Brauhaus Faust
Miltenberg, Germany
Imported by: Schwelmer Beer Imports
Brooklyn, NY
Available: MA, PA, NY, VA, NC, GA, FL, IL, NJ, CA, WA
Brewed in the scenic town of Miltenberg, famous for its well-preserved half-timbered houses, some dating back to the 12th century. This beer is sold in Germany under the family name “Faust.”
Alcohol (vol.): 5.1
Alcohol (wt): 4.1
Color: 4.9
Bitterness: 12
Original gravity: 1050
A classic German wheat beer. It has the famous signature on the nose of bananas and cloves from the action of the special yeast culture. It’s dry and spicy in the mouth with a big, nose-tingling punch of cloves. The finish is long and refreshing with a continuing banana and spices character, sappy malt and a gentle hop note. Hold the lager — this would be the perfect companion for a Korma curry.
Pours a hazy pale gold and raises a fluffy white head. The nose shows nice banana and clove aromatics with an underlying breadiness. The palate lacks bitterness and body, even for hefeweizen, instead offering a very dry fruitiness through the center. The finish is abrupt as it signs off with a quick tang. This is a perfectly fine hefeweizen, competently brewed but oddly short on overall liveliness. It’s fully carbonated, yet lacks that essential extra sparkle I like to see in wheat beers. That said, it’s a good lawnmower beer to go with those coconut shrimp you’ve been thinking about.
Roger Protz is the author of Complete Guide to World Beer and 300 Beers to Try Before You Die. He is a respected beer authority and editor of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.
Internationally recognized brewer and expert on traditional beer, Garrett Oliver is the brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery and the author of The Brewmaster's Table.
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