Who is Riegele? Riegele is a 630 year old, family owned Bavarian brewery located in Augsburg, Germany which won the 2016 German Craft Beer of the Year, 2015 German Craft Brewery of the Year, World Beer Cup, and many other awards. Now imported into the U.S., Riegele is probably best known for collaborating with Sierra Nevada on its Oktoberfest release last year.

The brews below are all imports direct from Bavaria. Thoughts follow. Prices are all estimates.

Commerzienrat Riegele Privat – A biscuity, malty Dortmunder style beer, Privat drinks clean and refreshing, a stellar example of bready German lager at its best. There’s just a hint of tropical fruit here to lift up the malt, a brisk, moderate body, and a simple finish that keeps the focus squarely on the grain. Lightly creamy at times but otherwise uncomplicated. 5.2% abv. B+ / $2 (11.2 oz) 

Riegele Speziator Doppelbock Hell – This Helles Bock offers a super-fruity attack that reminds one of caramel apples and syrupy, liquid malt extract. Long and sweet on the finish, it adds in notes of honey and more of that overripe fruit character. Seems innocuous, not at all like it’s… 8.5% abv. B- / $7 (50cl)

Riegele’s Augustus Weizendoppelbock – A heavy-duty doppelbock, this is my least favorite of the bunch. All the elements of the Hell are plumped up here, along with an extremely malty backbone that ventures into notes of toasted bread and wet twine. The lack of any discernible bitterness gives this both a heaviness and long-simmering, overblown sweetness that keeps this from finding true balance. 8% abv. C+ / $5 (50cl)

riegele.de

Commerzienrat Riegele Privat

$2

8.5

Rating

8.5/10

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