Referred to as Weizenbier*(Wheat beer), and Weissbier (White
beer), Edelweiss Weizenbier is a wheat beer that has been brewed
in an old Bavarian tradition that began in 1603. The Elector of Bavaria,
having an unusually large wheat harvest, demanded that wheat be used in
brewing, creating this beer. Weizenbier uses at least twice as much
wheat as barley in the malt, and it is only lightly mixed with hops, thus
giving it its distinctive, pleasant, non-bitter, fruity flavor.
Even older is the tradition of purity in Bavarian beer. The Reinheitsgebot,
or purity law of 1516 legislated the making of beer by stating that only
hops, malt (barley, and in the case of Weizenbier, wheat), yeast
and water would be used in the making of beer. To this day, no other ingredients,
such as rice, herbal or fruit flavorings, preservatives or chemicals, may
be used in brewing any of the German beers. Edelweiss, although Austrian,
follows this Reinheitsgebot. Although the brewing process has been
modernized (no longer needing caves to lager or cool the beer in summer,
etc.), it is brewed from a recipe found in the archives of Hofbräu
Kaltenhausen, dating from 1647. Equally significant is the fact that our
imported version of Edelweiss is totally unaltered from the Austrian original,
- not diluted, not lower in alcohol, exactly what you would drink in Vienna,
Linz, Zell am See, Kaltenhausen, and elsewhere in Austria.
Edelweiss is available in three forms: Kristallklar (crystal clear)
with the yeast filtered out as in most beers, Hefetrüb (yeasty
and opaque) with the yeast remaining in the bottle, and Dunkel (dark),
also with the yeast in the bottle. These beers are highly volatile, and
should be poured fairly slowly, with the glass on about a 45 degree angle.
However, with the Hefetrüb and the Dunkel, after pouring
about two-thirds of the beer, stop and gently rotate the bottle ( the bottle,
not the glass, you Dumbkopf) to stir-up the yeast. Then pour the remainder
with the glass vertical, producing a beautiful head on the beer. With care,
you can stand the foam a good 1/2 inch above the top of the glass. Also,
you will note the yeast filtering down through the beer with this final
pouring.
The health-conscious Germans consider this beer to be a particularly healthy
beer, almost a tonic, partly due to the vitamin B2 as lactoflavine in the
yeast. This Weizenbier with the yeast remaining, Hefetrüb,
is the most popular in Germany to-day. Traditionally this beer was served
with a slice of lemon on the glass. Today this is prevalent only with the
Kristallklar, although I personally switch back and forth, with or
without the lemon on all three types.
* In Bavaria, it is almost always referred to as Weissbier; in northern
Germany, Weizenbier, possibly to distinguish it from Berliner
Weisse, a totally different drink.
See also "Wheat for Bread, . . . ."
and "The Beers of Summer"
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