"Landbier" -I have 4 beers that are labelled "landbier" but I'm not so sure this is actually a "style" per say. There's conflicting information from those trying to nail it down as a "style" (probably because it's not one) but certainly none of these 4 beers were bottle conditioned like "kellerbier" as some reported. There were some HUGELY oxidized beers in here and not in a remotely good way.
1. Herforder Landbier 4.8%, crown cap, 0.33L "our spicy speciality with special malt note! Original brewery, bottling" (yesterday's Herforder beer was pretty bad so I'm a bit scared) Hop extract; no yeast in bottle -Best Before September 2011
Med-to-High level of carbonation, looks like an alt beer (amber color darkened to a copper color), small med head, good retention; lacing; SAME JUNK TASTE as the schwartz bier -I FINALLY recognize the flavor; "cardboard" I called it weird things yesterday because I couldn't really identify it but the nose triggered it for me. This is what a super oxidized beer past its sell-by date taste like. YEA, I can identify cardboard now! Boo, it tastes like cardboard.
2. Detmolder Landbier Dunkel 4.8%, fliptop, 0.33L "real bottom-fermented dark fully mature" "from the fresh-water source of the Teutoburg forest, we brew our wholesome, amber, according to the good old way"$$ no hop extract (real hops only), not bottle conditioned; Best Before: 1/3/2012
Low carbonation level, thin, quickly dissipating head, same alt beer color but more brown than red or amber (called dunkel but doesn't appear to be much darker than the Herforder, if at all);
more pleasant, could've been good if it was 6 months newer; still cardboard but a lighter cardboard. -These German beers need the yeast in the bottle and they need to be stored COLD! The German "Getranke Markt" system that stores large quantities of beer in warm stores for months and months ruins beer. Hope I can find this fresh somewhere...
3. Wullners Braumeister Landbier 4.9% crowncap; 0.33L
description on bottle provides a "tip" to try their other beers; hop extract; best before 26/2/2012; no yeast
Medium to light carbonation; quickly dissipating; lighter colored than the other beers; no odd smells, slightly sweet, honey aroma; that great honey flavor, there's something weird but good going on on the mouthfeel that I absolutely cannot place sort of like the feeling of a peeled grape in a liquid form; tastes terrific. No oxidation at all. No metallic hints like alt bier (the water might be very soft on this one). I need to bring one of these home, too.
4. Potts Landbier 4.8%, fliptop; 0.33L
Description on bottle says that roast malt is used in this one; hops and no extract; best before: dec 22, 2011
Color is halfway in between the Wullners and the other two but with a medium to high level of carbonation; more fermentation character than the others (like "alt beer light"); an initial note of the roast malt that isn't completely positive but it quickly dissapears on subsequent tastes; same strange mouth-feel as the previous beer (is this what highly attenuated Munich malt does?) There is a slight bit of oxidation still but it's not distracting and not too bad considering it's not bottle conditioned and is pretty old at this point and was stored warm.
John, I've never wanted those highly attuned taste buds of yours around more than this week. I'm going to have to bring a couple of these home with me just to figure out what the heck I'm tasting and make sure I'm not crazy.
Beer in Germany (outside of Bayern), is in a sad, sad state; the race to the bottom in cost has resulted in corner cutting such as hop extract, and long-term warm stored beer that is highly oxidized. It might not be such a big deal in draft beer but bottled beer in Germany is SCREAMING to be bottle conditioned and stored cold. They're a lesson in how beer suffers as consumers demand a race to the bottom in terms of price. Don't condemn Irish craft beer to the same fate by being a cheap ass; you have to be willing to pay more for a better pint.
Adam
P.S. I'd REALLY love to see an Irish distributor find a way to start importing bottled German kellerbier; it appears to stand up WAY better than the filtered, bottles; it's like German "cask lager" in a bottle, if there were such a thing.
