Local Option Dampf Loc - Neue Welt Hefe Gerste
Dampf Loc is an all-barley warm fermented ale inspired by “Dampfbier” originally crafted by medieval peasant inhabitants of the Bavarian Forest. A modern interpretation of its Teutonic predecessor, this “Hefe Gerste” is true to its roots; unmistakable in character and accessible to beer drinkers of all palates.
Dampf Loc has a mild hop profile, medium body and a clear, rich, orange hue.
Dampf Loc has a mild hop profile, medium body and a clear, rich, orange hue.
3.3
173 reviews
Chicago, United States
Community reviews
500 ml bottle poured into lager glass. No bottle dating found. Some sediment remained stuck to the bottom of the bottle.
Pours lightly hazy, copper-orange in color. There is a lot of visible carbonation that rises to a moderate size, off-white head with good retention. Some streaks and spots of sticky lacing cling to the glass.
Aroma: Earthy and herbal hops with grains in about equal measure but with the hops a little more prominent than the malty aspects. Hints of yeast, honey and mild spices.
Taste: More malty/bready than the aroma indicates. Hints of honey and apple juice. Mild bitterness even on the finish
Feel: Medium carbonation and body, with both leaning towards a higher level. Smooth and soft.
Overall: a good beer for sure, but not as distinctive as the description (e.g., "unmistakable in character") suggests.
This bottled brew from a bottle shop poured a head of foamy off-white colored bubbles that were mostly lasting and left behind a typically carbonated semi-hazy light orange brown colored body and a good lacing. The mild aroma was yeasty. The bubbly mouth feel was tingly at the start and at the finish with a bubbly malty aftertaste. The ok flavor contained notes of yeast hops and malt. An OK brew just nothing special.
Brilliant clear copper pour with a thin Rocky off white head. Lovely pale malt and slightly German biscuity ale nose, with something just a touch floral and perhaps a whisper of honey. Crisp and mellow flavor that drinks nearly like an ESB, but with a nutty little American pale malt sweetness. Full and hearty, but a bit one-noted on the palate. It’s basically a slightly more exciting English bitter.
My first Dampfbier, a historical beer style I hadn’t even heard of till very recently; basically an all-barley ale fermented with Weizen yeast, going extinct a century ago but revived around 1990. This American interpretation of this all but lost style has a thin, finely structured, light beige, lightly lacing head dissolving after a relatively short while, and a cloudy brownish-orangey amber colour with vivid sparkling, totally murky with deposit. Aroma is very estery as well as a bit oxidized - I apparently got an older bottle. Impressions of peach, cloves, cashew nuts, honey, banana, biscuit, orange peel, floral hops, baker’s yeast, hint of refreshing lemony acidity, caramel, bitter herbs. Fruity, crisp onset, dried apricot, dried orange peel and redcurrant, sourish touch probably from the yeast, medium carbo, light and rounded, smooth mouthfeel, pleasant soft bready malt sweetness, caramel, toasted accent bittering a bit, with more bitterness in the end hauling from earthy, ’deep’, leafy hops, leaving a delicate bitterness on the root of the tongue but otherwise allowing the malt sweetness to persist; a powdery yeast feeling also persists, quite strongly even - it is clear that fermentation has not been a great success here (which was already apparent upon opening the bottle, in the form of light gushing). Malty, straightforward beer but too yeasty, quenching though, and interesting to taste for its style alone.
Clear copper pour with a thin white head. Aroma is toffee, honey, and bready malt. Taste follows with some additional herbal earthy character. Sweet dry finish.
Slightly hazed orange with a small barely off-white head. Aroma is sort of German-beery but with a little teeny bit of funk sneaking in. Flavor is a bit more interesting with plenty of yeasty fruits and honey-sweetness. Smooth and subdued mouthfeel. Good, but next time might as well just buy Anchor Steam.
Light malt, medium malt, dry, medium mouthfeel, mint, moderately bitter, orange peel. Honey colored and no head.
Bottle - Grains and a bit sweetness. Cloudy gold with a nice white head. Grainy and light sweetness. Very boring.
500mL bottle, pours a hazy dark golden orange with a small white head. Aroma is very herbally, earthy and spicy. Flavour is around the same, with loads of earthiness upfront, with some herbal and spicy qualities. Very dry and earthy, like drinking dirt almost. Not overly enjoyable, but quite a competent one.
bottle. deep amber with one finger head. this is a strange one. malty with a good amount of sweet caramel. some bread, very light earthy hops.
On draft at Spacebar. Poured a slightly cloudy brown color with a small off-white head. Aroma was light grainy wheat notes. Light, sweet body, some light wheat notes.
On draft at spacebar in falls church VA. It is a light amber color with a slight head the aroma is bready and malty the taste is bitter with overtones of metal on the palate
On draft at Spacebar Falls Curch. Pours a hazy brownish gold wit an off white head. Light caramel nose. Flavors of cucumber and some sharp spicy notes. Interesting beer.
Very good. Great for the warm and cold months. Reminds me of papago orange blossom. Delicious. Hint of orang but flavorful and smooth
bottle. hazy dark gold with large, foamy white head. musty, wet concrete, almond aroma. very light body and quite dry. medium high carbonation. bitter finish, but not particularly hoppy. some dry bitter grassiness in the aftertaste. a german steam beer.
How: Bottle.
Where: SMÖF 2014.
Appearance: Hazy amber colour with an off-white head.
Aroma: Fruit, malt, caramel.
Body: Medium body and carbonation.
Flavour: Fruit, malt, a bit floral, caramel.
Dampf Loc evaluation 11/11/14
Obviously force carbonated. Large bubbles sizable head, with too much effervescence. Color is perfect, but beer appears to have been slightly filtered. Too clear for a true Dampfbier. Aroma muted for a Dampfbier. Carbonation has a bit of a bite on the tongue, creating a sense of pepper. Not appropriate for the style. Body is lighter than original beer, which should present full and mellow.
Flavor is close to a dampfbier, but needs additional percentage of Munich Malt to enhance the maltiness, which is lacking for the style. Bitterness is spot on, but beer could benefit from a greater addition of Hallertau and Perle hops at the end of the boil to provide a bit more German spiciness (opposed to pepper bite). Not sure what yeast was used, but hints of banana and cloves typical of a hefeweizen yeast, is missing while I am getting a pear flavor, not typical of the style. Tartness is missing.
Dampfbier was billed as the “poor man’s beer” in the 1800’s. It was made with inexpensive local barley (German Pilsner and German Munich) and local German Hallertau and German Perle hops with a wheat (hefeweizen) yeast, to compete with the more expensive wheat grain based beers coming out of Munich at the time. In contrast, this beer was one of the more expensive beers I have purchased at $8.95 for a 500 ml bottle. Regardless, glad I had a chance to try this very drinkable beer.
Bottle @ Studenterhuset, Århus. Pours golden with a white head. Aroma of malt, yeast, light spice, grass, flowery hops. Flavor is malty, yeast, grain, light bread, flowers, light fruit, sweet apples. Medium body, average carbonation. 251014
500 ml bottle shared with the Quebec City crew. Pours a clear lightly coppery golden with a creamy, resilient white head. Aroma is metallic, fruits, mineral, some tartness. Flavor is fruits, fieldberry, light malt, spices, fresh cereal. Finish is herbal, earthy, mineral. Lingering banana, spices, cloves, some metal. Medium body, soft mouthfeel, average carbonation.
draft the poured a dark copper orange color with thick white head. plenty of lacing on the glass. the aroma was straight up sweet malt with an almost orange zest to it.. the flavor was thick and sweet of malts up front and in the middle. there was also a bitterness in the middle which was still like this fruitiness flavor. hard to pinpoint. the backend of this beer turns into a little earthiness...strange brew but I guess it works.
Hazy orange - thick frothy lace - nose of dusty and doughy yeast, lightly sour.acidity, baked apples, brown sugar, hazelnut - flavor is kind of dull - some flat, neutral yeast at first - then some apple, bread dough, toasty grain character - finish has some peanut skin and some raisin, followed by some clove and dark bread - meh, okay.
Bottle at Olympen. Cloudy amber with a medium head. Spicy nose, fruity amd spicy flavours, ending quite dry. Hints of oranges. Original.
500ml bottle @ Stefans place 30/6-14.
Hazy orange, white head.
Oranges, yellow apples, yeast and dough, some bubblegum and herbs.
Sweet with fruity notes of oranges, apples and apricot, bubblegum, wheat, cookies, some bread and hay. Soft low grassy bitterness.
Medium bodied, soft carbonation, smooth texture.
Slightly uncertain and soft around the edges with a yeasty fruity taste with hints of bubblegum. Ok.
.5 L Bottle. A light to mid bodied fig and plum tasting ale. Reminiscent of many a beer sampled in nameless abodes about Bohemia and Bavaria all those years ago during my rambling days. Large foamy head. not much lacing left behind which was a tad surprising. Nose of deep malts. Wish it wasn’t so damned pricey.
Tap from Happy Gnome. Light golden in color. Very minimal hop presence as expected. Taste heavy on malted barley. Not a lot of complexity. Sweetness is there. Aroma is mild. Some caramel notes. Hard to find much to appreciate. Disagree that it fits a summer atmosphere.
Pours a hazy orange-gold with a fluffy khaki head that settles, leaving touches of soapy lace. Nose involves caramel, toasted malt, some metallic notes, a bit of molasses, some dusty yeast, and nutty almond notes. Fairly sweet, somewhat bitter. Medium bodied, fairly oily, decent action, with a fairly dry and toasty finish. Interesting brew, pretty enjoyable.
Tap at Happy Gnome. Slightly hazy golden pour with a small white head. Grain and apple in this. Moderate palate with some carbonation. Okay.
16.9 oz bottle pours hazy golden with a white head. Aroma of malts, citrus and grass. Taste is malts and grain.
Bottled. 5cl sample. The aroma has red fruits, apple, some earthy yeast. Bit hazy (notes don’t mention colour indication) beer with an off-white head. The taste is sweetish, slightly bitter and has red fruits, apples, hints of honey. Nice and unusual beer.
Bottle. Creamy white good mostly lasting head. Amber colour. MOderate malty and hoppy aroma. Some wheat notes. MOderate bitter flavor. Average light bitter finish. Not wellbalanced. Oily palate.