Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier - Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan

Reaper16

Alabama

4.72/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

12oz. bottle served into a weissbier glass

Pours a very hazy combination of yellow and orange. It's light yellow around the edges of the glass, but there is a solid column of orange in the center. The strangest part is that these colors are distinct from each other, not blended in. Three fingers of dense, meringue-like head billow up, a mountain of small, fine bubbles. It laces like a dream. I can't imagine that the Hefeweizen style can look any better than this.

Everyone knows how a Hefeweizen is supposed to smell. It's supposed to have zippy wheat aroams. It's supposed to have estery yeast aromas of banana, bubblegum, and clove. It's supposed to have a little bit of lemon. Weihenstephaner has all of these things. Where it excels at is balancing the aromas. I've never had a Hefe that is as balanced as Weihenstephaner's offering. The lemony wheat provides a sturdy backbone for the yeast scents. Clove and banana compliment each other perfectly, with small undertones of bubblegum and a nearly medicinal phenolic (that is vaguely reminiscent of seaweed) smell working to round off the edges.

The taste is just as phenomenally balanced. All of the flavors are so well-balanced and so well-integrated that it tastes like one flavor (as opposed to numerous flavors overlapping). It's remarkable how well the clove and zippy malted wheat draw out the best in each other. Weihenstephaner delivers no unexpected flavor. What sets it apart, again, is the balance between everything. This is a remarkable, inspiring example of brewing. My one qualm with this beer is that the finish is too bready. The zippyness gives way to a wheat bread flavor that I wish weren't there. Flat finish aside, this is astonishing.

The mouthfeel is pretty lovely too. It's very thick, very creamy. When looking to nit-pick, I'd say it is too creamy. Some of the refreshing carbonation is lost. Still, it's a very satisfying mouthfeel. Overall, this is probably the best Hefeweizen I've ever had. It's nearly perfect. A must-try for every single beer drinker.

Serving type: bottle

06-05-2011 00:01:18 | More by Reaper16

Zbyler

Connecticut

4/5  rDev -9.7%

05-25-2013 20:11:41 | More by Zbyler

ACinSC

South Carolina

5/5  rDev +12.9%

05-25-2013 07:01:20 | More by ACinSC

linnymtu

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-25-2013 04:23:29 | More by linnymtu

hmansfie

New York

4.75/5  rDev +7.2%

05-25-2013 01:33:46 | More by hmansfie

Joenajera

California

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-25-2013 00:34:55 | More by Joenajera

SocialDrinker

Missouri

4.75/5  rDev +7.2%

05-25-2013 00:18:33 | More by SocialDrinker

yankhawk

Iowa

4/5  rDev -9.7%

05-24-2013 23:58:27 | More by yankhawk

rdilauro

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured a nice Light golden color with a white creamy head. One whif and there was no question about this being a European beer and isolating to a German style. The aroma is always there, not hoppy, not malty, not full of yeast, but a pleasant combination of them all.
Knowing this was a wheat beer, I anticipated besides the cloudiness, all the spices that you normally find in wheat beer, the orange, coriander, etc.
Not with this one, oh, I knew it was a wheat beer, so refreshing, but the spices were down played. Instead the concentration was on the beer itself.
Not one piece, but a sum of its parts.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2013 13:18:36 | More by rdilauro

robertmitchum

North Carolina

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-24-2013 09:20:46 | More by robertmitchum

azureoval

California

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-24-2013 01:11:10 | More by azureoval

RBCIPA

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +7.2%

05-24-2013 00:06:03 | More by RBCIPA

bsquaredd7

Pennsylvania

4.75/5  rDev +7.2%

05-23-2013 23:08:48 | More by bsquaredd7

NandoPereira

Brazil

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-23-2013 17:14:09 | More by NandoPereira

vancean2

South Carolina

4.75/5  rDev +7.2%

05-23-2013 16:20:01 | More by vancean2

kvnstfrd

Missouri

2/5  rDev -54.9%

05-23-2013 13:02:34 | More by kvnstfrd

Fcolle2

Illinois

4.23/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

A: pours hazy golden hue with 2 finger white head that has great retention. It also has some really good lacing

S: smells spot on for a great hefe. Really nice lemon zest and their yeast is not shy on the banana clove.

T: the wheat dominate the front half of the beer and the lemony banana clove follows suit. I'm also getting hints of spice but its difficult to distinguish exactly what.

M: very refreshing. light and some good carbonation. What you would expect from a hefe.

O: light feel and a delicious crisp refreshing taste. Perfect beer for summer and at this price point, I think I found my fall back for the summer.

Serving type: bottle

05-23-2013 01:53:10 | More by Fcolle2

FroggieG

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +1.6%

05-22-2013 22:23:25 | More by FroggieG

davesway10

Iowa

4/5  rDev -9.7%

05-22-2013 18:16:44 | More by davesway10

bf7

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +1.6%

05-22-2013 16:00:15 | More by bf7

MarkIntihar

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-22-2013 13:32:59 | More by MarkIntihar

pin

Australia

2.5/5  rDev -43.6%

05-21-2013 22:17:44 | More by pin

Butterbeer

District of Columbia

5/5  rDev +12.9%

05-21-2013 20:55:34 | More by Butterbeer

dcloeren

Texas

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-21-2013 20:50:51 | More by dcloeren

Ak555667

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev -4.1%

05-21-2013 20:36:27 | More by Ak555667