Privatbrauerei Hoepfner
Posted: Wed Jun 07, 2017 1:45 am
I'm currently in Baden-Wüttermburg as part of a ten-week trip through Europe. Last weekend, I attended Hoepfner Burgfest, a festival that's always held on Pentecost weekend. Entry was free, beer and food were good, and prices were quite reasonable. We tried their Doppelbock, Helles, Pils, and Porter. All were good, especially the lighter beers. The Pils has a rich, grainy malt profile and is firmly bitter but not as bitter as, say, Jever. Elsewhere, I've had their Weißbier (both hell and dunkel). The hell is excellent — their best beer in my opinion.
The tour was all in German, but the guides were kind enough to answer a few of my questions in English. I learned that they do double decoctions (with rests at 62°C and 72°C) and use open fermentations for all their beers. They said they use their own proprietary yeast but it was unclear to me whether that was for their lagers, their Weißbiers, or both.
On the tour, they served us some young (three-week lagered) Pilsner as well as some of their non-alcoholic hopped lemonade.
Unlike in Bayern, Pilsner is more common than Helles in this region. Weißbier is quite popular, though. Hoepfner's Pils and Weiß are available at most restaurants in the Karlsruhe area.
The tour was all in German, but the guides were kind enough to answer a few of my questions in English. I learned that they do double decoctions (with rests at 62°C and 72°C) and use open fermentations for all their beers. They said they use their own proprietary yeast but it was unclear to me whether that was for their lagers, their Weißbiers, or both.
On the tour, they served us some young (three-week lagered) Pilsner as well as some of their non-alcoholic hopped lemonade.
Unlike in Bayern, Pilsner is more common than Helles in this region. Weißbier is quite popular, though. Hoepfner's Pils and Weiß are available at most restaurants in the Karlsruhe area.