Suddenly
Vinmonopolet had several new India Pale Ales available, so I bought some of them and had an IPA session.
From Denmark, Herslev Bryghus IPA is probably the palest IPA I have tasted. It looked like a pale lager in the glass, and there was some carbonation and a medium sized head. I felt some grapefruit and apples in the nose, while the beer tasted of apples, citrus and some pine before a partly bitter finish. This was a nice beer, but I was a bit disappointed that I did not feel the grapefruit promised from the aromas when I tasted it.
Skands Elvegade IPA is also from Denmark. This is a cloudy beer with some carbonation and a small head. In the nose I felt apples and some sour citrus. In the mouth there was lemon and some bitter hops. The beer was quite alright, but it was not what I expected from an IPA.
Southern Tier IPA is an American beer. This cloudy beer had a small head and nearly no carbonation. In the nose there was some assertive grapefruit, and the grapefruit also dominated in the mouth. The finish was bitter with a touch of grass. This was a great India Pale Ale and my favourite of these three.
To finish the session I went for a wheat beer with a hoppy twist. Schneider Weisse TAP 5 was a cloudy beer with a nice, white and large head. There was some carbonation, and the aromas were very hoppy. I felt grapefruit and some banana. In the mouth this was a beer with an assertive fruit cocktail in the lead. Some bubble gum and sweetness danced along before a finish with a touch of sweet pear and a touch of hoppy bitterness. This was a very good beer, but I felt that a half litre bottle was too much. As a Weizendoppelbock with an alcohol content of 8.2%, this is a strong beer.
There is no doubt that Georg Bräu has a wonderful location. Next to the river Spree in the famous Nikolaiviertel quarter in Berlin, I can imagine that this is a great place to sit outside in Summer enjoying the sun and some beers.
As it was Winter, there were no tables outside. Therefore I went inside to order one of the beers brewed on the premises. The choices were few and simple. At Georg Bräu there was a helles and a dunkles. I went for the pale beer.
A large glass of Georg Bräu helles was brought to my table by the cute, but very formal waitress. The cloudy and nearly orange coloured beer had no carbonation and a medium sized head. In the nose I felt grass and mints. In the mouth a combination of mints, yeast and caramel danced along with a strange taste I could not pinpoint. The finish had some caramel and a little touch of bitterness. I liked the beer, but it was not that interesting that I ordered another glass.
There were few people at Georg Bräu the day I visited. Most of them had food with their beer. On the table next to me some Russians had a duck dish that looked very tempting. I was not hungry. Otherwise I would have tried it out.
I left Georg Bräu in a good mood, but a few hours later I remembered that the brewpub had two beers. I forgot to taste the dunkles. Well, I guess I have more than the duck to try out if I ever revisit Georg Bräu.
