Weihenstephaner hefe weissbier!

After trying and loving the Weihenstephaner Dunkelweiss the other day, I ran down and got their hefe weiss in a 16 oz. bottle. I am on a quest to find the best Bavarian hefeweizen available as import in the bay area (CA). So far I am just at the beginning and have nearly exhausted the German import section at BevMo... not as difficult as I thought, nor as enlightening.

I was expecting something amazing... don't know why, maybe the name just sounds mystifyingly long and complex and German. What I loved about the Dunkelweiss was its deep spiciness... like if I were drinking the beer equivalent of Indian curry, that's Weihenstephaner Dunkelweiss... a very good thing. But the Hefe was just okay! Not tremendous! It had a middle palate spice just shy of Dunkel-strength spice, but without the smooth flowing aftertaste of the Dunkelweiss. It also had what I can only describe as a bewilderingly mild olive flavor to the aftertaste reminiscent of some of those nasty New Belgian Ale products like Mothership Wit or nasty lagers like Spaten... those that some love and some hate because I swear it... there is *olive* lurking in the background somewhere in everyone one of those bottles. Not good pizza-pepperoni olive, but nasty dirty martini green olive.

Anyway, this Weihenstephaner Hefe Weiss beer, though pleasing in a certain rather cerebral fashion, and perhaps on account of this delicacy, lacked the real and also my beloved banana bubblegum essences found in, say, the always effervescent Franziskaner... or Paulaner or Hopf for that matter.


And here is how I describe the common German hefes:

Franziskaner: Most exalted, bananarama of sunny-afternoon beers

Paulaner: Corn meal beer! But a good sort of filling...

Hopf Dunkelweiss: mild bubblegum... almost too smooth

Ayinger Dunkelweiss: mild spice... the mild counterpoint to Hopf Dunkelweiss' mild bubblegum smoothness... if only one could combine these two

21st Amendment Hell or High Watermelon wheat (in can): metal-melon wheat! Made in San Francisco for California oakies... good for looking cool! (hey, got to make an original contribution here somehow)


Help me... will I ever find a better hefe than Franziskaner here in CA?

I haven't found an AmericanAlthough wheat to match the Franz... the Franz is still king in my book.

Although, I first tasted this one on a boat on the Rhine. Maybe it's fond memories, maybe it's just good. BTW, the Franziskaner Dunkel is better than the Hefe.

Erdinger is my favorite hefeweizen. Its amazing

bakersbrew said:

Erdinger is my favorite hefeweizen. Its amazing

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Mine too. I can't fit enough racks in my driveway.

r2eng said:

I haven't found an AmericanAlthough wheat to match the Franz... the Franz is still king in my book.

Although, I first tasted this one on a boat on the Rhine. Maybe it's fond memories, maybe it's just good. BTW, the Franziskaner Dunkel is better than the Hefe.

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Here is my ranking so far from best to least favorite:

1. Franziskaner hefe
2. Paulaner hefe
3. Weihenstephan dunkelweiss
4. Franziskaner dunkelweiss (spice is not as complex or aromatic as #3 imo)
5. Weihenstephan hefe

The Hopf variety is interesting... my jury is still out on that one... they seem very mild... almost too smooth (and why is it so much more expensive?). I actually bought a 16 oz. of Erdinger hefe... I'll have to try it soon.

I am a big fan of Karg, but cannot find it in the states. I doubt it if it is imported.

Though fresh Weihenstephaner Hefe on tap in Freising is hard to beat.

ooh... mouthwatering...

Boy, I thought I had fond memories... Edwort's pic's make me realize that I need to go back and get new ones!

Another tasty one while in Freising (Home of the Worlds oldest Brewery).

Damn! I was born for hefe... but born in the wrong place. Damn all these west coast pale ales and salty stouts and porters. We are a sunny state... we should have hefes...

You might have a good chance finding a Julius Echter HW.
My best HW is called a Bamberger Weiss from Maisel's in Bamberg.
I like Tucher also. I can get them at military bases.

Roth in Schweinfurt has a really nice sweet one that is candy-like.

EdWort said:

Mine too. I can't fit enough racks in my driveway.

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I was going to ask if you had a drinking problem but the only problem I can see is that there is not enough time in a day!:cross:

1. Live Oak (NOT available in CA)
2. Weihenstephaner
3. tie between Hacker-Pschorr and Paulaner

medic_35057 said:

I was going to ask if you had a drinking problem but the only problem I can see is that there is not enough time in a day!:cross:

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You do know that work is the curse of the drinking class, right?

A vote here forSchneider-Weisse

http://www.schneider-weisse.de

Their Brauhaus in Munich is well worth a visit and the food is better than most; just don't try to sit at the stammtisch.

My favorite hefe for a long time was Paulaner. However, I tried a Weihenstephaner yesterday at a local pub and it takes the cake. Banana and clove flavors in the beer were great and it had a smooth, creamy texture. Paulaner is still a close 2nd for me, though.

Live Oak for the win.

2 years dead. Necromancers.

But now that I've also crashed the mausoleum, I can't drink these any more. Anything with clove or banana turns me off. Wasn't always that way. Odd.

I like Erdinger, Julius Echter Hefe, Paulaner HB, Franz. You can't go wrong with any of those for sure.