Went to Italy on vacation, had epiphany on German beer

Discussion in 'Germany' started by boddhitree, Aug 3, 2012.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. jonb5

    jonb5 Pooh-Bah (1,631) May 11, 2010 England
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Have just read in the Spiegel that "Billig Bier Koenig" Guenther Kollmar has died. According to the article he was responsible for turning a normal Bavarian brewery into what Oettinger is today.
     
  2. Gutes_Bier

    Gutes_Bier Maven (1,339) Jul 31, 2011 Germany

    I'm having a case of Spezial Rauchbier delivered sometime this week. Perhaps I will do a double-blind side-by-side taste test Oettinger vs. Spezial Rauchbier using 4 oz. samples to determine which beer I like more. In the case of Oettinger, I will allow less than 4 ounces.
     
    herrburgess likes this.
  3. Gutes_Bier

    Gutes_Bier Maven (1,339) Jul 31, 2011 Germany

    OK, so in honor of the good Herr Kollmar, I spent a pretty penny at the local Kaufland and brought back one each of Oettinger's Schwarzbier (€0.36), Urtyp Helles (€0.37) and Kellerbier (€0.40). All prices for 500 ml glass bottles ohne Pfand (and hopefully ohne Pferd). Their Vollbier Helles and Pils were significantly cheaper at €0.29 and €0.22, respectively, although I didn't look closely and the €0.22 may have been for the 330 ml bottles. I will be trying these out over the course of the next few days.
     
  4. boddhitree

    boddhitree Pooh-Bah (1,765) Apr 13, 2008 Germany
    Pooh-Bah

    Please use caution during exposure to such harsh elements. Make sure you have a ready antidote handy to this possible palate threatening material, like a Schenkerla or another high taste value beer! It might save your sanity and prevent long term damage to your psyche. Please, I beg you, be very careful. Only Asi's (anti-socials) can drink this stuff due to their long term vaccination and tolerance from exposure from crap beer.
     
    Gutes_Bier likes this.
  5. boddhitree

    boddhitree Pooh-Bah (1,765) Apr 13, 2008 Germany
    Pooh-Bah

    This doesn't make sense. Oettinger is based and brewed in Braunschweig (Brunswick), which is near Hannover in the north of Germany. You can see the brewery from the train station of Braunschweig.
     
  6. herrburgess

    herrburgess Grand Pooh-Bah (3,053) Nov 4, 2009 South Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Huh? My wife is from Braunschweig and I was just back there for Xmas. I know of no brewery visible from the train station and only 2 breweries in operation in the city (Feldschloesschen and Wolters). You sure you have that right?

    EDIT: just checked. It's a Zweigniederlassung in the Feldschloesschen complex. Not visible from the station, but maybe from the train on the way into town from the east.
     
  7. boddhitree

    boddhitree Pooh-Bah (1,765) Apr 13, 2008 Germany
    Pooh-Bah

    I took the train last weekend from FFM to Berlin. Actually, it's just after the Braunschweig station. It seems they have more than one "address," as you can see here. Braunschweig is only a branch brewery, it says, and the management is in Bayern. Still, crap beer.
     
  8. JackHorzempa

    JackHorzempa Grand Pooh-Bah (3,181) Dec 15, 2005 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Society

    “Still, crap beer.”

    So, in your opinion is it “bad” beer?

    Prost!
     
  9. Gutes_Bier

    Gutes_Bier Maven (1,339) Jul 31, 2011 Germany

    Oh man, I wish I had read this before drinking. First up, Oettinger Kellerbier. In baseball terms, 0-for-1. Perhaps a longer review coming later.
     
  10. herrburgess

    herrburgess Grand Pooh-Bah (3,053) Nov 4, 2009 South Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Yea, not good. Is there anything on the bottle indicating in which Zweigstelle it was brewed? I am wondering if that is having any influence on my surprisingly non-terrible experience. Maybe since I had it in Braunschweig it was simply fresh enough as to not be too bad?
     
  11. TreinJan

    TreinJan Initiate (0) Apr 13, 2006 Netherlands

  12. Gutes_Bier

    Gutes_Bier Maven (1,339) Jul 31, 2011 Germany

    The address on the bottle was Oettingen. It's not clear if that is the corporate HQ or where it was brewed.
     
  13. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,030) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Society

    On the train from Munich to Würzburg I took a stroll to see if I could find the dining car. A very tall conductor with an epic Schnürbart was checking 2 Japanese passengers' tickets and I made a sideways move to get past them in the (very) narrow passage way, "Entschuldigung, bitte."

    Without looking up from the ticket the conductor lightly places his hand on my shoulder, "Moment, bitte." (cue the suspenseful music)

    I wait as the conductor finishes with the other passengers and turns to me in very quick "language" from which I can extract that he's looking for my ticket; "Langsam, bitte, langsam -- Ich spreche nur wenig Deutche."

    "Ich auch spreche nur wenig Deutsche, Ich spreche Bayerisch." :grinning:

    If I hadn't been so caught up in this classic encounter I should have asked him to teach me Bayerisch!

    Oh, needless to say -- my papers were in order! :wink:
     
  14. Gutes_Bier

    Gutes_Bier Maven (1,339) Jul 31, 2011 Germany

    OK, a quick and dirty review of the Oettinger Kellerbier:

    500 ml bottle, best by of 14.08.2013, poured into a 400 ml Willi-Becher
    Appearance - actually pretty good. Slightly hazy as this is a Kellerbier, after all. Nice head with a strong pour. 3/5
    Aroma - also not bad. So far so good. 3/5
    Taste - at first sip, this actually wasn't bad. It had a lot of the flavors I associate with a typical Kellerbier, if maybe not as good. I was ready to be pleasantly surprised by my first Oettinger. However, with each progressive sip, the true nature of this beer began to reveal itself. I think I may have tasted what Herr Burgess has referred to in other threads as a harsh graininess. It became more evident with each passing sip, and eventually was all I could taste. Blech. I was watching my son while my wife cooked herself some dinner, and the beer ended up warming a bit before I could finish it. That did not do this beer any favors. 2/5
    Mouthfeel - I don't know. 3/5?
    Overall - a beer that only gets worse as you drink it. At €0.40, this was the most expensive of the three bottles I purchased. That does not bode well for my weekend, as I still have the Schwarzbier and the Urtyp Hell to get through. Not a drain pour, but also not a beer I particularly wanted to finish. Whoever said above that Oettinger beers aren't that bad owes me €1.13. :wink: 2/5.

    Side note: I went back to Kaufland and looked - the €0.22 Oettinger was indeed for the 330 ml bottles. Both the Pils and the Export were €0.29 for a 500 ml bottle.
    Side note 2: This beer does not appear to be in the BA database. Is this a new one from Oettinger?
    Edit to include Side note 3: After drinking this, I went to a Quiz Nite with some friends. I ordered their special, which was Astra Urtyp. It was not a good night of beer drinking for me.
     
    boddhitree, einhorn and herrburgess like this.
  15. herrburgess

    herrburgess Grand Pooh-Bah (3,053) Nov 4, 2009 South Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society

    I never tried the Kellerbier (so maybe I don't need to do an Auslandsueberweisung for the €1.13!), but that harsh graininess is IMO Oettinger's biggest flaw. It's also what bugs me most about U.S. "craft" lagers. I can't tell you how many times I've picked up some new "traditional lager with a twist" only to discover that same harsh graininess that I avoided for years in beers like Oettinger...but the price here for a half liter at the bottle shop isn't $0.25, rather $2.00 or more. "Luckily" most U.S. craft lagers hide these flaws under a heavy dose of hops. I mean, imagine picking up a 4-pack of Oettinger -- which is being marketed as "craft" beer -- for 6-7 Euro and getting that flavor...and perhaps you can better understand my frustration with U.S. "craft" lagers.
     
  16. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,611) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah Society

    The beer in Germany is almost always of good quality. I do have 2 examples where they were not.

    The Helles at Haufbrau Tegernsee was oxidized, this was in the afternoon and there was a full crowd.

    At the little brewpub in Mainz, all of the beers had a house flavor. It was an off vegetal taste in the finish, and was similar to that defect in homebrews that I have judged.
     
  17. jonb5

    jonb5 Pooh-Bah (1,631) May 11, 2010 England
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Have just checked the article again and it definitely says Bavarian Brewery. I have actually been to BS a few times to teach English, the first time I went I got on the wrong tram and went past the brewery. Have to say the smell it gave off was pretty disgusting.
     
    boddhitree likes this.
  18. JackHorzempa

    JackHorzempa Grand Pooh-Bah (3,181) Dec 15, 2005 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Society

    mjtierney2 stated: “ …but also not a beer I particularly wanted to finish.” Well, as individuals we all have our differing standards. From my perspective if I drank a beer where I didn’t particularly want to finish it I would consider it as being a “bad” beer.

    So, permit me to ask a follow-up question:

    · Stahlsturm mentioned: “most German breweries can go considering that you have had to learn your trade under the eyes of a master brewer for at least 8 YEARS.”
    · mjtierney2 stated: “I think I may have tasted what Herr Burgess has referred to in other threads as a harsh graininess. It became more evident with each passing sip, and eventually was all I could taste. Blech.”

    So, finally the question: how does a brewer who has been ‘trained’ for 8 years produce a product that results in a beer with “harsh graininess” which solicits a response of “Blech”?

    Prost!
     
    boddhitree likes this.
  19. herrburgess

    herrburgess Grand Pooh-Bah (3,053) Nov 4, 2009 South Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society

    2nd-rate ingredients.

    EDIT: ...and an absence of massive amounts of hops to cover up the 2nd-rate ingredients.
     
    steveh and Gutes_Bier like this.
  20. Gutes_Bier

    Gutes_Bier Maven (1,339) Jul 31, 2011 Germany

    That would be my guess. For my two-cents, I would agree that, speaking broadly, macro swill in Germany is not nearly as bad as macro swill in America but that doesn't mean there isn't bad beer here. I've had three drain pours in my time here, two were porters and the third because I apparently just cannot do woodruff. The woodruff Berliner Kindl doesn't count, but those two porters were genuinely bad beers (IMHO).
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.