Weihenstephaner Kristall Weissbier

Brewed by Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan
Style: German Kristallweizen
Freising, Germany

Serve in Weizen

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Crystal clear weiss, that looks good, that tastes good, although there are some slightly better ones on the market.

Pours clear, bright golden with lots of foam. Has a nice wheat aroma with a good amount of yeast, banana, an earthiness. Not the cleanest aromas. The taste comes through with lemon, cloves, banana, and of course the wheat and yeast. Average mouthfeel with pretty high level of carbonation.

I recently enjoyed an American take on the kristallweizen style and it occurred to me that I’ve never reviewed an authentic German brew of the style, so what better beer to opt for than Weihenstephaner Kristall Weissbier? It’s best described as a wheat beer for lager drinkers as it has only the basic qualities of a traditional wheat, but without nearly the complexity or energy.

I poured a 500ml bottle into an official Weihenstephaner glass.

Appearance: Bright pale gold, crystal clear with plenty of visible carbonation present. Forms a huge, bright white, foamy head which eventually dissipates but doesn’t leave much lacing on the glass.

Smell: A classic Bavarian wheat beer with half the aroma plus a hint of lager-like quality to it. Slight banana and lemonpeel, otherwise very mild.

Taste: I didn’t know what to expect with Weihenstephaner Kristall Weissbier, but I was genuinely surprised when the palate seemed so overtly mild. It has a clean, slightly lemony, slightly watery taste up front. It slowly transitions to a more familiar wheat beer taste with light banana flavor and a subtle citrusy juiciness. There’s a biscuity maltiness in there, too - reminiscent of a Munich-style lager. The finish is crisp and clean, although that’s a somewhat redundant statement since the majority of the palate is clean.

It’s not that this is a bad beer (far from it), it’s just much more mild than I’d expect. It’s possible I had an old bottle, but who knows? I found I was able to enjoy this drink since I’m so familiar with the style and can concentrate on the subtleties in it that are flat-out overt in a more traditional wheat beer. Lager drinkers and general newbies will likely enjoy this beer more than seasoned veterans.

Drinkability: I drank this beer outside on a hot sunny day - the ideal setting for this type of beer. It went down very smoothly even though it was noticeably fizzy across the tongue like a lager. The mild palate and clean aftertaste made it quite refreshing. Its weight of 5.4% actually seems a little high since Weihenstephaner Kristall Weissbier seems so overtly mild overall. It does the job a wheat beer should do, and that’s what matters.

Bottle. Pale clear yellow with pretty white foamy head. Smells like bubblegum, clove, and sour apple. Very lightly sweet balanced by a dryness. Moderate carbonation, faint sweet finish, light bodied but not crisp.

From the bottle poured a beautiful, clear, yellow brew with a thick, foamy head. Aromas of citrus,and bubble gum. Delicate flavors of bubble gum, malt, and a touch of citrus.

Bottle courtesy of Smith4498, Pour is light pale straw yellow, and nose has a belgian style smell, taste is very crisp and bubbly not bad

Pours a light gold with a frothy white head. Nose is awful- smells funky & dirty. Taste is sweet grassy and light much better than the smell. Not something I’d likely search out again (not really my style) but it was certainly worth trying once, and it is a viable option in a pinch. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Golden color, decent head. Wheaty aroma. Taste of wheat. Nice and crisp palate. Strange aftertaste. Overall a nice effervescent beer.

Hihetetlenül pezseg él és nagy szép tiszta sárga ezért jár max pont a megjelenésre. Illata konkrét és erős búza enyhe akácvirággal fanyar savanykás felhanggal. Meg kóstolva banános, édes, szolid komló aroma. Utóíze gyenge és selymes. Jobb, mint a "trübés" verzió!

wasnt what i was expecting.got this in a five pack of five different wheat beers.obviously the kristall means clear.for a wheat i was expecting cloudy or some sediment.pours yellow and looks just like a lager.aroma is malt bannana and clove.flavor matches the aroma but the aroma is much more defined than the flavor.medium carbonation with a sweet malty finish.wasnt what i expected but good none the less.