Monday 16 October 2017

Other Bavarian wheat beers in 2014

I’m not quite done with Bavarian wheat beers. Because there are still a couple of types I haven’t covered yet. And if nothing else, I’m a completist.

The first is a fairly recent development, Leicht Hefeweizen. Over the last decade or two lower-gravity versions of a few styles have appeared. And Weizen is no exception.

For the most, these are beers that would have been legal in the days when there was hole between 9º and 11º Plato. All but one of the beers fits into the old Schankbier category, which had a maximum OG of 8º Plato. At one time, pretty much all the Schankbier brewed was in the form of Berliner Weisse.

The one exception is the Göller beer, which at 9.5º is smack in the middle of the old forbidden zone.

Interestingly, the average rate of attenuation is a bit less than for the full-strength versions. I would have guessed the opposite.

Bavarian Leicht Hefeweizen in 2014
Brewer Town Beer OG Plato OG FG ABV App. Atten-uation
Göller Zeil am Main Leichte Weisse 9.5 1037.8 1009.3 3.70 75.39%
Püls-bräu Stadtsteinach Weismainer Leichte Weisse 7.8 1030.8 1008.4 2.90 72.75%
Paulaner Munich Hefe-Weißbier Leicht 7.7 1030.4 1005.8 3.20 80.93%
Hacker-Pschorr Munich Leichte Weisse 7.7 1030.4 1005.8 3.20 80.93%
Kitzmann-Bräu Erlangen leichtes Weißbier 7.7 1030.4 1008 2.90 73.70%
Privatbrauerei Kesselring Marktsteft Steffen Leicht 7.6 1030.0 1007.6 2.90 74.67%
Pyraser Landbrauerei Thalmässing Federleichte Weiße 7.2 1028.4 1006.8 2.80 76.04%
Brauerei Hermann Sigwart Weißenburg Leichte Weiße 6.8 1026.8 1005.2 2.80 80.57%
Average 7.8 1030.6 1007.1 3.05 76.87%
Sources:
The relevant brewery websites


The final type of Weissbier is a much older one. And rather under threat. Once this was the most popular type of Bavarian Weissbier, but fashion has turned against it and the version with yeast rules.

I can’t say that I’ve ever been a big fan. I prefer the ramped up spiciness of Hefeweizen. Kristall Weizen has always struck me as rather bland.

Here are the numbers:

Bavarian Kristall Weizen in 2014
Brewer Town Beer OG Plato OG FG ABV App. Atten-uation
Paulaner Munich Weißbier Kristallklar 11.8 1047.4 1007.5 5.20 84.17%
Weihenstephan Freising Kristall Weisbier 12.7 1051.2 1009.7 5.40 81.04%
Privatbrauerei Kesselring Marktsteft Kristall Weizen 12 1048.2 1007.6 5.30 84.24%
Distelhäuser  Tauberbischofsheim Kristall Weizen 12.5 1050.3 1008.9 5.40 82.31%
Kulmbacher Kulmbach Kristall Weisbier 12.7 1051.2 1009.7 5.40 81.04%
Average 12.3 1049.6 1008.7 5.34 82.56%
Sources:
The relevant brewery websites

It’s a small sample, but there does appear to be a significant difference with the yeast versions: the rate of attenuation. It’s three points higher. My guess would be it’s because it’s conditioned at the brewery for longer.

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