Tonight I’m going to sample another Hefe Weizen from Germany.  As I have mentioned before in my reviews, “Hefe’s” are not a particularly favorite style of mine, however I do appreciate the time and effort that goes into producing a quality product.  Therefore, I feel that I must give each a fair and just review.  Who knows, I may find one that totally blows my socks of one day.

The Hofbrau Munchen Hefe Weizen is brewed by Staatliches Hofbrauhaus (Hofbrau Munchen) in Munich, Germany.  The website, hofbraeu-muenchen.de, doesn’t really speak specifically about this Hefe Weizen, but it does describe some detail about the Munchner Weisse, which falls in the same category as the Hefe Weizen.

Once upon a time, Weissbier could only be brewed by ducal privilege.  Hofbrauhaus enjoyed this exclusive right for nearly 200 years, thus holding a monopoly on Weissbier in Bavaria.  

But even without a monopoly, Munchner Weisse is a really special kind of beer.  What could be more pleasurable than quenching your thirst with a deliciously yeasty Weissbier, and savouring the tingling, fizzy sensation in your mouth?

Maybe this will be the “Hefe” I’ve been looking for.

This beer is at 5.4% ABV and comes standard in a 11.2 oz. bottle.

This brew poured a very cloudy gold/yellow/orange color with some bright yellow highlights at the bottom of the glass.  A bright white, soapy, pillowy head that had very nice size and retention, but was only average regarding the amount of lacing left behind.  The patches slid down the sides of the glass rather quickly and by the end of the drink none were left.  Oh well.  That’s not the most important part of the beer anyway.

The aroma had a generous amount of lemon citrus, a smidgen of banana, spices of coriander and pepper along with a profuse wheat tone that completed a very fresh, fruity and well balanced fragrance.

The taste is very complimentary to the smell.  As before, the tongue was greeted with a lip puckering, fruity, lemon citrus combined with a mild banana followed by the coriander and spices.  The flavor profile did not seem as exuberant as the aroma.  That could have been because a yeasty/wheat seasoning seemed to stand out quite a bit more, which for me, tends to tame a lot of flavor profiles by calming an over abundance of attributes.  None the less, it was still alright.

The mouthfeel was medium/light.  It was actually rather watery, I thought.  It was, however, crisp, refreshing and thirst quenching with a smooth, snappy finish.  Hardly any flavor was left on the palate after the swallow.  It was almost gone before it went down the throat.  I found that to be a bit disappointing considering the above average flavor distinction of this beer.  Well, it is what it is I guess.

Overall, this beer would be a great refresher for the hot, humid Spring and Summer days.  It’s a great smelling brew that doesn’t look half bad either.  It just lacked a little in the mouthfeel and the taste didn’t quite have enough “oomph” for me, which can be understood for a thirst quencher like this.  It’s far from bad and nowhere near undrinkable, but for some reason, I just can’t seem to find a Hefeweizen that I truly find amazing.

Do you guys know of a Hefe that would be a “stunner?”

If so, please leave a comment and I would be more than happy to give it a try if I can find it.

Thanks for reading and I hope you are finding the reviews entertaining.

Score:  3.7 out of 5
Grade:  B