Wine and Beer Enthusiasts

[it wasnt me]

my own view is that much of the current beer market is flooded, nay, saturated by legions of over-hopped IPA style beers

I wholeheartedly agree. That's one of the reasons why I resisted craft beer for a long time: I thought they were all such tediously boring IPAs with extra hoppiness in the hops. They all taste the same. Fortunately, I've learnt a lot since then. But IPAs still bore me.

I find that I far prefer a reliable weissbier, or helles, or kristal style beer as a regular beverage.

My normal after-work beers at home are often Pilseners or Helles (usually the Tegernseer one, because that's available almost everywhere here), but I agree that with wheat beer you at least basically know what to expect: Nice heavy yeast and often bananas. (Hardly any bananas found in Weihenstephaner! I still gave it a 4.2 out of 5 stars in my ratings.) It's a fine art to make a wheat beer that I find truly dreadful. I like that.

(Which is not to say, of course, that I don't now know several truly vile wheat beers).

 

[Scepticalscribe]

At the moment, I am strangely mellow.

The Chablis is going down rather well.

Actually, I think that I could live perfectly well as long as I am amply supplied with seriously good coffee, Burgundy wines, and German and Belgian beers...among other sundry necessities in order to ensure that one is able to maintain a decent quality of life.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Sipping a Westmalle Dubbel, a Belgian classic.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Inexplicably, my beer supplies had - with the exception of several bottles of Trappistes Rochefort - almost run out, thus, earlier today, I replenished them (which took the form of quite a few different Weihenstephaner beers, - a stash that included Helles, Korbinian, Hefeweissbier, and Hefeweissbier Dunkel), and expect them to be delivered later this evening.

A few bottles each of Chablis and Côtes du Rhône completed my selection.

 

[it wasnt me]

I paid a visit to a “Wirtshaus” today (basically, a Bavarian-themed restaurant) where I had a Munich Löwenbräu Helles and one of their Pilseners. Just down the road, there’s a Weinfest (“wine festival”) going on, so I had a German red cuvée for the evening, lovely with hints of amaretto and strawberries, and a Spanish kiwi pastry sour which was green.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

My beer has been delivered.

One might add something along the lines of "happy days", (or evenings).

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Having consumed hardly any alcohol this week (not least, because I was out of beer, with the exception of several bottles of Trappistes Rochefort) and out of Chablis, - deficiencies that have since been remedied - I am now on the horns of a dilemma:

Shall tonight's tipple take the form of The Grape or The Grain?

 

[it wasnt me]

I’m all in favour of the grape.

 

[it wasnt me]

Time for a typically citrusy-sour Schneeeule beer with lots of ginger and lactose, then suddenly strong habanero in the flavour, which continues into the finish. Some sour cucumber if you take a big sip. Deliciously perverse.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I have just opened a beer from the selection that was delivered yesterday: Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel.

 

[it wasnt me]

Enjoy!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Enjoy!

Thank you.

That has gone down exceedingly well.

Now, to give some serious thought to what form my second (and last) beer of the night shall take.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I’m all in favour of the grape.

I missed this post.

Tonight was the Grain, (partly prompted by the fact that I dined on my own, homemade ratatouille and some fresh - and glorious - pork sausages).

However, the Grape shall be greeted in due course.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

My second, (and final) beer of the night is the classic Hefe Weissbier from Weihenstephaner.

 

[it wasnt me]

I have heard rumours about Weihenstephaner Dunkel being available near me. I will investigate.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I have heard rumours about Weihenstephaner Dunkel being available near me. I will investigate.

I think it an excellent beer, a wonderfully well balanced (and smooth) dark beer.