Plank Dunkler Weizenbock

Brewed by Brauerei Plank Laaber
Style: Weizen Bock
Laaber, Germany

Serve in Dimpled mug, Stein, Weizen

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From beer temple. This was good but seemed to just be muted in aroma and flavor. Serving: bottle

Planck Bier’s Dunkeler Weizenbock. I quote the website for this beer: A strong one for special moments. Almost black with sensational foam and banana aroma, the initial sip reminds us of coffee notes. The after taste captivates with the aroma of malt. It also says it won the Gold in the World Beer Cup in 2004. That’s impressive. The back of the bottle mentions balanced bitterness for an "enjoyment beyond the hectic [of daily life]." Not impressed with the marketing, ditto with the website. Ok... aroma is as marketing promised: banana, bubblegum with hints of aroma hiding inside. 7.8% ABV. The foam is vanilla, dirty white; beers color is cloudy dark, dark brown with red & amber tints. Flavor, not bad. You get the sweetness of bubblegum with some banana but also lots of deep roasted malts in the back. At first, I get the typical Weizen flavor, the super-duper sweetness of the Weizen yeast, but it’s far more complex than that. I get black or chocolate malts, some coffee hints with full on Doppelbock-ness of the malt, maybe roasted barley. It’s highly roasted, whatever the malt. If you let the beer bypass the front of your tongue, you taste the roasted barley full on. Bitterness is there, not pronounced, but noticeable in the very back of the tongue. I find it’s a shame the Weizen yeast is so overpowering, for it almost masks these wonderful flavors. I’m not a huge fan of the bubblegummy Wiezens, I prefer a Kristalweizen with more lemony notes, but this one is not bad at all. (As a comparison, last night I drank a Allgäuer Büble Bier Edelweissbier, which also makes the Altenmünster group of beers, which belongs all belong to our beloved Radeburger Gruppe. It was only bubblegum & bananas & not much else, so I really appreciate the complexity of Planck’s Dunkler Weizenbock.) Nonetheless, to get me to drink this style of beer, you might have to chain me to the sofa first. :p But if it’s gotta be Weissbier, I’ll take this one over all the rest for it’s deep roasted flavors that it offers to help forget the bubblegummy.

With sediment this beer pours a cloudy brown, with airy head. Initial lively carbonation keeps yeast boiling in glass. Head dissipates quickly. Aroma is sweet, apples, raisins, pumpernickel. Taste is also sweet, and mouthfeel kind of light. Sweetness is the one knock I have against this beer, else it’s pretty good.

500 ml bottle at the brewpub in Laaber, Germany. What a beer this one is. Pours a dark almost black color. Has a light beige lasting full head. Aroma is full of cloves, dark fruit and malt. Really nice. Taste is wonderful aray of flavors. Deep dark overripe fruit, chestnuts, cream and slight alcohol. Palate ends rosty and smooth and not as sweet as it begins. A masterpiece!

Bottle. Pours clear dark amber with airy off-white head. Clear aroma of malt, caramel and dried fruit. Creamy mouthfeel. Sweetish flavour of malt, raisins and caramel. A subtle buttery note. Dryish aftertaste. Quite decent. [Past BBD. Needs re-rating.]

Refrigerated 0.5 L bottle poured into a weizen glass. Pours translucent medium brown with fluffy beige head. Thick lacing, medium body, medium carbonaon, and roasted banana aroma. Taste is roasted malt, banana, and bread. Pretty good.

50 cl bottle @ home (a few weeks past the bb date). Brown color. Huge off white head that keeps growing. Aroma’s of toffee, banana, wheat, retronasal there’s some alcohol and sulphur??. Flavor is medium sweet with a hint of bitterness. Medium bodied. Short finish with no new taste.

16.9oz bottle. Labeled 7.8%. Served in a shaker pint. Probably has a considerable bit of age on it. Clear brown color. Loud foamy khaki head. Little loose lace. Some bubbles on the side of the glass. Toasty, moldy, dark fruit and cooked vegetables aroma. Sweaty gym socks, some pepper. Roast beef deli juice. Soft carbonation. Medium body. More dry texture. Earthy hops. Little licorice. A little ripe banana comes through. Bitter and sweet, light savory taste. Alcohol is reasonably well-hidden. Murky, with chunks of sediment in the final pour. Interesting beer. Probably a lot better fresh, sort of harsh at first... But gets a lot better as it sits and warms. Totally different beer after a little while, but went through this surprisingly quick, especially for my poor first impression. Need to rerate a fresher bottle.

Aroma is a mix of fruit and sweetness. The flavor is dark fruit/plums/grapes, almost sugary sweetness and a tart/twangy finish.

A delicious weizenbock. Haven’t had this style in a while and glad I picked it up. Aroma was great. Lots of plum, date, raisin and sweet malt. Very full. Pour was a perfect deep cloudy brown with red tinge and a huge 3 finger near tan head. Taste was really good. The dark fruits are not as pronounced as in the aroma at first. The sweet roasted malt and toasted bread hit first. The finish leaves sweet raisin, fig and a note of yeast. The carbonation started out very strong, but quickly left. All in all a great beer.