A recent foray into the LCBO at the Manulife Centre (after a screening of Iron Man 2) led to me discovering a a new hefeweizen called Georg Schneider’s Wiesen Edel-Weisse (157651, 500 mL, $3.25).

These types of beers are German, feature at least a 50:50 ratio of wheat to barley malt, strong notes of banana and cloves and a dry and tart mouthfeel (unlike the Dutch witbiers, think Hoegaarden, which are typically made with unmalted wheat and have more of a citrus and herbal taste).

It sat in my fridge for a couple of days because you don’t just casually drink this beer before a night out on the town. This is a beer best savored when you have nothing else to do.

Monday came along and after dinner, I decided to have at ‘er. After leaving it out to take some of the chill off, I cracked it open and poured it into my vase-like Erdinger glass.

I was immediately impressed by the cloudy, golden color and the thick, substantial head. Even after the first swallow, there was a good amount of lacing. There was also a fair bit of carbonation which is always nice to see if you’ve ever been served a pint with maybe half-a-dozen lonely bubbles crawling to the surface.

The dominant aroma was one of banana and cloves which continued on in the flavor with wheat malt, some citrus and bitterness from the hops that lasts a surprisingly long time.

I’m surprised by how long it took me to finish this but this is a substantial beer that is not meant for downing quickly. Thankfully, in the time it took to drain my glass, it stayed refreshing. A nice, dry finish lingers and although I can’t remember what the original Schneider Weisse tastes like, the fact that this one’s organic makes it a winner as far as I’m concerned.

This is not the type of beer you might want drink more than one of but it would certainly suit for a quiet evening. Definitely a worthy alternative to Edelweiss Snowfresh White Weissbier (73718, 330 mL, $1.95)  (which is making a welcome return to LCBO shelves this summer.)

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