After the Schneider and Brooklyner Hopfen-Weisse press release we posted a little while ago, I decided to go to my favorite local liquor store and pick up a couple bottles.

Before I get into any tasting notes, here is some background information about Schneider-Brooklyner Hopfen-Weisse and the conditions in which I tried it:

• 16.9 oz Bottle in a Schneider weizen glass
• 8.2% ABV
• 40 IBU
• 19.3 Original Gravity
• Hops: Hallertauer Tradition, Hallertauer Saphir
• Malts: Pale Wheat Malt, Pale Two-row Barley malt

The commercial description (from RateBeer.com) goes a little something like this:

“This unique beer is the result of the long friendship of Schneider brewmaster Hans-Peter Drexler and Brooklyn brewmaster Garrett Oliver. The two brewmasters feel that Schneider-Brooklyner Hopfen-Weisse represents the quality, tradition and terroir of the Bavarian Hallertauer hop region paired with the innovation and creative energy for which Brooklyn is famous.”

And now, on to what I thought of the Schneider and Brooklyn collaboration…

Appearance

Poured a murky, copper-brown in color with a very big and bubbly off-white head. Very nice lacing on the Schneider glass I tasted out of.

The color was interesting but sort of gross-looking and the head was nice but its retention was somewhat annoying.

Aroma

Upon sinking my nose into my glass I noticed some floral and citrus (lemon) hop notes.

Smelled a lot like a hefeweizen but with noticeable hoppy characteristics.

Slight hints of banana, clove, and coriander.

Flavor

Somewhat spicy with a lot of wheat up front followed by bitter hops.

Finished with a light hop profile, hints of citrus, and even a little sweet malt.

The dry hopping with Hallertauer Saphir hops was definitely noticeable.

Overall

Overall, Schneider-Brooklyner Hopfen-Weisse was a treat. It had my senses all sorts of confused.

There were traces of floral hops, citrus hops, spices, fruit, and malts. Truly an interesting and tasty brew.

Conclusion

Very good overall (9 out of 10 ~= B+).

Alcohol content was not overpowering which made this hefe very refreshing, however, slightly deceiving.

Despite an ABV of 8.2%, I’d say this brew would be awesome for a late Saturday afternoon session or paired with some spicy meats. Definitely worth the price for a $3.99 16.9 oz bottle!

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