Thumbprint 6: Weizen Doppelbock by New Glarus Brewing Co.

Back in 2021, New Glarus Brewing bid good riddance to the worst of the pandemic and its lockdowns with Gyrator, a doppelbock that eased me into winter with a rush of malty goodness and a nice buzz. Apparently others were similarly smitten and we collectively made Gyrator into a hit. Well, as big a hit a New Glarus beer that isn't Spotted Cow can be, I guess.

Realizing they had stumbled onto something good, Dan Carey and his brewhouse minions (with the blessing of Deb Carey, of course) went the doppelbock route again last fall and loosed Weizen Doppelbock upon us late in the autumn.

The weizen doppelbock is, as far as I know, a bigger, chewier, more potent version of the venerable hefeweizen/weissbier, a.k.a. - the German wheat bier. The style involves boiling a bunch of wheat that has been bolstered with some barley and then letting the resulting proto-bier mingle with a particular type of yeast that poops out tasty phenols and esters that your tongue thinks are like banana, clove, bubble gum, et al. Today I learned that this yeast strain is called Torulaspora delbrueckii. I suppose a weizen doppelbock is just this formula with more ingredients.

While hefeweizens are fairly common, their doppelbock cousins are not. When it comes to this style, I immediately think of Tap 6: Mein Avenitus from the German brewery Schneider Weisse - G. Schneider & Sohn. It is the platonic ideal of a weizen doppelbock from a brewery that turns the popular drink into an art form. They seem to have weissbier in their blut and brew various takes on the style: cloudy, clear, bocky, eisbocky, extra hoppy, aged in wine barrels, und so weiter.

In addition to increasing my yeast knowledge today, I have also learned that the name "Aventinus" refers to the Bavarian historian of that same name, a.k.a. - Johannes Turmair, who lived from 1477-1534. Now, why the bier was named after him is as of yet unknown to me. Perhaps it's just a tribute to a local boy who done good for himself.

For their part, New Glarus seem to have taken a cue from Tap 6. Their weizen doppelbock appears to be rather traditional, if the text on the bottle is to be believed. No mention of added fruit nor the use of experimental hops; no kveik-torulaspora hybrid yeast for that Norwegian farmhouse weizen taste.

 

The beer came with a lovely firm, light tan head of no small volume. And it had staying power too, owing, no doubt, to all of the protein from the wheat. (60% wheat, I hear.) It was deep copper in color and cloudy. I could smell banana even though my glass was several inches from my nose. Moving it closer, I also caught bubble gum and a wheaty-grainy aroma. Although it had been a while since I'd had an Aventinus, I felt my memories of it come flooding back in every sip of estery goodness.

Although it had a medium-full body, there was also a hefty dose of fizz here that kept my tongue from being cloyed by all the malty sweetness. Banana and bubble gum were the most prominent flavors from that special yeast, but there was a hint of clove in there too. That sweetness was a bit like raisin and balanced by some hops which had a herbal, vaguely minty taste. And there was the taste of wheat as well.

The fruity flavors lingered on the finish as the sweetness faded. Something like mild cinnamon entered the picture here as the hops gained in strength. They, along with some boozy heat, made for a nice dry, bitter finish that stood in stark contrast to the big malty sweetness that I had just swallowed.

My tasting was done in February and this weizen doppelbock made a fine companion on a chilly night. Furthermore, I can recommend its muscle relaxing qualities after shoveling snow. The label notes that it was double decocted but I didn't detect much, if anything, in the way of the toasty bread flavor I associate with that process. Maybe it was just me because, when I see "weizen", I immediately start thinking of banana and clove and all of the flavors from the yeast and how I prefer the former. Perhaps I was concentrating on that and not any traces of Maillard reactions and this steered by tastebuds in a certain direction.

Regardless, this is a very fine beer. I hope that the trend continues this autumn with a roggenbier brewed to bock strength so I can have a taste-off with Tippy Toboggan.

Junk food pairing: When drinking one of these Weizen Doppelbocks, shake hands with beef and pop open a bag of Lay's Kobe Steak flavored potato chips.