Schneider Weisse Original

The waves of clove, ripe banana, and sweet tangerine aromas wafting from the glass of Schneider Weisse Original promise great things within. This brew from the producers of acclaimed Bavarian weissbiers impressed Pete with its luscious banana and tropical fruit. But he felt the spicy clove notes played the starring role and possibly blew away any malt or bready wheat aromas there may have been. Tom, however, found the sweet maltiness in the nose quite appealing and was reminded of German sweet rolls. He found intricate layers of clove, barely ripe banana, and cotton candy riding beneath the malt. Throwing a massive, meringue-like, off-white head, this beer fairly leaps from the glass during the pour. This weissbier is dark gold and displays the classic cloudiness expected of the style. Full-bodied and somewhat chewy, this beer is effervescent enough to not be cloying, and the flavor profile is packed with spice, bready malt, and a slight nuttiness. Lee found the nuttiness of the malt and somewhat intense clove flavors were almost too big for the style and that it leaned toward a weizenbock. Still, he was entranced by the melding of banana, spice, and barely perceptible lemon zest, and felt the overall flavor was superb. Rick wound up on the other side of the coin and felt the beer was actually a bit thin and lacking in carbonation for style. He enjoyed the citric tang and sweetish, bubblegum-like flavors weaving through the malt. Yet another praiseworthy entry from Schneider, the Original Weisse stands shoulder-to-shoulder with any Bavarian weissbier.