![]() Last of the set isn't branded as an Alpirsbacher but is from the same brewery as the others. I have to wonder why it's in the small bottle instead of the other one. It's actually not dissimilar to the Starkbier above, but is much more approachable though lacking the bigger herbal hops. A touch of nettle on the nose, but nothing to be too concerned about, followed by a flavour shot through with more golden syrup plus fresh-baked bread. The joker in the pack is Kleiner Mö nch, a dark gold number in a vaguely märzen style at 5.4% ABV. ![]() ![]() Even as it warms up it remains an enjoyable honeyish sipper. I'm a little surprised by how much I liked this. The body is full, barely troubled by the fizz, and while there is that slightly sticky sweet booziness you often get in Strong Lager For The Less Discerning Gentleman, it's compensated for by some quite hefty up-front hopping, giving it a kind of candied fruit effect with added herbal complexities, only turning towards park bench/bus station territory towards the finish. No sickliness or booze on the nose of Kloster Starkbier, however, just a subtle breadiness. Let's see how they get on with a more full-on style.Ī purple label, 7.3% ABV: hooray! I thought, with no good reason, a doppelbock! My face fell as the dark gold beer poured out, and I braced myself for some German trampwarmer. I'm starting to build an impression of Alpirsbacher as a fastidious yet unimaginative brewery. There's just enough of a light soft fruit vibe to satisfy this drinker's weissbier cravings, and it's certainly very chuggable without getting too filling as it goes. It definitely lacks the full-on fruity esters of its Bavarian counterparts but at the same time there's a nice crispness to it, something I associate, again, more with northern weissbiers like Flensburger's. The blue-label Weizen follows next, described as " hefe hell" on the label, and is very hell indeed: a slightly sickly looking translucent yellow. At 5.4% ABV I'd want a bigger taste return on my liver's investment. It's clean, there's a nice unrefined rustic graininess, but other than that, very little flavour to speak of. I get the impression that this is meant for rowdy session drinking in quantity and the taste doesn't really matter. Like many of the bottled kellerbiers (surely such a thing shouldn't exist?) I've tried it lacks any real character. The orangey-yellow body topped by a big fluffy head makes it look for all the world like a weissbier. The kellerbier next, and Kloster Naturtrüb is exactly as the name suggests: densely cloudy. I guess it could get a bit sickly if left too long, but other than that we have a solid, workmanlike, better-than-average pilsner. You need to wait for it to warm up before any malt comes through at all and it does so with a splash of golden syrup and honey. It could pass for stronger than 4.9% ABV for sure. The texture is beautifully smooth, more like a Munich helles or even a märzen, the fizz kept well in check by its weightiness. It's one of your no-messing-about hop-forward German pils, the sort I associate more with the north, from my admittedly limited experience. Though the aroma is quite bready, a strike of waxy vegetal bitterness greets the first sip. It's a very pale golden colour, pouring with a thick head that subsides quickly but leaves a finger of foam on top of the body. ![]() A long way from Tipperary, you might say.Īnyhoo, I opened the Pils first. Alpirsbach, for them as are interested, is in Baden-Württemberg: the south-western corner of Germany. The good folk at Ambrosius Trading, down Tipperary way, have recently acquired the distribution rights to the Alpirsbacher Klosterbräu range of beers and at the beginning of the year were kind enough to send me a sample selection of the range. ![]()
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