A Pint Half Full

Purchased from:
Total Wine, Alexandria, VA

ABV%:
7.2%

Type:
Maibock Lager

Color:
Reddish amber body with a slight brown sugar-tinged head when poured

Aroma:
Smells of roasted toffee malts with alcohol in the background.  Very slight hops. 

Taste:
Light carbonation and mainly taste the caramel/toffee notes.  A little bit of grassy hop taste but mostly malt.  Smooth going down.

Overall:
This was my first maibock so I wasn't sure what to expect.  I saw it on sale at Total Wine and decided to try it.  I had heard of Hofbrau Munchen as one of the most well-known and oldest breweries in Germany.  It being Oktoberfest-time, thought it'd be fitting to try something from the legendary brewery (apparently Nazis hung out there back in the day [wiki]).  On the bottle, it states that this was first brewed in 1614 in Munich and is enjoyed in the springtime.  I guess they find any excuse to drink over there.

I purchased this beer in bottles and unfortunately, a couple of the bottles had skunked.  I finally got a normal tasting one in the 3rd bottle so I'm basing my review off of that.  Overall this is a really smooth, malty, slightly rich beer.  It's really got a unique flavor from the malt that I haven't tasted before and can't really describe at this moment.  There is less carbonation and actually tasted better as it warmed up.  The mouthfeel was slightly watery and 'slick' but not too syrupy.

This is a beer that can be refreshing but due to the higher ABV and strong flavor of the malt, I'd recommend more drinking this as an accompaniment to food.   The flavor is like nothing I've had before and it definitely has a "European" feel to it (less carbonation, better served at a warmer temp).  I will definitely be on the lookout for this style in the future.


3.5/5