While the goal of this blog is to
review beers from the finer side of life (yes, call me a beer snob if you want),
I sometimes like to describe the beer availability I encounter during my
travels. At times, this inevitably means reviewing cheaper beer, and this is
certainly the case from my close encounters with four different Oettinger brews
during my recent trip to Tenerife (please visit the Tacoa 1 and Tacoa 2 posts
for additional details on other beer encounters in Tenerife). While these four
were probably the lowest priced German beer that ever crossed my palate, three
of them at least were reasonably decent concoctions, and if you are travelling
on a budget (like my glorious days as a poverty-stricken student), or if you’d
simply like to spend less coin on beer, then Oettinger’s brews will certainly
offer you an excellent value.
The Brewery
Having five different breweries
scattered throughout Germany—in Bayern, Gotha, Schwerin, Mönchengladbach,
and Braunschweig, Oettinger, or Oetti as it is widely called, is one of Germany’s
larger brewers. In fact, in terms of output, Oettinger is Germany’s bestselling beer brand largely because of its reputation for producing lower-priced,
widely-available, supermarket beer varieties. And since Oettinger brews 14
different beer varieties all according to the “Reinheitsgebot” (Germany’s
purity laws), I’m solidly sure that even the most discriminating palate will
manage to find at least one that’s not…well…too bad anyway.
The Beer
When visiting a local supermarket
in Tenerife, you’ll immediately notice the predominance of cheaply-presented canned
beer: Dorada, Sofiero, Cruzcampo (with 10% gratis, by the way), and Tropical,
to name a few, although Paulaner, Guinness, and Franziskaner are also widely
found. Nestled among these, you’ll also find shelves of four different Oettinger
offerings.
Oettinger Pils (4.7% ABV): In
terms of its aspirations as a German-style pilsner, Oettinger Pils more or less
gets the basics right, although the overall weakness in flavor does not do
justice to what is otherwise an excellent beer style. Life in the glass begins
with a transparent, light-golden color and a two-finger white head that quickly
runs and hides and imparts a rather sparse lacing matrix. In terms of
appearance, Oettinger Pils misses the mark completely. Still, appearance
matters not if you’re looking for budget beer.
The aroma is rather weak, but
definitely malt forward, as evident in the obvious grainy note. Along with the
malt, a light florally and spicy aroma is clearly indicative of a German-style
pilsner. While the sweet and yeasty dough note is perhaps a bit too forward for
this style, and the faint metallic tone in the nose is a tad bit astringent,
the aroma profile is not a bad blend really.
Taking a generous sip reveals a
medium-bodied brew and a considerable amount of carbonation –
almost ideal for Tenerife’s warm and sunny climate. The taste is definitely bland
and far less flavorful than some of the better quality pilsners out there. But,
when juxtaposed with a moderately sweet and grainy taste and a decently spiced
up and bitter finish, Oettinger Pils comes off as a reasonably refreshing brew
and fair pilsner representation. Still, the slightly metallic aftertaste does detract
a bit from the beer’s enjoyability.
While Oettinger Pils is nothing
special, it’s still fairly well-balanced and delivers a nice zesty bitter
finish that’s loyal to the pilsner style. And the price makes Oettinger Pils a
very solid choice if you’re drinking on a tight budget and looking for a lower
ABV alternative to a pale lager.
Oettinger Hefeweizen (4.9% ABV): In
terms of its style aspirations, Oettinger’s Hefeweizen performs somewhat better
than the Pils and, in my view, is significantly more enjoyable to drink. Emptying
the can’s contents into a glass (the small on in the picture is all I had at the time) reveals a bright and translucent golden color
and a relatively tall and well-retained head that imparts a respectable lacing
matrix. So far, it feels like any other robust hefeweizen.
The aroma is definitely potent,
with banana as the feature flavor, and is supported by bready and spicy notes.
While the aroma profile is pleasant to be sure, it’s still a far cry from the
more complex blends found in a Paulaner or a Weihenstephaner and speaks to
Oettinger’s lower price-point offering.
Taking a generous sip comes with a
medium and somewhat creamy-bodied brew and a high amount of carbonation. Oettinger’s
Hefeweizen is very tasty and an excellent choice if you happen to be in
Tenerife, or elsewhere for that matter, and tired of blander lagers. The banana
note clearly dominates, but is accompanied by some citrusy and spicy notes. Still,
it’s lack of complexity makes it significantly inferior to many other
similarly-styled beers I’ve tried: It delivers just the basics and, when
considering the price, that’s about all one should really expect anyway.
Oettinger Export (5.4% ABV): Oettinger’s
Export aspires to embody the soft and rounded Dortmund style, but is instead a tad
on the rough side, where it’s less than pleasing aspects seem to stand out more
sharply when compared to the Pils or the Hefeweizen. The pour reveals a clear,
slightly dark-golden color and a small white head that vanishes in about the
same amount of time it took to open up the can and fill the glass. Lacing? Well,
forget about that! In only one instance did I manage to find a discernable
lacing trail clinging to the side of the glass (again, that crappy glass is all I had at the time).
So, what about the aroma? Well,
it comes off as a decent balance between the grainy side of the malt and the
grassy side of the hops. Citrus notes also permeate the profile, and like the
Pils, Oettinger’s Export produces a metallic note that makes the aroma a tad
bit astringent, although the note in the Export is considerably stronger than
what was found in the Pils.
A medium-body and a generous
amount of carbonation characterizes the mouthfeel. In terms of taste,
Oettinger’s Export favors the sweeter side, with a substantial bready and
grainy feel, coupled with hints of vegetables and, again, a rather unsavory
metallic taste. Equally unpleasant, the malt flavors come off as flat – kind
of like stale bread that’s been left out overnight on the cutting board. The
finish is bitter and does not feel fundamentally different than the Pils.
Overall, I found very little to really appreciate about Oettinger’s Export, and
if you are looking for something on the bitter side, I recommend going for the
Pils instead.
Oettinger Super Forte (8.9% ABV):
Out of all four Oettinger brews reviewed here, I found their Super Forte to be
the most robust in appearance, although the Hefeweizen has to be mentioned as
the most flavorful. Emptying the can’s contents into a glass reveals a clear
golden-colored body and a towering and well-retained white head. The lacing is
a bit timid but considerably better than what is found in the Export or the
Pils.
The aroma heavily favors the
malty side and comes off as dry hey, like the smell you get when entering a
poorly ventilated barn. A bready note and maybe a nutty note are also present
in the nose. Giving the glass a few good swirls releases the smells of super-sweet
sugar: Think of cotton candy at the fair and that about captures the nose here.
A medium-body and soft
carbonation characterizes the mouthfeel, and the taste is seriously sweet and
sugary, almost too much for my palate. While the alcohol note is present, it’s
certainly not overpowering and provides a nice warming sensation in the finish.
Unfortunately, the intensely sugary feel really undermines the ability to find
much more in the way of flavor.
All in all, Oettinger’s Super
Forte is very robust in its appearance, but the taste is wildly out of balance
and highly simplistic, especially for an 8.9% ABV product. If you like cotton
candy, however, then this one should be a real treat for the palate. And the
price makes it all the sweeter for an empty wallet.
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