Brews and Blues Beer and Smokin’ Blues

Weyerbacher Slam Dunkel

Today's sampling is from Weyerbacher Brewing Co. in Easton, PA.  Slam Dunkel is billed as a double dunkelweizen ale and boasts a hefty 7% ABV. 

One tidbit I usually fail to comment on in my reviews is some of the beer terminology that could possibly be cryptic to the casual beer drinker, so let's talke about dunkelweizen for just a moment...  Whenever you see weizen or wit in the beer name, it means you are dealing with a wheat beer.  Wheat beers are made from malted wheat and barley rather than just malted barley.  Dunkel is German for dark, so a dunkelweizen is a dark wheat beer, and the style originated in southern Germany. 

Weyerbacher originally released the Slam Dunkel in 2007 as a small batch release, but later continued to include it as a seasonal brew due to it's wide popularity.  The dunkel part of this beer comes from the addition of chocolate malts in the brewing process.  Slam Dunkel also exhibits the common banana and clove aroma that is common in wheat beers, but it's more subdued in this brew.  Slam Dunkel is also bottle conditioned, so it does have the traditional yeast sediment on the bottom of the bottle.  Due to the higher alcohol content of this beer, it is another brew that is best served at a slightly warmer temperature.  I believe that 55° is just about perfect for this one. 

As I have commented earlier, I really like wheat beers on a hot summer day.  The dunkelweizen doesn't really fit the same bill though.  It's a heavier beer and not as crisp as a regular wheat brew.