Portsmouth Winter Weizen - Portsmouth Brewery

Kinsman

New Hampshire

4.15/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Seems a little late in the year for them to be serving Winter Weizen but hey, who cares? I'll drink it anyway. Grabbed this bottle on my way out the other day.

Cloudy dark amber colored body with an impressive eggshell colored head, a full 3 fingers thick and pillowy at first. Fades with a fair bit of sticky lace left behind. Unfortunately I don't have a Weizen glass on hand but I'm sure this beer would look damn sexy in one.

Aroma initially has hints of banana bread before the stronger spice not comes along. Yeast strain seems quite appropriate for a dunkelweizen, providing plenty of phenolic notes and some estery fruitiness.

Taste is rather heaving on the spice note, with the usual suspects of clove, corriander, and maybe even a bit of white pepper (admittedly, I need to become more familiar with this so I can more easily identify it in beer). Wheat adds some sweet biscuity like qualities. Finishes with a light touch of grassy and earthy hop flavors.

Mouthfeel is a bit heavy for a wheat beer but it gives this more of a robust quality I feel is appropriate for a Winter beer. Overall, a nice dunkelweizen but spice qualities overpower the malts a bit too much.

Serving type: bottle

04-29-2011 00:14:53 | More by Kinsman

corey0212

Massachusetts

4.18/5  rDev +1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Got the last bottle in the shop at The Portsmouth Brewery!!

Pours a hazed copper color, darker around the edges. Creamy white head diminishes, but stays with the beer for the duration. Smells like banana bread, and I'm loving that! There's clove in there, too. Crazy lingering banana flavor, spicy too. Nice creamy mouthfeel....this is just excellent!

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2008 23:02:39 | More by corey0212

selecter70

Massachusetts

4.35/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A summery winter wheat, or a wintry summer wheat? Both. And as such, something very drinkable throughout the year. Recommended by staff at the brewpub itself, this Weizen poured out a bit flat with no head, yet upon sampling had 'hidden' carbonation that opened up a nicely complex flavor. On on hand there was a slightly Christmas quality with apple ginger hints and a medium body. On the other hand, there was a lightness that displayed lemon-cloves that reminded one of summer. Not too sweet, nice wheat hops and definitely an easy beer to enjoy.

Serving type: on-tap

12-15-2008 23:12:17 | More by selecter70

mjn5036

New Hampshire

3.4/5  rDev -17.9%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 1 | overall: 3.5

On tap at the brewery.

The beer arrives at my table in a standard pint glass. There is not head to be found. No lacing. No carbonation seems to be present at all for that matter. The color of the beer itself is vibrant amber with golden/orange hues. Not a great start.

The nose is a little subdued for the style but I still get the generic banana and clove, a bit of spice and a nice malty background.

The initial flavor is ripe banana and other sweet fruits. From here on out the clove and heavy dose of spices takes over and never really leaves. Clove and cinnamon seem to be the culprits here. The taste is good; don't get me wrong, I just prefer a more balanced tasting brew in this category.

The mouthfeel seems to be spot on with a light-medium body and silky smooth feeling over my tongue, however it lacks one thing...CARBONATION. As this was the way it was served to me I feel as though I have the right to review it as such. There was zero carbonation in this glass of beer which is a killer for it.

Overall, I think this has the potential to be a quite solid dunkelweizen. It would have been vastly better if the spice and clove was cut back a bit in order to let the banana shine, and if it were carbonated - these two crucial areas really hurt its overall score.

Serving type: on-tap

04-09-2011 03:46:38 | More by mjn5036

Norica

Massachusetts

4.63/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured into a weizen glass, appearance and lacing doesn't get any better. Aroma and finish of slight cloves, faint banana in the nose but predominantly bubblegum. This beer blows away any import dunkelweizen that you can find stateside, a true joy to drink. 7% and loaded with yumminess, a beer to drink all day/night long that doesn't B$#@*slap your palate and forget where you parked your car. If only other US brewers would pay more attention to similiar styles and doing them as well as this. I hope there is more left the next time I'm in Portsmouth. Cheers to great beers <7%!!!

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2009 05:53:27 | More by Norica

GarthTaargus

New Hampshire

4.78/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

A: 22 oz bottle w/ classic Portsmouth Brewery label w/ "Winter Weizen" hand-written in sharpie on the front. No freshness or bottling date. This beer pours with a towering creamy head, standing tall for awhile, then settling into a rocky yet igneous surface of at least 1/2 inch throughout. Beautiful cloudy golden color. Looks great.

S: Smells of freshly baked bread, ripe bananas, clove, and cinnamon. Like a loaf of banana bread.

T: First sip is bananas and spice, giving way to a strong wheat taste, finishes both buttery and cinnamon-fresh. The slightest tang. Tastes crisp with mild bittering hops paving the way for an oh-so smooth sweetness, but not cloying. This is like the best dessert ever.

M: Like drinking cumulonimbus clouds. A great body containing a light, delicate fizz with a slickness that keeps it sliding down the trap, begging you for another quaff. So luxurious and refreshing.

D: A perfect five for drinkability. You couldn't find a more drinkable beer. I could drink a gallon of this.

Notes: This is absolutely the best Weizen/Weizebock/Dunkelweizen I have ever had. Better than all the big name german ones, even. Kudos to Todd and Tyler for putting Portsmouth on the map, again. I wish this was a year-round brew.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2009 03:42:37 | More by GarthTaargus