Original Schlüssel
Hausbrauerei Zum Schlüssel

Original SchlüsselOriginal Schlüssel
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From:
Hausbrauerei Zum Schlüssel
 
Germany
Style:
Altbier
Ranked #11
ABV:
5%
Score:
90
Ranked #8,626
Avg:
4.06 | pDev: 11.33%
Reviews:
35
Ratings:
74
Status:
Active
Rated:
Nov 15, 2023
Added:
Oct 03, 2002
Wants:
  23
Gots:
  6
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Photo of jzainasheff
Reviewed by jzainasheff from California

5/5  rDev +23.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Schlüssel Altbier, the most award winning Altbier in Düsseldorf, is chestnut brown at an SRM of 18 (35 EBC). The beautiful red highlights twinkle in the taproom lights under a tight, creamy white head. It has a nutty and bready malt character with some very slight caramel notes in the background. It is smooth and rich yet finishes dry. Noble hops at 32 IBU balance out any residual malt sweetness and provide a lovely, delicate hop note in the finish. Fermentation is flawless, providing a clean, lager-like beer, but with the character and esters from open fermentation. At 5.0% ABV it is easy to quickly consume liters of this beer before you realize it.
Nov 15, 2023
Photo of Gatch
Reviewed by Gatch from Massachusetts

4.58/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
As with all breweries and bars in this region, they walk around with trays full of quarter liter glasses ready to put one down once you finish and mark a tick on your coaster. This is a brighter, more lively watering hole compared to Uerige. A bit more friendly and inviting too. The Altbier here is also slightly better than them. From a wooden barrel, the flavor is typical Altbier but kicked up a notch. Sweeter than Uerige with an earthier, richer character.
Nov 10, 2023
 
Rated: 4.25 by steverx8 from England

Jul 28, 2022
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Hausbrauerei Zum Schlüssel "Alt"
2,40€ / ,25L on tap at the brewery on 28 September 2021

Look: Clear dark russet brown with golden, orange, and copper colored highlights beneath a full head of off-white foam. The head holds well, and then drops, but leaves great lacing behind.
Smell: Aroma of grainy malt with caramel and fallen apple.
Taste: Grainy, sweetish malt with dark caramel, underlying apple and dark fruit, and herbal and spicy hops. A stiff, median bitterness balances it and it finishes dry with a lingering herbal note.
Feel: Medium bodied and crisp with a natural, fine-bubbled, median carbonation level.
Overall: This is probably the best altbier in Düsseldorf in the spicy/bitter class.
Jan 08, 2022
Photo of BeerAndGasMasks
Reviewed by BeerAndGasMasks from Virginia

4.03/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
From the flip top bottle, it pours a clear brown color with reddish highlights and a very light brown head that lasts. The scent is malty with notes of caramel. The taste follows,with a delightfully pleasant altbier.
Jun 12, 2021
Photo of KooVee
Reviewed by KooVee from Finland

4.57/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
5l keg, 1m old. (Did not drink it in one go while reviewing)

Ruby shade of clear mahogany, fine foam that quite quickly subsides.

Nose is very definite münchener malt, accompanied by a hint of caramel and dark chocolate.

Taste takes the nutty, toasted münchener to the front, but also pulls along some pleasant subtle hop bitterness to settle on the sides of one's tongue. Mouthfeel is perfect for drinkability. Just a bit of bitter chocolate in the aftertaste, and a mouthwatering silky roundness to the nutty finish, spreading across one's tongue.

A classic example of the style, eminently drinkable. In some ways a bit like a very good (and strong) dark mild, without the fruitiness.
Dec 28, 2019
 
Rated: 3.25 by Hayley_86 from Netherlands

Dec 21, 2018
 
Rated: 4.03 by windowside from Germany

Dec 05, 2018
 
Rated: 4.13 by DOCRW from Kentucky

Dec 02, 2018
 
Rated: 4.06 by SadMachine from New Jersey

Sep 11, 2018
 
Rated: 3.75 by iftcoach from Germany

Jul 15, 2018
Photo of safaricook
Reviewed by safaricook from Netherlands

3.79/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
What a beautiful head this gave in my Stange glass!
Aroma and flavors were deep with roast, nuts, smoke, burnt sourdough bread and butter. Not certain if I enjoyed all of it though
goes down nicely
Interesting expressive Alt.
May 19, 2018
Photo of Snowcrash000
Reviewed by Snowcrash000 from Germany

4.33/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Pours a slightly cloudy, deep mahogany coloration with a large, creamy head. Smells of bready, slightly grainy and roasted malt and herbal, earthy hops, with hints of dark fruit and nuts as well. Taste is an excellent balance of bready, grainy, slightly roasted and caramelly malt and herbal, earthy hops, as well as a distinct walnut presence and hints of dark fruit, with notes of raisin and fig. Finishes with a light/medium bitterness and some bready, roasted malt and herbal, earthy hops lingering in the aftertaste. Smooth mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation.

Schlüssel is probably my favorite Alt beer, as it's the most dark, roasted and complex of the Düsseldorf Alts. Even though it could be a bit more bitter for my personal taste, the overall balance of bitter, roasted, and sweet notes really is outstanding here, with a great dry and lightly roasted character, good bitterness and light sweetness. The rather herbal and earthy hops fit this flavor profile perfectly, while the distinct, nutty walnut presence and subtle dark fruit notes leave a rather rich impression here. Overall, I think that Schlüssel is kinda underrated. While it could be more bitter and full-bodied, it makes up for that with that certain roastiness, great overall balance and richness of character.
May 14, 2018
 
Rated: 4 by jroof1 from Massachusetts

Nov 25, 2017
Photo of DJ-Hophead
Reviewed by DJ-Hophead from England

4/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Tap @ Schlussel Brauhaus, Dusseldorf - Pours light brown with a large white foamy head. Nice lacing. Aroma - yeasty/malty front, roasty notes in the middle, leading to light crisp bitter finish. Solid alt bier.
Feb 25, 2017
Photo of drmeto
Reviewed by drmeto from Germany

3.75/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
L:
-pours a clear copper with a medium,foamy,offwhite head
-medium carbonation
S:
caramel,spicy,nutty,plums,cinnamon
T:
-caramel,spicy,plums,grassy,nutty
-low to medium bitterniss for the style
F:
-medium carbonation
-light body
O:
Very good Altbier.Noticeably sweeter than other Examples
Jan 04, 2017
 
Rated: 4.34 by HopBelT from Belgium

Dec 11, 2016
 
Rated: 4.06 by JTuomi from Finland

Oct 08, 2016
 
Rated: 3 by lhwjanssen from Netherlands

May 22, 2016
Photo of aleigator
Reviewed by aleigator from Germany

4.08/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Pours a hazelnut brown, clear color, with some ember sparks to it. Offers up a very stable, huge, froth head, coating the glass for the whole time.

Smells of an intriguing blend of toffee malts, leafy, herbal hops and a faint, skunky yeast reminiscence. An utmost rustic, whole grain bread appearance forms the fusion of those different aromas, completed by malt enhanced straw.

Has a very soft, almost silk mouthfeel from the beginning till the end, making this an easy drinker, also due to its refreshing, light body. This still provides more taste than your typical Lager, as for its profound hop punch, making this perfect to go with rich meals.

Way less maltier than the beer's color indicated, certainly the malts lay out the foundation in this, while they produce a unique wooden dryness, once the hops appear. Garden herbs, straw, and grass get coated up by toffee malts and a hint of bakers chocolate. Finishes very clean, soft, with fresh yeast lending a light tartness to caramel malts.

A perfect example for this style, producing a fairly dry, yet malt driven beer, benefitting from a world class, long time established balance.
Apr 23, 2016
Original Schlüssel from Hausbrauerei Zum Schlüssel
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 74 ratings