other Hopfenweisse, which is a collaboration between Schneider and Brooklyn Brewery.  The collaboration was all about tons of Hallertauer hops  bringing their pungent bite to the wheat beer style in an American way, but I think this one is a little less aggressive.  Nevertheless, all the right smells and flavors are there.  The nose is a perfect mix between fresh citrus hops with a touch of herbally pine and a clean yeasty wave of wheaty goodness.  Taste follows suit with bright citrus upfront followed by clove and banana.  Just a tad bit of bitterness.  Really nice. 

Next round I tried the Grunes (above right).  I had never heard of this beer before but apparently it is also known as the Schneider Edel-Weisse which is seasonally available back home in Ontario.   This beer tasted pretty much exactly as the Edel-Weisse I have tried; just like the standard Schneider Weisse but with a little more hoppy flavor and a cleaner mouth feel and taste.  Not quite as yeasty as other examples of the style.  Ultra refreshing.  

To finish off the tasting I decided to go out with a bang.  My last order consisted of an Aventinus Weisen-Eisbock (a 12.5% monster of a beer) and a shot each of the Aventinus Schnapps and the Aventinus Beer Brandy.  I'm not sure what possessed me to order this much in one sitting (especially after 2 beers) but I guess I got a little too into the Bavarian spirit.  

The Eisbock was stellar as I expected.  Its a huge beer with tons of fig, dark fruits, rum and a very strong almost burnt yeastiness.  Taste matches the smell.  This beer is overwhelmingly flavorful, almost stifling but in a good way.  Just a trace of warm alcohol on the finish.  The head stuck around forever and that is really a sight to see on a big alcohol beer like this.  Beer Geeks:  Please note the glass is not chilled, it is simply frosted glass.

I was really impressed by the beer brandy.  The beer flavors actually came through quite well and were complimented by a subtle sweetness.  The schnapps were pretty good too but seemed rather vodka like to me.

All in all, I think Wiesses Brauhaus is the place to go in Munich.  Awesome beer, awesome food and lots of atmosphere.

Mad Tom IPA - Muskoka Brewery

I wanted to get my review for Mad Tom IPA up as soon as possible considering how much I was looking forward to having a legit Ontario brewed IPA readily available.  Muskoka has made some really stellar products in the past.  I've always enjoyed their seasonals and recommend their lager to every macro drinker I meet.  In short, I think this brewery has accomplished a ton already and if it keeps heading in the same direction will become a star of the Ontario and Canadian beer scene.

So last weekend I tried their Cabin Fever cask IPA and was super impressed with the flavour.  Lots of citrus and pit fruits.  I wasn't sure what to expect from the Mad Tom given that some of their previously released hoppy beers (think Harvest Ale) tended to be more akin to a strong British IPA as opposed to the American / West Coast style that everyone loves so much.

I can safely say that this beer pulls off the American style with flying colors.  The box lists three hop varieties (Chinook, Centennial and Sorachi Ace) and a standard pale ale malt base (2-row pale and crystal).  I was really surprised to see the Sorachi Ace in the mix given that I have yet to see many Canadian brewers wandering into that territory; although it seems to be a popular hop elsewhere this year.  

The nose isn't quite as strong as I expected given the dry-hopping but it does present some very nice fruity and citrus hop aromas along with a clean but complex pine resin note.  The body is a bright and clear, light golden colour.  The head is bright white and sticks around and also to the sides of the glass nicely.   

The flavour of this beer is AWESOME.  I think this is exactly what the Ontario market needed. Plenty of upfront grapefruit, tangerine and pine flavour with a subtle but present herbally undertone.  Finishes bitter but clean.  Mad Tom IPA is a real success for this brewery.  Hopefully there is a DIPA coming down the road in the future.

The packaging of this beer is slightly more edgy and unique compared to other Muskoka products.  I personally like the six-pack format.  The price is equally stellar given what you are getting.

I personally recommend that every Ontario beer geek and cottager give this one a try.  Kudos to Muskoka for raising the bar.

ZG

Crazy Canuck Pale Ale - Great Lakes Brewery - Toronto

Great Lakes Brewery makes some really great ales.  Last weekend their Karma Citra cask IPA won the 3rd annual Bar Volo IPA Cask Challenge.  I tried many of the competitors and they were all pretty good beers (a massive improvement over the last two years), so it is quite an accomplishment.  With their newly released in-a-can Crazy Canuck Pale Ale, I believe they have another winner on their hands.

I tried a version of this beer in a bomber when it was first released a while ago during the Vancouver Winter Olympics.  It was pretty tasty at the time but did have some consistency issues, particularly with respect to a slight diacetyl smell and taste (think the smell and taste of butter).  I also thought that the beer could use a little more hop flavor and bitterness.

The current version that was just released at the LCBO this week appears to have rectified these two complaints of mine and really turned out to be an awesome beer.

Crazy Canuck poured very clear and somewhat lighter in color than what I expected.  A golden beer with moderate carbonation and a foamy, turning almost rocky, white head.  The smell is straight on juicy citrus hops with a tinge of pit fruits.  Once sipped, Canuck hits you with a blast of really fresh hop citrus with both grapefruit and tangerine notes.  The bitterness is really clean and not too imposing.  Overall this beer is super sessionable and really does satisfy the craving for some hoppy bitterness.

I highly recommend trying this one out.  I guarantee that both beer geeks looking for a hop fix and casual drinkers looking for a nice brew for the summer will love this one.

Augusta Ale - Kensington Brewing Company - Toronto

While I was in Europe I generally kept-up with the Ontario beer news.  One new development that really caught my eye was the establishment of the Kensington Brewing Company named after Toronto's infamous Kensington Market.  In addition to their proximity to my place of residence, their flagship beer was being touted as a "west coast style ale"; a style that I think is sparsely (or maybe just somewhat poorly) represented in Ontario. 

So last Saturday I took a trip up to the market and had a burger and a beer...the anti-European beer experience...and it was damn worth it.

Augusta Ale, KBC's flagship pale ale, is not yet available in bottles.  Although I presume from their Facebook page that it will be in the near future.  Don't fear however, there are a few spots in Toronto where this beer can be tried on draft.  Click HERE for locations.

Given that I haven't had a decent burger in half a year, I decided to hit up Burger Bar with a few friends.  Its a low key spot, casual and comfortable.  I was really impressed with their beer menu.  Lots of Canadian crafts, most of them not your usual offerings, such as a 100 IBU IPA from the Taps brewery.  On top of that they had some Italian beers in bottles...how strange.  I leave Canada, travel around Europe, discover Italian craft beer kicks ass only to return to Italian beer on a local joint's menu; I'll go along with it, strange but a good sign.

Before my friends even had a chance to arrive I jumped into the Augusta Ale.  BANG ON.  I mean I really enjoyed this beer.  Augusta could easily fill the void created by the departure of DFH 60 Min from the Ontario market; a really clean, hoppy session brew.

Apologies for the lack of photo...I forgot my camera.

Color was a gorgeous and perfectly clear, light copper.  Head was bracingly white and stayed around until the glass was drained.  The smell was a spot-on blend of citrus and pine notes.  A nice clean bitterness hit the tongue up front and faded quickly to a quenching bitter aftertaste that did not linger too long.  It the background, an appropriately sweet, biscuity, malt backbone carried the flavor into perfect balance.  Awesome.

Hopefully this hits LCBO shelves as soon as possible.  In the meantime, check out this beer on draft.

Back to Reality....and the LCBO

So my four month long beer drinking spree in Europe has now come to an end.  There is still so much to post, including:

- Gorging on gueuze and straight lambic at the Cantillon brewery

-  Another extended trip to Italy with tons of awesome Italian beers as well at the Mikkeller Single Hop Festival at Revelation Cat Brewery in Rome.

-  Binge drinking in Germany including weizen-eisbock in Munich, alt beer in Dusseldorf and doppelbocks in Berlin.

- A review of the relatively new Beer Temple American Beer Bar in Amsterdam along with some Queen's Day debauchery.

- More Scandinavian fun at Ørsted Ølbar Og Café in Copenhagen

- Drinking beer at 11,500 ft in Switzerland

-  More beer reviews including a couple additional style features

I am now in the blood curdling process of studying for the Ontario Bar Exam; so I appologise in advance if my posts are fewer over the next month or two.  However, this summer looks to be shaping up as an excellent time for the Ontario beer scene.

ZG

Mikkeller - Copenhagen - Beer Bar

I would leave all my possessions behind and move to Copenhagen if I only had the balls to do it.  Are there jobs for a guy like me in this absolute gem of a town?  What about the immigration policies?  Do they take rabble that cannot speak a word of Danish other than Øl?  

I may be outta luck, but at least I have the one weekend I spent there.  I would say that my favorite place in Copenhagen was the Mikkeller beer bar.  Beer-geek-a-licous. 

So I walked for what seemed like an hour from my hotel into the Vesterbro district.  This part of the city was originally a slum of sorts.  Prostitutes, poverty and violence; the Hamburg special.  These days Vesterbro is a hipster Mecca with lots of trendy hangouts and a somewhat unwashed (but in an intentional way) sort of vibe.  I secretly dig it.

The Mikkeller beer bar fits into this neighborhood perfectly.  Literally a hole in the wall.  I actually walked past it on my way there.  Below ground, very little signage.  If you are coming to this place you are coming with purpose.  No fucking pop-ins. 

Inside is like no other beer bar I have ever seen.  Where are the signs?  The derelict old couch?  The damn place looks like it was designed by Sara “lets use barn board” Richardson. OK.  I’m game.  Nice big chalkboard with all the on-tap offerings.  Very nice contraband; less than half Mikkeller beers and some really nice random stuff.  Even a couple DDC beers from Montreal.  Should I feel proud to be Canadian?

The bottle menu is simply ridiculous.  It’s not really a serious effort to make money.  Simply a “hey, can’t buy this hooch everywhere” selection.  It was my birthday so I went for what I would want to drink on my birthday as 30 is approaching way too quick.  

First up, I go for one of Mikkeller’s “yeast series”.  The concept is that the exactly same wort was fermented by several different yeast strains separately so that the effect of the particular yeast could be isolated and compared with the others.  I believe they did one with hefeweissen, Brettanomyces, US Ale, Belgian Ale and a lager yeast strains (correct me if I am wrong).  I’m into funk, so I hit the Brett.

Tastes / smells almost exactly the same as the It’s Alive I had a year or so ago.  Nice and funky but the malts are coming through on the nose.  Nice mix of funk and residual sweetness.  Could be drier but perhaps it’s a bit young still.  The beer looks, tastes and smells like a perfect all Brett beer.  I like this very much.  

           

Next up was a beer that is for all purposes impossible to get your hands on.  Cantillon’s Blåbær Lambik.  Basically, these crazy Danes send a truckload of blueberries to Brussels where Cantillon brew an authentic lambic fruit beer and then ship 100% of the bottles back to Copenhagen.  As far as I know, it is only sold at Ølbutikken  (a seriously kick-ass beer store just a block or two from Mikkeller) and at the Mikkeller beer bar.  

Wow.  Blueberries are really hard to pull off in a beer and I think this one does it.  Mad funk and sour citrus on the nose.  Not much blueberry.  The taste is tart and sour but the berry comes through quite strong.  Head is pretty good for a sour and the color is very deep.  I felt like I was betraying my girlfriend for drinking this without her but I have subsequently been assured that there is no resentment.

Lastly, I chose something that I would only really indulge in on my B-Day.  Dark Lord.  It is a bit weird drinking a beer from Indiana when in Copenhagen but the price was less than the black market price in my much closer home of Ontario.  WTF, EH?  

It poured black as night and quite thick.  Smell was very tar-like with a serious snap of vanilla.  Flavor is intense.  Dark fruits, light fruits, rum, whiskey, chocolate, coffee, molasses, marmite, oak and vanilla. Yeah, it’s pretty good.  Appearance was a little less fantastic but the head had a really nice color.  I shared the bottle with the two guys working the bar.  It was good consideration for the very excellent conversation about beer and the beer scene.  [For those of you who don't know, this is probably the most or second most hard to get beer in the world.  It sold for only one day of the year at the brewery and you must by a ticket to even have the chance to purchase a couple bottles.]

After consuming the above offerings I was pretty intoxicated.  So of course I asked to photograph the one remaining bottle of The End of History stashed behind the bar.  If you have a spare $3,000 you can drink this offering directly from the stuffed stoat it comes in.   Fair enough.  

I’m not sure the experience would be worth the money…but its cool.  If you don’t think it’s at least cool and peg it as a marketing ploy then you need to lighten-up.  55% beer that comes in a stuffed squirrel and is named after a Fukuyama book is at least cool….period.    Plus I like the tux.

After getting messed up at Mikkeller I met up with my better half for dinner at Kong Hans.  It has been awarded a Michelin Star for more than a decade.  The food was awesome.  I particularly enjoyed the cheese plate.   I have a thing for cheese plates and this one was really stellar.  Not just on an offering-by-offering basis.  The plate as a whole had a well thought out balance.  Unfortunately the beer sucked.  But hey, what can you expect from a Michelin Star rated restaurant?

Go to Mikkeller and drink beer.

A Few Saison - Beer Review

Saison, also known as french farmhouse ale, has become a very popular and dare I say a "hep" style as of late.  I understand the interest and some of the hype.  They are very versatile beers in the sense that I can enjoy them year-round.  I also think that they have a certain quality that appeals to a larger section of the public than do other idiosyncratic styles; namely they are refreshing and light-bodied.  

This is also my favorite style to brew at home.  I usually use Pilsner malt with a little bit of Vienna and a touch of wheat for body and a fluffy head.  As for hops, I like to mix things up with the usual European noble varieties and sometimes late-edition or dry-hop with something different and more aggressive; I recently threw in a bit of Citra and it worked out well.  I've also used spices / orange peel but the jury is still out on those kind of additions; at least for me.  In the yeast department I've been consistently loyal to Wyeast's French Saison strain (3711).  This coming spring / summer I plan to experiment with the Saison Dupont strain mixed with some Brett; posts of the experimentation will be included in the "Brewing" section.

Over the last two months a have tried approximately 12(+) different Saison.  Here are a few that I managed to take notes of. 

I picked up a bottle of Brasserie Fantôme's Pissenlit while I was visiting Brussels.  Now that the brewery is closed (apparently, can anyone verify this????) anything from them is nearly impossible to find.  I think those in the US may have a different experience due to remaining stock from the tons of Fantôme that was shipped there while they were still up and running.

This beer is brewed with dandelions and the name literally means "wet the bed". Apparently the dandelions are gathered from the fields around the brewery and brewed into a tea.  Needless to say this beer is a little different than most Saison; at least in terms of recipe. 

Wow, this stuff is amazing.  As soon as I smelled and tasted it I was pissed that I couldn't go visit the brewery or pick up more of their products.  The appearance wasn't amazing; cloudy, not much of a head (especially for the style), the body seemed quite thick and the color rather...dull.  

But the smell, damn complex, spicy and citrus.  Grapefruit juice mixed with Indian food, in a good way. The taste is the same.  I was really surprised at how grapefruity the taste was.  The thickness and acidity made it seem like I was drinking grapefruit juice.  So good.  No Trace of the 8%.  I need more of this stuff.

Next Up: Saison Regal isn't really a Saison that gets too much mention.  I think this beer looked great but lacked something I look for in a Saison.  It may be a bias but the darker more malty versions of this style never really strike me as being all that appealing.  I feel the same way even about highly rated examples such as The Bruery's Saison Rue (I very much prefer their Saison De Lente) and Dupont's Avec Les Bon Voeux.  

On the nose this beer was quite fruity along with a putrid (not necessarily a bad putrid but a typical dark saison putrid) tinge.  The taste was similar with some nice spicy flavors along with some subtle rotten light fruits.  Carbonation is excellent along with the head retention and lacing.  Overall its pretty good but there is a flavor in their that just isn't my friend.

Lastly: Saison D'Erpe-Mere from KleinBrouwerij De Glazen Toren is a somewhat "under the radar beer".  The same can be said for their other offerings.  I personally think this is one of the best Saison available and I'm glad that my local bottle shop brought in a few 750s.

The packaging is very cool.  It has that whole paper-wrapped thing going on...if that means anything.  As soon as I popped the cap the bottle basically exploded with foam and spilled out of the mouth without agitation.  No doubt very lively; a trait that is preferable in a Saison.  Be careful pouring this one.  Even a gentle hand results in massive head.  Not just big, but the kind of head that keeps getting bigger for 5 minutes after its in the glass and seems to be alive (see pic).  Settles to a weird, brain-like glob in the middle of the glass.  Exactly what I am looking for.  Perfect Saison apperance.

This beer has a classic Saison nose.  Spicy, dry, fruity, citrus.  I think it is kind of like a more extreme version of Saison Dupoint.  Very nice.  The taste is very dry with all the classic Saison flavors and even a touch of funk.  Damn boy.  Why can't I have this one back home in Ontario?  A perfect Saison?  

I'd like to give a little shout out to Brian of Stillwater Artisanal Ales.  The recent Rate Beer list has him at #2 best new brewer of the year.  I tasted a few of his Saison at the Mikkeller Beer Bar in Copenhagen and had a brief chat with him as well.  Very nice.  Top-shelf stuff. 

I will discuss some Stillwater beers in more detail when I post my feature on Copenhagen.

Drink some Saison in the meantime.  Get primed for the summer season.