Weihenstephaner Kristal Weissbier

Back to that oldest of old breweries Weihenstephaner for another of their wheat beers.

This one is a little different however as it counts as a Kristalweizen - essentially a filtered clear Hefeweizen variant. It certainly pours - literally, there's no other word I can think of - crystal clear up front, with a pretty enthusiastic head. Careful you don't just dump it in there, or you might end up drowning. Or looking like Santa Claus.

I got lemon more than banana from this on both aroma and taste, along with the standard wheat beer mouthfeel and fizzy refreshing delivery. It's tasty enough in its way and a genuine contender, but I just found it a bit boring compared to something with a bit more presence and flavour.

Maybe a style thing more than anything, but just a bit uninspiring overall. 6.5

Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier

Finally .. a beer on the tracker from what appears to be the world's oldest still operational brewery.

Yes yes wrong glass again but regardless this pours well for a hefe with a big solid head, and right off the bat gives a balanced aroma that doesn't lean too far in any direction. There's an assuredness in execution that's evident just from the pour, and it comes through on the taste also.

It's a light but satisfying mouthfeel with no real blank spots, and without really surprising or doing anything above and beyond, it just hits all the notes that you want from this style. Not much else to say - a classic, and very passable indeed. 7.5