Weihenstephaner Brewery
Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel is brewed by Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan (Bavarian State Brewery of Weihenstephan), a German brewery owned by the Free State of Bavaria located on the site of the former monastery Weihenstephan Abbey in Freising, Bavaria. The brewery claims to be the oldest brewery in the world, but this has not been verified by other sources. There are a variety of documents that date the brewery possibly going back to 1040. The brewery brews a variety of beers and features several wheat beers and many more.
Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel
Weihenstephaner describes Hefeweissbier Dunkel as “Our dark wheat beer is for those who truly savor beer – perfect for pairing with game, roast pork as well as desserts…Effervescent and full-bodied, a pleasantly light caramel note is perceptible in the flavour and imparts a velvety mouthfeel. The colour can be described as chestnut…The creamy white foam topping our dark wheat beer is simply captivating. The beer has a fruity yet refreshing sweetness with nuances of ripe bananas which elegantly complements the fine malt aromas.”
Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel has a 5.3% ABV, 14 IBU and 215 calories (16.9 oz. bottle). It has an “Outstanding” rating on Beer Advocate.
Our Review of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel
I have had five beers from Weihenstephaner, their Vitus strong wheat beer, their lager, Pilsner, Hefe Weissbier and 1516 Kellerbier. All of these were fantastic. The lager may be the best basic lager I have ever had.
I also tried Hofbrau Dunkel, which is now one of my favorite beers and led me on a search for more Dunkel style beers. I had three (2 American and 1 German) in various restaurants and taprooms and they were all excellent as well. The only Dunkel I tried that was underwhelming was from Opillia, a Ukrainian brewery.
Next up was Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel. Somewhere in my journey between buying the beer and opening it, I forgot it was a dark wheat beer and not a dark lager. So when I started drinking it, I was somewhat surprised at the taste.
This is an excellent beer that deserves the Beer Advocate “outstanding” rating but it was a bit too malty for my taste. I never drink beer with dessert, but after drinking this beer, I can understand why Weihenstephaner recommends pairing it with desserts.
Like my reaction to Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier, I found myself wishing I was drinking a lager Dunkel and not a wheat Dunkel. In the end I have learned that I prefer lager beer to wheat beer. But you can’t go wrong with anything from Weihenstephaner.
For other excellent German wheat beer recommendations, try Wehenstephaner Hefe Weissbier, Hofbrau Hefeweizen, Franziskaner Weissbier and Weihenstephaner Vitus.
For beer nutritional information of all beers we have reviewed see Beer Nutritional Information.
