Special Beer Review - Klosterbrauerei Scheyern

New Old Brewery Alert!  I have seen hundreds of brew brands since I've been in Germany, many of which you have read or will eventually read about here.  Klosterbrauerei Scheyern is one that I haven't heard of or can recall seeing in any of the getrankemarkts that I frequent.  That's interesting since their website lists them as the third oldest brewery in Germany (Behind the two who argue about who is the oldest Weihenstephan and Weltenburger).

There have been two coincidences that have caused me to start reviewing their beer, one a friend brought me a bottle of their Helles, and two I went to a local Getrankemarkt and found their beer there with a free steinkrug attached the rack.  I just had to buy a rack and pick up a bottle of the other varieties that were there.  It looks like they have a line that's only available in the local area and a line available nationally, this is the only line I can get without going to the brewery.  I'm just guessing, but it looks like they are trying to expand their distribution across the rest of Germany.

Kloster Scheyern Kloster ~ Weisse Hell - This beer pours a cloudy dark honey color.  A generous head slowly dissolves but leaves some white froth that clings to the sides.  An aroma of citrus with some hints of fresh cut hay fills the air.  The taste is light, and crsip with hints of citrus and spices.  Spices dominate the clean wet finish.  A fine Weisse Hell.   

Kloster Scheyern Kloster Weisse Dunkel - This dark wheat beer pours a dark chocolatly brown with small hints of amber.  The head was a thin off white/beige that quickly disappeared.  I think I smell cloves and bananas in the aroma.  The taste has hints of chocolate but no one other flavor seems to dominate or jump out at me, the traditional flavors of a weisse are all there just muted and blended almost to a perfection.  Quite tasty, the finish is crisp and wet and lends itself to another sip.  This beer is just a little bit different, but in this case different is good.

Kloster Scheyern Kloster - Export Dunkel - The regular Dunkel.  Since I liked the Dunkel Weisse so much and I've kind of been on a Dunkel kick lately, I had high hopes for this one.  It pours s a dark chocolately brown with hints of reddish amber and a generous beige head that slowly dissolved leaving generous lacing on the sides of the glass.  The aroma is sweet malt and that carries over into the flavor a chocolately, caramelly sweet malt with maybe some hints of coffee. The finish was wet and lingering but not bitter.  Maybe a little different than your standard Dunkel but with me different is good.  My high hopes were satisfied and I'm glad I bought a rack of this one.  Everyone I shared it with also agreed that it was pretty good.

Kloster Scheyern Kloster ~ Gold Hell - The helles beer from Kloster Scheyeren, it pours a brillant clear straw yellow with hints of darker gold.  The head is generous and frothy and crested the top of the glass but didn't overflow dissolving slowly while leaving decent lacing on the sides.  The aroma is malty and bready.  That theme carries over into the taste where sweet malts dominate, leading to a wet finish with just hints of the 5.4% alcohol by volume coming through.  Not quite your typical helles but not quite typical seems to be the norm for this kloster brau.

You can't beat it when you get a free steinkrug with the rack.  Yeah!!!!

I really wish this brewery was closer, that way I could get some of their more local offerings.  After a while some of these German beers start tasting the same.  The beers from Kloster Scheyeren were a welcome change of pace, all of them just slightly different then what you typically expect from their style.