Well, summer is almost over. Even in Seattle we’ve enjoyed a late burst of Summer weather, but a little rain here and there, some of the leaves have started changing and the 10-day weather outlook is definitely headed in the direction of Fall. In honor of the end of summer, today’s beer review is Ayinger’s Ur-Weisse. A traditional summer brew, with ties to its relative, Hefeweizen.
The Ur-Weisse is just a little bit darker than your typical wheat-beer - sort of like a wheat/amber concoction - but still packs that refreshing taste with a hint of fruit, of course topped off with a lemon wedge. That slightly darker color means a higher alcohol content too, 5.8% (hollering!). Here’s how the folks at Ayinger describe it:
“The union of wheaty freshness and dark malt often produces a fullness of taste and complexity”, explains the world-famous English beer commentator Michael Jackson. This also applies to the Ayinger Ur-Weisse, which is a strong amber-colored, yeast cloudy wheat beer. The beer is strong with the first taste and malty in aroma. The top-fermented, yeasty taste sensation is unmistakable. This beer is rich in sparkle and has just a touch of a special bitter quality. The fruity, malty mild aroma will have you won you over immediately!
I loved this beer, it’s pretty much everything good in the world packed into a brown bottle. Finding one of those bottles is now the hard part. Luckily I discovered it at a restaurant, at first I was slightly peeved they didn’t have anything on draft, but I really can’t complain if you’re at least going to make up for it with some awesome and unique bottled beer. Try your local up-scale grocery store (Whole Foods) or hopefully you have a place like Bottleworks in your neighborhood.
