I’ll admit, I was starting to get a little worried. The latest series of Samuel Adams beer commercials were starting to look more and more like megabrew commercials. They’re cute, funny, and don’t always have a lot to do with the beer itself, though they do imply that Samuel Adams Boston Lager tastes so good it will make you forget about whatever else is on your mind.

Then too, if you’ve seen the latest 12-packs of Samuel Adams beers, you might have noticed that they now feature sports promotions on them, much like you will often see on cases of Budweiser, Miller, and Coors. Has success gone to Boston Beer’s head? Are they going to become just another megabrewer and blandify their beers? Probably not. More likely, I just worry too much (because I love Sam Adams beers so much I guess).

If I needed any reassurance from what is on the outside of the box, I certainly found it on the inside of the box. A little over a year ago when I picked up a twelve pack of Samuel Adams beers at Sherlock’s in Marietta, Georgia (along with some Tuppers Hop Pocket Pils and Anchor Liberty Ale), I noticed that a new style of beer was being introduced: Samuel Adams Weiss Bier.

Now granted, there are not many styles that haven’t yet been included in the Samuel Adams line. I’m still waiting for an abbey style ale and a German Rauchbier, or smoked beer (their wonderful and now defunct Scotch ale was brewed with peat smoked malt, but it wasn’t a Bavarian styled Rauchbier). So, when they do bring something new out, I’m always eager to try it. And I just loved the German spelling of beer (bier) on the label!

Here’s some label info:
This American version of a traditional Bavarian wheat beer is pale gold in color, flavorful and very enjoyable. Two row malted barley and malted wheat give it a crisp but layered maltiness with a light sweetness. Hand-selected Spalt Spalter hops impart a bright finish and Bavarian yeast adds a special spiciness. Cheers!

This is not Boston Beer’s first attempt at a wheat beer. About a decade ago, Boston Beer released a wonderfully clovey, banana-laden Samuel Adams Wheat that was a Kristall Weizen, a clear filtered wheat beer. Samuel Adams Weiss Bier is unfiltered and cloudy with yeast in suspension. Shortly after introducing their Wheat, a Dark Wheat was also produced to rave reviews from beer enthusiasts everywhere. Unfortunately, both the Wheat and the Dark Wheat were discontinued.

When Sam Adams Weiss was first introduced, you can could only get it as one of the selections in the twelve pack. Thankfully today it’s also sold in six-packs. Here are the tasting notes I took in February of 2002:

Samuel Adams Weiss Bier pours to a cloudy orange yellow color with a thick foamy head formation and a yeasty clove nose. The palate is smooth and tart from the wheat with more clove character but not much of the banana esters present in many German wheat beers. A touch of green apple is present. The finish is tart, perhaps a tad sour, and slightly peppery. This makes for an extremely quenching brew.

My most recent sampling didn’t have the green apple character, but it did have tasty notes of vanilla and more clove flavor in the nose and palate. There is a hint of banana like esters as well.

This is a wonderfully refreshing brew, and very authentic too. Put it before me blindfolded and I would be hard pressed to tell it came from Cincinnati, not Bavaria. I have enjoyed this beer with natural casing frankfurters, sweet Bavarian-style sauerkraut with caraway seeds and mashed Kartoffeln (potatoes). It’s also a great sipping brew on a hot summer evening.