Spoetzl Brewery
Shiner, TX
Available: AL, AK, AZ, AR, CA, CO, DC, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MD, MI, MN, MS, MT, NC, NE, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WV, WY
This brewery was founded 100 years ago in Shiner, TX, and leased five years later by Bavarian brewmaster Kosmos Spoetzl.
ABV: 6.8
ABW: 5.4
Color: 30
Bitterness: 17
Original gravity: 1068
This German-style stark bier celebrates 100 years of the brewery—a remarkable achievement in an age of takeovers and mergers. It has a russet/red color with an impressive head of foam, followed by a big bready and yeasty nose balanced by earthy hop resins and burnt fruit. There are hints of chocolate and roasted grain in the mouth with gentle hop bitterness. Hops are more evident in the finish but they are countered by roasted grain, dark fruits and a continuing chocolate note. I raise my glass in salutation: here's to the next 100.
The copper-colored beer raises a fine tan head. The aroma shows bready malts with just the slightest whiff of hops in the background. The palate opens sweet, round, full-bodied and clean. The finish is semi-sweet and malty. Spoetzl should be quite proud of this one—it's worthy of their 100 years. And at this rate, they'll surely have 100 more. Rock on, in this case with tamales stuffed with pork carnitas.
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.
