Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel - Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan

oberon

North Carolina

4.03/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I have been looking for a good beer in this style striking out a few times but I hit the jackpot with this one.Poured a rich brown/copper color with big blooming head.Smelled of caramel and toffee with come faint smokiness to it as well.Pretty nutty flavor with some fresh tartness in there,pretty complex and rewarding.Should have known this was the brewer who would get this beer right.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2003 09:43:33 | More by oberon

NeroFiddled

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Wow! What a beer! It offers all of the flavors and aromas of the standard Weihenstephaner weizen with the addition of a light caramel note. It pours a cloudy, tawny brown body with a full head of creamy off-white foam. Soft banana, light clove-like spice, light brown sugar and apples appear in the nose. The body is medium and it appears initially crisp and then creamy across the palate due to its very fine and effervescent natural carbonation. Gentle spice appears first in the flavor; followed by a soft maltiness that's just slightly tangy and backed by gentle fruitiness (bananas, apples). It's very well-balanced by an underlying bitterness, and it finishes with a lingering note of nutty malt and some drying clove-like yeastiness. Refreshing but full of flavor. Exceptional!

Serving type: bottle

06-19-2003 15:45:21 | More by NeroFiddled

metter98

New York

4.13/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: It poured hazy brown with some yellow highlights into a weizen glass with a perfectly sized head. A high amount of carbonation is visible from the rising bubbles. The beer has very good head retention.
S: There is a moderate aroma of banana, cloves and malt with hints of yeast and other spices. The aroma strengthens as the beer warms up a bit.
T: The taste is very similar to the nose; it shares many similarities to a hefeweizen but has some added sweetness plus flavors of dark malts and other spices.
M: It feels medium-bodied and refreshing on the palate.
D: The beer goes down smooth and is quite thirst quenching.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2010 16:56:14 | More by metter98

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

4.6/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

An impressively foamy, bilious head tops a beer with a dark brown, almost pruney, or figgy hue. Aroma is lively and satisfying: citrus, notes of vanilla, banana, cloves, rich, deep, dark. Reminds me of Belgian abbey dubbels, a favorite. Taste is sharp, dry, with a hasty finish, that leaves you yearning for more. A very sociable beer: not too difficult to drink, and not in the least forgettable. Slight bitterness, medium body, and as for flavor, I feel like it's close to a lighter version of a barleywine, crazy as that sounds.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2003 19:10:15 | More by feloniousmonk

WesWes

New York

3.95/5  rDev -7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The beer pours a hazy dark amber color with a thick off-white head that eventually fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has the nice fruity banana smell of a regular hefe, but with a little more of a malty scent. The taste is good. It is a malty hefe with excellent wheat/yeast flavor. It is sweet and finishes dry. The mouthfeel is fine. It is a medium/full bodied beer with a little too much carbonation. This is a good dunkel, but I've had better; mouthfeel was lacking.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2004 02:31:23 | More by WesWes

drabmuh

Maryland

4.28/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Beer on draft at a local beer bar, served as a 0.5 L in a Weihenstephaner wheat beer glass. Beer is brown and has high haze, cannot see through the beer. Whitish / brownish head of tight bubbles is present and completely covers the beer (two fingers thick). Head falls away as you drink and leaves some lacing on the glass.

Aroma is pretty similar to the hefe, but there is more sweetness and some hints of nuts to it. Same esters and fruity aromas, smells good.

This beer is slightly heavier in my opinion than the hefeweizen. Still a stand up beer. More sweetness, beer is still wet and not dry at all. Finishes nicely, not as high drinkability as the hefe but still a stand up beer. Mouthfeel is heavier than I would like but that's why its a dunkel.

Serving type: on-tap

11-13-2009 20:46:50 | More by drabmuh

Mora2000

Texas

4.22/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer pours a hazy brown color with a huge off-white head. The aroma is full of wheat, toffee and cloves with quite a bit of banana mixed in. A very nice aroma.

The flavor is similar. I get a lot of toffee and brown sugar notes, as well as some wheat and banana. All of the notes meld together perfectly as I have come to expect from Weihenstephaner wheat beers.

Medium mouthfeel and high carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2011 03:35:43 | More by Mora2000

zeff80

Missouri

4.1/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Poured out a cloudy, burgandy color with a foamy, off-white, four-finger head. Left lace.

S - It smelled of malt, wheat and clove.

T - Tasted of wheat and malt. There is a light spiciness and a hint of yeast and clove.

M - It is crisp and smooth. A medium-bodied beer.

D - A very good dunkel. Impressive appearance and a very good flavor.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2007 04:25:54 | More by zeff80

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

4.28/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a 16.9oz bottle into a mug glass.

A: The beer is a light brown color, with a large off-white head that fades slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is of wheat, caramelized malts, bananas and a touch of hops.

T: The taste is bready with just a little sweetness and simple flavors of wheat and caramelized malts. There's a decent and complimentary hop presence that provides a good balance.

M: Smooth and crisp, light-to-medium body, medium carbonation, finish is very clean.

D: Tasty, goes down easy, not too filling, mild kick, very good representation of style, this brewery just continues to impress me with their knack for keeping beers simple and making them very, very well.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2008 05:07:38 | More by TheManiacalOne

russpowell

Oklahoma

3.75/5  rDev -12%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours caramel, clear & bubbly with a a 4 fingers off white head that drops off gradually. Good head retention and some lacing

Smell: Slight mustiness & some yeast notes

Taste: Toasty with a slight bitterness & some chocolate notes. Not a ton of hefe taste at first, but as it warms the bandaid, bubble gum & yeasty tastes come through. Also aslight nutty taste. dry & estery on the finish

MF: More than slight undercarbonation, but otherwise balanced

Pretty drinakble, but I expected more from this. This didn't quite hit al the notes (more fruitiness) I expect from this style. Will try again this summer

Serving type: bottle

03-09-2006 04:06:40 | More by russpowell

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4.33/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A careful pour produces a voluminous, four-finger thick, lightly cocoa tinged, tan colored head that only laves a touch of lacing on the sides of my glass. The beer is a earthy, dark plum color, but shows a lightly hazed, lightish cranberry hue when held up to the light. When held up to the light you also get a good sight of the seething mass of bubbles that are packed into this brew. Quite an appetizing aroma, it is a melange of banana, caramelized bread crust, a touch of sweet plum, crushed grain, some smooth phenolic clove notes and a light peppery spice character that is just barely noticeable underneath the surface. The Dunkel part of the malt bill adds a bit more, slightly rich, fruitiness to the aroma than one would find in a pale version. It also accentuates aromas of toasty grain and fresh baked, whole-grain bread crust.

The carbonation keeps this fairly light and definitely adds a light frothy texture to this brew. Very lightly sweet, but it does have a richness of malt character to it that pale Hefeweizens do not have. Soft fruit flavors of ripe plums seem to be a bit more noticeable up front than either of the signature banana or clove notes. Both are here though with the banana playing a subtle flavor role up front and in the middle, while the clove flavors add a spicy finish to this brew where it plays a pretty significant role. Coupled with the clove in the finish is a nice, wheat-beer tartness. As the beer warms up a bit, the clove flavors begin to stretch into the front parts of each sip. The texture of this beer really has a nice, soft, velvety character to it; it coats the mouth, but softly as this is a very quaffable brew. Melanoids and caramelized notes characterize the malt / grain character up front, while a bit of dusty grain character with just a kiss of toast graces the palate in the middle. At times a spicy, pepper-like character inserts itself onto the palate, it is quite nice and provides a sort of palate cleansing.

This is just a very nice example of a Dunkel Weizen. The caramelized, slightly toastier malt adds an interesting dimension to the traditional Hefeweizen character. This is a beer I would be quite happy to drink a few liters of.

Purchased: Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ

Serving type: bottle

03-01-2008 23:13:01 | More by Gueuzedude

Halcyondays

California

3.65/5  rDev -14.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

16.9 oz. bottle, got to love that great looking regal German looking bottle,

A: Pours a cloudy light brown, with a full white head, lots of foam.

S: Fragrant yeast character, a lot of banana, sweet malt.

T: Light caramel hits at first and then melds into a lot of banana, with hints of molasses. Long lingering finish of clove.

M: Seems a tad on the thin side for a weizen beer, and it's hard to find the flavour at times, but it does have a rich carbonation appeal.

D: My first dunkelweizen in a while, a tasty beer, though I do prefer their regular hefe beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-28-2008 02:46:08 | More by Halcyondays

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.6/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

500ml bottle, BBD: 29/11/2011.

This beer pours a dark, murky, over-saturated iced-tea brown, with two fingers of thin foamy pale beige head, which leaves but a few specks of lace around the glass as it recedes. It smells of crisp roasted wheat grain, mild banana, spicy clove, and earthy yeast. The taste is more sweet, the toasted grain taking a backseat to the banana and yeast duad. The carbonation is moderate, and a bit zingy, the body medium weight, a bit airy, but smooth overall. It finishes clean, drier than expected, with some lingering fruit and yeast.

A nicely balanced dark wheat beer - there's something to be said for Old World subtlety. However, that banana/yeast thing does grow stale sooner rather than later.

Serving type: bottle

03-25-2011 00:57:22 | More by biboergosum

Gavage

New Jersey

4.43/5  rDev +4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance: pours a clear dark amber color with a 1" head. Some spotty lacing develops.

Smell: the nose picks up a light banana and clove aroma with a hint of nuttiness.

Taste: tha banana tones are strong but pleasant, while a soft yeasty breadiness is the backbone of this beer. Some clove, brown sugar, and general nuttiness round it out.

Mouthfeel: perfectly crisp start and finish. The banana, cloves, and light nuttiness lingers briefly on the tastebuds after swallowing.

Drinkabilty: simply put - fantastic. Go out and grab one of these to bring home.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2006 12:35:09 | More by Gavage

jwc215

New Jersey

4.83/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

500 ml bottle, poured into a Weihenstephan glass:

Pours a beautiful hazed caramel light brown with a thick head that slowly descends to a thick, foamy, lasting sizable head. Some lacing sticks to glass (a bit more and this would be perfect).

The smell is of banana/clove and sweet toffee. Doughy wheat in the back with a fruity/wheaty tang.

The taste is of banana/clove with sweet toffee. Maple syrup sweetness is balanced by a banana fruitiness with a touch of red apple. Some doughy wheat, but subdued, allowing for full complexities to really shine forth. Well-balanced sweetness throughout. Complex, yet light and smooth. Great carbonation level. Flavor linger.

It is appropriately light to medium bodied. Crisp and smooth.

A classic dunkel weizen that is absolutely delicious. This clearly outshines so many others. Unique, yet well within the style. Another great brew from this awesome brewery!

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2007 20:24:10 | More by jwc215

tempest

Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked up a .5L at Abe's. Poured a light, hazy brown with a tall off-white head. I found this to be an aromatic and surprisingly smooth dunkel, but didn't think the flavor lived up to the reviews. I only got simple, dark bread malt and creamy (very slight banana) yeast character. Not exactly as deep as the Hefe, but a fine beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2008 05:52:03 | More by tempest

akorsak

Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

I am drinking a 16.9 oz bottle poured into an oversized Widmer Bros. hefe weizen glass. The ale is slightly chilled.

Appearance: Hazy, dark amber color. The ale has some sediment (as it is unfiltered). It poured with decent head, but when the head dissapated, all carbonation seemed to go with it.

Smell: A yeasty aroma wafts from the glass, along with banana and clove scents. Very pleasing to smell.

Taste: The esters used provide a great tasting banana flavor (it is there and very minute, so search for it and you'll find it). Again, the carbonation is fairly low (which surprised me), leaving somewhat of a flat taste in the mouth. The taste is very light and refreshing and complimented by some caramelly flavors, as per the dunkel in the name.

Mouthfeel: The darker malts create a nice feeling on the palate, allowing some chocolate/caramel hints to interact with the banana undertones. It is a little undercarbonated, and that is the only thing preventing a 5.0.

Drinkability: I have not had a good weizen in ages. Having this reminded me of why they are fantastic. Light, refreshing and airy and relatively low in alcohol, this is one good beer (and style, too). I highly recommend this one.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2006 21:57:26 | More by akorsak

WVbeergeek

Ohio

4.47/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Chestnut brown ruby effervescent offwhite chunky head leaves huge collar of lacing nice appearance big yeasty dregs pour out of my bottle it's nice. Aroma: I'm getting an array of fruit tones, green apples, raisins, and soft banana tones with a slight citrus hint to it all leaves me with spices and clove with some Hallertau in the finish giving it an herbal quality. Taste: Soft chocolate hints blended with banana clove yeast notes and other spices once again the plethora of fruit shines light upon my palate nice. Mouthfeel: Spritzy and bubbly but not overcarbonated medium to light in body this is a magnificant dunkel hefe. Drinkability: Unparalled for the style simply put just enjoy it's worth it.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2003 07:41:34 | More by WVbeergeek

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a clouded gold brown with no head. Nose is slightly sweet in a banana kind of way. That is basically the prevalent fragrance that hits you the whole time. Bananas. Big fields of them. Flavor is smooth and a bit mild, but even. There is that hefe typical character there with a strong banana skin profile to it, just like the nose. Feel is smooth on the mouth. Definitely drinkable. A really good brew that is worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2007 01:30:12 | More by RblWthACoz

barleywinefiend

Washington

4.15/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a dark maple brown color with a thick foamy tan head big and cloudy too. Nose is chocolate, brown sugar, clove, wheat and banana. Taste is smooth tasting beer with hints of maple, chocolate maltiness, banana and a touch of clove spiciness. Really good Dunkel overall.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2009 13:22:45 | More by barleywinefiend

rhoadsrage

Illinois

3.73/5  rDev -12.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

(Served in a weizen glass)

A- This beer has a big rocky tan head that is fizzing away with a strong carbonation. The body is a nice warm brown with a slight hazy to it.

S- The smell is soft phenols with a faint clove hint and some very faint banana hints. The smell of bubblegum is faint but a little stronger than the cloves and banana. Some notes of raw grain and bread are in there aswell.

T- A slight tartness in the initial taste. Some bubblegum flavors are not as strong as the raw grain and whole wheat bread flavors. The finish is a little carbonic with a slight sweetness.

M-medium mouthfeel with some fizz from the carbonation

D- It is missing a lot of the depth of fruits and yeast characters that I like in German wheat beers. It would be nice to have a little maltyness and maybe some other characters to tone down or balance the bubblegum notes.

Serving type: bottle

10-04-2005 20:13:32 | More by rhoadsrage

Wasatch

Utah

4.03/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a cloudy light brown color, nice carbonation, nice creamy 2 finger head, tons of lacing afterwards. The nose is of malts, yeast, bananna, cloves, slightly grassy, and slight caramel. The taste follows the nose malty/grassy, nice taste of cloves/bananna, nice crisp finish. Medium body. Very drinkable, very freshing brew, highly recommend.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2006 21:36:11 | More by Wasatch

jdhilt

New Hampshire

3.38/5  rDev -20.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a three-finger white head that vanishes quickly leaving no lace. Good carbonation and medium bodied. Hazy light amber color, no yeast settling out. Nose is mostly yeast and some malt. Flavor is dominated by the yeast, some wheat, sweet yeasty finish. Not nearly as good as when I had it 7 years ago. $3.25 for a 500ml bottle from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma.

Serving type: bottle

06-01-2010 22:17:16 | More by jdhilt

Jason

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Presentation: 12 oz sleek euro brown bottle with the boasting words “Oldest Brewery in the World” on the label, freshness date is on the back label.

Appearance: Deep tarnish copper with a red hue, some haze from the addition of the yeast into the glass. After a proper pouring a thick meringue like head forms and stay for the duration.

Smell: Malty nose, light brown malt or toasted. Suggestions of green apple, yeast and pie spice also in the aroma.

Taste: Moderate body that is well structured and able to hold the soft malty palate, very crisp carbonation that is at a perfect level. As soon as the carbonation hits there is a spicy snap of clove and a twang from the fermented wheat. Nice even malt flavour with a bit of toasted and dry malt character. Neutral though a bit nutty yeast on the tongue. Minimal bitterness from the hops, barely noticeable. Vague fruitiness of over dried raisins and plantains though esters are controlled. All in all the finish is quite clean and is comparatively a dry beer.

Notes: By far one of the greatest dark wheat beers available in the US market to date, very soft on the palate … no harshness at all. Malt flavour is near perfection with all the other flavours kept as a backdrop to let the malt be dominant.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2002 10:33:52 | More by Jason

mdfb79

New York

4.43/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

From 12/08/10 notes. Had on tap at The Saloon in Washington, DC. Served into a 0.5L Georgetown Saloon weizen glass.

a - Pours a darkish brown color with 2 fingers of fluffy off white head and moderate carbonation evident. Head lasts for several minutes and leaves light lacing on the glass.
Looks great.

s - Smells of bananas, cloves, spices, wheat, and toasted malts. Bananas jump right out at you.

t - Tastes of bananas, toasted malts, wheat, bready malts, very light spices, and sweet caramel malts. Tastes amazing, pretty perfect for the style.

m - Medium body and high carbonation that stings the tongue. A little less carbonated and the mouthfeel would be great.

d - A very good beer hurt by it's high carbonation. This was probably the best tasting dunkelweizen I've had and it looked great as well. Would certainly have again but I think if it was less carbonated it could be even better.

Serving type: on-tap

12-09-2010 19:11:09 | More by mdfb79