Hottenroth Berliner Weisse - The Bruery

rootbeerman

Virginia

4.6/5  rDev +13%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: pours clear straw yellow, with a initially two finger head which settled to a thin white layer.
S: a sharp/tart wheat, kristalweizen like banana and bubble gum.
T: tart, but not overly. Wheat and tartness lends to a light lemon flavor. Very crisp and refreshing
M: very crisp, light on the palate with prickly carbonation.
O: between Berliner Weiss and Gose two hard to find styles in, mainly by different brewers yet are my favorites.

Serving type: bottle

10-09-2011 07:11:03 | More by rootbeerman

claytong

Vermont

3.65/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

if i knew the price i probably wouldnt pay it. crabtree's berliner weiss is top notch and cheap.

appearance - very light straw in color. minimal head, with minor rim lacing. somewhat active carbonation.

smell - grapes, acid, pear, pretty nice and well blended.

taste - wheat bread, grapes, wheres the tartness/acid?, not bad but not great

mouthfeel/overall - lack of acid makes it pretty wet in the mouth, thin body and thin carbonation. still very drinkable and enjoyable, but not my ideal for the style.

Serving type: on-tap

10-03-2011 22:49:07 | More by claytong

afksports

New York

3.95/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 5

Bruery's Hottenroth is a weird brew for me to review. I haven't had too many Berliner Weiss's, and I love the taste of it. But all the same, it looks like an adjunct lager after the head dissipates, and its tart, dry and funky smell disappears fairly quickly too.

A friendly review would call it delicate. A review that slammed it would compare it to Miller Lite. I'll lean more towards delicate, but ask for a bit more.

It starts off tart and puckery. In the middle there's a bit of breadiness, but not much. And it finishes with the pepper and citrus esters that brewing with wheat often provides. It's light and watery on the palate, and highly drinkable.

No doubt a fun beer to pair with salads and lighter fare, The Bruery's Hottenroth would also be great on a summer day in the park, or after your monthly jog. (Like tonight).

And you won't hear me complaining about 3.1% alcohol by volume. What a gift!

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2011 00:23:54 | More by afksports

beagle75

Iowa

3.65/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 750 ml bottle into a tulip glass.

A: Hazy, palest yellow color with over one finger of diminishing white foam head. Scant lacing remains on the glass and a light dusting of sediment is left behind.

S: Like a ripe sourdough starter--there is very little present in the smell of this beer aside from dilute acetic acid and some fairly assertive wheat.

T: Begins dry, with an easygoing tartness that is made more approachable by the soft bready grain that draws out lactic qualities. The middle is largely vacant of discernible qualities, but bready malt resurges in the slightly tart finish.

M: Thin viscosity, wet on the palate where surprisingly little acidity is felt, with moderate carbonation.

D/O: Effortlessly drinkable; the strong wheat component here is unexpected in such a low-gravity beer, but definitely compelling. It is a strange sour, fresh rather than woody or musty as is typical for various other styles, possibly with potential as a gateway. While remarkably clean, a word of warning is in order: do not follow other beers with this one, unless you like your sour beer to taste like stomach acid.

Serving type: bottle

09-11-2011 00:27:28 | More by beagle75

RenoZymurgist

Nevada

3.7/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a lightly hazy light yellow color with a thin white head that subsided quickly

Smell is cardboard, probably an old bottle, with citric acid like lemonyness and a clean soft wheat accent.

The taste has more of the oxidized cardboard with a nice sourness. Crisp carbonation and the soft wheat flavors go very well with the sour finish to lend it a lemonade like quality.

The mouthfeel is crisp and clean with a smooth body from the wheat.

Overall I would love to try a fresher version but for a rare style I think this is a good example.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2011 23:11:47 | More by RenoZymurgist

ehammond1

California

4.18/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle (2011)

The Bruery Provisions
Orange, CA

Clear straw and golden yellow with a quickly forming but quickly dissipating white head. Not much lace left down the glass. Lots of small carbonation bubbles rushing up through the beer long after settling. Near perfect per the style.

Aromas of lemon, apple, pear, and wheat dominate. There's also some hay and grass as well, as well as a mild tartness hiding in the background.

Initial tartness followed by sweet lemon and apple, then some grass and hay, wheat, and a mild sour tartness at the end.

Incredibly easy drinking. Highly carbonated. A wonderful summer all-day sipper.

A wonderful Berliner Weiss I'd love to have in my fridge at all times.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2011 21:48:41 | More by ehammond1

liamt07

Ontario (Canada)

4.38/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle shared by Sammy, 750ml into some tulips.

Poured a whiteish and hazy straw yellow, good sized white head sits atop. A heavy film of head is retained. Nose has straight lemons, wheat and a bit of funk. Uncomplicated, distinct and to the point. Taste is tart through and through, lemons with some light wheat and breadiness on the back-end. Puckering finish, and a relatively quick mouthfeel. Very light body. Very drinkable, and the best berliner I've come across in some time. Extremely quenching, and one where I would've love to have tried the blueberry and raspberry variations(maybe with some woodruff syrup too if available). Incredibly drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2011 17:09:52 | More by liamt07

bashiba

Iowa

3.9/5  rDev -4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a very cloudy white, one of the lightest colored beers I have ever seen.

The smell is very light and tart with a light sweetness.

The first drink is very acidic and sour, but this really fades as you drink it becoming very light and wheaty with a light sourness being relegated to the finish.

The mouthfeel is light and acidic with some mild carbonation.

A very light easy drinking beer, the mild sourness adds some nice character to the subtle wheat notes.

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2011 16:14:39 | More by bashiba

peensteen

Ontario (Canada)

4.22/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Hazy pale golden colour, light white head, subtle lacing. Smell is funky, tart lemons, sour in the nose and pretty yeasty. Taste is sour, tart and lemony, yeast, citrus, lemon juice like points, very nice. High prickly carbonation you can feel all across the tongue, good feel, nice weight. Very nice stuff here, very drinkable, I think we knocked off the bottle in about 3-4 minutes, would welcome again gladly.

Serving type: bottle

08-31-2011 19:36:25 | More by peensteen

SFLpunk

Vermont

3.83/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

750mL brown glass pry-top bottle thanks to rtepiak. No date that I can find.

Pours clear then cloudy towards the end, which makes sense. Very little head. Nose has some classic lacto-funky head. Hay and freshly cut grass. Peach pits, lemon zest/juice/pulp. Palate is mildly tart, juicy. Mango, lemon pulp, yellow grapefruit, wet hay, wet grass/freshly mowed grass. Snappy short finish.

Notes: Solid, mildly tart and a little funky. Glad I have a second bottle coming from DarthKostritzer so I can see a little more development.

Serving type: bottle

08-31-2011 04:10:41 | More by SFLpunk

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.98/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Wonderful drinkability if sour or tart is in your repertoire. Cloudy yellow with a big soapy head. Funky, lemony, yeast aroma. Smooth mouthfeel despite tartness, Drying finish. Hits the bullseye.Lots of flavour for very low abv, sessionable. Great by itself or with food.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2011 17:41:20 | More by northyorksammy

ZimZamZoom

West Virginia

4.1/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a capped 750 into a couple tulip glasses. Hey this is a very light gold to straw colored beer, nice thick white head thick with big carbonation bubbles. Head fades slowly to a thin layer.

Carbonation fills the nostrils and makes them all tingly as I smell this pretty beer. Aroma is crisp, tart with a nice little tang from wheat malts. Very light and refreshing is the promise. Tart flavor, bordering on what you might call sour but this is just to light and crispy to be called such. Interesting to detect maybe a bit of saltiness. Finishes very crisp and clean, drying out big in the end leaving me thirsting for more.

Light bodied but I think filling from the heavy carbonation. Still, wife and I will have no problem downing this 750.

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2011 22:57:49 | More by ZimZamZoom

edrachman

New Jersey

3.98/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Delicious summer beer (being drunk in downtown Manhattan in the calm before Hurricane Irene and I'm required to evacuate).

Poured into champagne flutes and the appearance would easily pass for champagne. Pale yellow and very bubbly with nice head after a vigorous pour.

The tartness comes through the smell and background of sweet miscellaneous candy.

Taste is very tart light wheat beer -- as its my first Berliner Weisse, I would imagine its typical of the style, but very tasty although nothing to knock my socks off.

Mouthfeel is like slightly tart champagne. Carbonation comes through strong and very drinkable.

Overall, a better beer than my review likely indicates. I wouldn't want this on a cold winter day, but a fantasticly refreshing summer beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-26-2011 23:26:02 | More by edrachman

DovaliHops

California

4.5/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Pours a clear, straw, white-wine-like color with a large white head that disappears slowly. Scent is tart lemon with some wheat and grain in the nose. Nice citrus aromas with bright, tart fruit notes. Taste is initially like a very light wheat beer that lacks in all the clove and coriander flavors (which is a good thing) and is replaced by tart lemon and citrus notes. Pleasant yeast flavors make the tart flavors more mellow than they want to be. Finishes with lovely lemon and wheat flavors. Mouthfeel is EXTREMELY light and airy...perfect for this style in beer. Drinkability is EXTREMELY high. Overall, this is an outstanding beer that represents this style to a tee. With such low ABV and such high drinkability, this beer is perfect for session drinking and hot summer days/nights.

Serving type: bottle

08-23-2011 06:14:53 | More by DovaliHops

BdubleEdubleRUN

California

3.93/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Ontap this beer pours a light golden straw color with a small white head. It smells of sour candy, hops, lemon and wheat. The taste is much like the nose lemon peal, wheat and a very strong tart sourness. The mouthfeel is a medium light good carbonation and good balance of smoothness with the tartness. this is one of the few berliner Weisse beers I have had and it has convinced me to explore the style deeper.

Serving type: on-tap

08-21-2011 16:19:39 | More by BdubleEdubleRUN

JoeProbst

Virginia

4.83/5  rDev +18.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

I am really smitten over this beer.

Funny story: My mom "hates" beer. Up until a few days ago she has not had a bottle of beer she enjoys. I took the label off this guy and brought it home to my folks, and said it was a rare champagne with no label and it had been given to me by a friend as a gift.

I poured her a glass of it and she just dug right in. She absolutely loved and raved about how nice and refreshing it was. Only when I told her it was beer did she realize how much her pre-dispositions had warped her appreciations.

Appearance: Brightly yellow. A foam of bubbles. Looks like an oasis of liquid gold.

Smell - Smells a bright, tart, delicious 'yellow'. You can almost taste how the beer is from the nose alone.

Taste - This Berliner Weisse is really friggin' delicious. It goes down SO easy. Why don't we make table beers like this any more? Acidity is spot on--it's really hard to take your lips off the glass.

Mouthfeel - The highlight of the beer. It is so delightfully thin, drinkable, bright, yeasty. Uhn! The high level of carbonation carries this tarty tingle all over your mouth. It's like winning the lottery. I could drink this beer for ages, especially in this Virginia Heat.

Overall - Exemplary. Refreshing. A delightful burst of refreshment. Only gripe is I wish I had about 30 more bottles of this nectar.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2011 14:46:21 | More by JoeProbst

4.03/5  rDev -1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance - Translucent and very pale. The head falres up briefly and then crackles away, like champage. Delicate carbonation bubbles are visible.

Smell - Nutty and fruity, with a Sauvignon Blanc-like cat pee note, some brett funk, sweet almond, and lemon.

Mouthfeel and Taste - Very light bodied. Crisp and tingly carbonation matches with subtle acidity for a very refreshing flavour. Lemony, minerally and quite dry.

Serving type: bottle

08-15-2011 19:11:15 | More by

dgilks

Australia

3.88/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Cloudy golden colour with a miniature white head. Poor head retention.

Earthy with a light chestnut note. A touch tart and almost a little bit fecal.

Deliciously nutty with a moderate acetic and lactic tartness. A little herbal. This is definitely a berlinerweisse and it works nicely.

Light body with high carbonation. Spot on for the style.

A very good example of the style. Very much delicious. Nice.

Serving type: on-tap

08-08-2011 10:40:36 | More by dgilks

Luk13

Quebec (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Bottle. Aroma: Lots of funk, white wine (cat piss), lemon. Weird but nice. Appearance: Milky yellow with small head. It’s far from cute but it is so unusual I kinda like it. Taste: Packed with flavors I can’t believe it. Lots of lemon, brett. This is very dry and very tart. I love it. Palate: Dry, thin Overall: This is the more drinkable and refreshing beer I’ve ever had. This 3% berliner weisse couldn’t have been better executed. If it wasn’t for the price tag and availabilty, that’d be my go to summer beer. Best surprise in a long time.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2011 21:47:19 | More by Luk13

dragonWhale

New York

4.43/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Well it's been a little while, but here it is in NYC. Had the pleasure of trying this at the Bruery a few months ago, and now here it is, practically in my lap. But really, it's in my mouth. My co-worker turns to me, "Shouldn't we just stop working and drink berliner-weiss all day?" I don't have an answer. Suddenly, I do have a berliner-weiss in my hands. Ahh, an answer revealed. The work is done..Or has it just begun. This feels like a field beer, an operating heavy machinery beer. A fucking hot day and have a giant bottle to yourself beer. While you work. Whatever happened to our heritage?!
Tart with a refreshing lemon zing. The wick of lactic sour lit in my mouth. The head of the beer is so sexy, it pours, sparkles away. You can hear the head dissipate into the air, a mystic wonder. This is an excellent version of it, alcohol content spot on, the true working class beer, in spite of the talent and patience it must take to make. Cheers to the rue in all of you!

Serving type: on-tap

08-01-2011 04:17:11 | More by dragonWhale

marcobrau

Illinois

4.43/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured a light yellow and a bit fizzy. Slightly hazy. This had the best aroma of any weisse I've had; with a more fruity aroma as opposed to a lactic (spoiled milk) smell I've noticed in some other Berliners. Tart enough for the style; but certainly not mouth-puckering sour. Very light in body with a dry finish which normally would make a beer very quaffable, but the sour character actually had me sipping this beer. The very low alcohol content made this very refreshing after moving some furniture.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2011 03:11:31 | More by marcobrau

SilentSabre

Georgia

4.4/5  rDev +8.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a lovely, pale, lemonade-esque colour with a snow-white foamy cap. Looks delicious!

Smell is lemon and modest 'dank basement'. Smells very light.

Flavour is certainly gentle, slightly sour, and pleasantly bitter on the finish. Absolutely refreshing.

Very modest in the mouth with a very light feel and gently carbonated. Unusually low abv, relative to other style, make this highly drinkable!

Absolutely spectacular representation of the style. Certainly glad to have had the opportunity to have tried this brewing masterpiece.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2011 20:49:06 | More by SilentSabre

Klym

California

4/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a stone nonic, shared with Cavery.

A: Pours like hazy white grape juice. A pale yellow, silver that is clear around the edges and more translucent in the middle. Nice microbubble head and some lacing.

S: Raw wheat sticks out, a sort of high-quality lagerish smell. Some grape in the nose too with a little bit of tartness.

T: Wheat comes in and goes into a berry sweet tartness that mixes and mellows out, leaving a sourdough bread aftertaste. Much more flavorful than I expected.

M: Medium carbonation, which I think is good. Much less or much more I think would hurt the drinkability of the beer. Very crisp and refreshing, definitely great summer drinking.

O: I'm not too used or into this vicinity of style but I actually found this enjoyable and quite drinkable. It would actually be interesting to try these with some of the recommended syrups. If lighter german styles are your thing, I have a hard time believing you won't love this.

Serving type: bottle

07-18-2011 19:44:10 | More by Klym

Cavery

California

4/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml shared with Klym in a lovely afternoon, poured into Stone Nonics.

Sample was had without any added syrups (Haha, maybe next time)

A: Very light peachy pear flesh body with a humble 1/2 finger head. Rapidly bursting bubbles die a violent champagne yeast-like death as they fight for air at the top. The resemblance to fizzy champagne is undeniable.

S: Sweet yellow wheats and mellow hays. A nice subtle sweetness that is indicative of a very refreshing brew. Light notes of subdued baking apples, soft pears, and a little bit of kiwi. Naturally sweet like fruit, but not overly in your face. Quite nice indeed!

T: Fizzy wheatiness attacks you with a sweetness that rapidly rolls into tartness. The tartness takes over and reminds me a lot of unsweetened green apple sauce. A very soft flavored note that I will say is lychee like in intensity. Soft flavors that are rushed passed the palate due to the lightning speed of the tartness. The character of tartness in the flavor really takes this to realms of unsweetened boiled pears.

M: Very fizzy, but not on the same level as champagne. This comes off like a light-bodied champagne with different sized bubbles taking their roles at different times. Up front you get medium sized bubble fizz that rapidly dissipates, but small lively bubbles become apparent as you swallow. This helps make this brew be very refreshing.

O: A nice brew, very refreshing. It comes off a bit mellow on the palate, but maybe that's why the style invites the addition of syrups. I was more than happy to enjoy it plain, and I got a real sense of the subtly lager/champagne fusion. Enjoyment of this brew is highly contextual. For me in a warm climate I can see this being a very enticing alternative to a great many Ales. I'd grab a bottle or two for a non-beer-drinker get together, and enjoy my craft beer without sticking out like a sore thumb. Points for refreshing, points for craft, but I'm not sure how true this is to the style. I'm very curious to try more in style now. Good beer for what it is, but if you aren't in a warm climate, this might come off a bit strange.

Serving type: bottle

07-18-2011 19:24:15 | More by Cavery

bigfnjoe

Pennsylvania

4.28/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Poured from a bottle into a Duvel tulip

A- pours a very, very pale yellow with a one finger white head that fades instantaneous, as the style usually does. It's even lighter than yellow fizzy beer, which is a little weird to see....but the carbonation is impressive, with tons of bubbles floating to the top

S- getting a lot of lemon out of this one, but it's a different kind of lemon from a wheat beer...it's more of a tart one as opposed to that "lemon flavoring" you might get. My nasal passages are getting assaulted, and that's a good thing

T- it starts off very mild, and then the finish is very tart. Very crisp, very refreshing

M- it actually has a nice body to it, despite the low ABV. Pretty solid, but it has watery characteristics to it as well. All in all, very good

O- I love a great berliner weisse, and this is one of them. I just wish it were a little more affordable

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2011 00:32:02 | More by bigfnjoe