Lake Placid Craft Brewing Company - Hefeweizen

Lake Placid’s Hefeweizen is our second featured wheat beer this month, but this is not an American-style wheat ale; instead, the brewers decided to craft a traditional Bavarian-style brew – including the use of an authentic German weissbier yeast strain. Expect a hazy, golden-orange color on the pour, with good carbonation leading to a very ample head (as is characteristic for the style). On the nose, the traditional German hefeweizen notes are all there. Look for aromas of banana, bubblegum, and light clove within a creamy, almost vanilla-like impression, and an underlying citric tone. All of the aromatics come through strong on the palate as well, with a bit of a stronger phenolic clove character and some spicy, earthy yeastiness appearing and hanging on into the finish with a lightly tart zing. Refreshing, satisfying, and full of flavor, this hefe is a little slice of Bavaria from the good ol’ USA. Cheers!

Founder Chris Ericson’s love of brewing had begun, like so many other microbrewery owners, with a homebrewing kit. After stints working for Federal Jack’s in Kennebunk, ME (birthplace of the famous Shipyard brewery) and The Shed Restaurant & Brewery in Stowe, VT, he was ready to strike out on his own. In 1996, Chris, along with a college buddy, bought a pub in Lake Placid known as P.J. O’Neill’s, installed a 7 barrel brewing system, and renamed it the Lake Placid Pub & Brewery (LPP&B). It wasn’t long before LPP&B’s fresh microbrews had grown so popular that other local restaurant and pub owners began ordering kegs for their own establishments. Chris and his team ramped up production to full tilt, and they were selling every drop they brewed (often before it was actually brewed). To keep up with the ever-increasing demand, in November 2001 Chris purchased the 13,000 square foot brewhouse of the defunct AAA Brewery in Plattsburgh, NY, and named the new brewery the Lake Placid Craft Brewing Company. This much larger facility quadrupled their brewing capacity and gave them a bottling line, allowing the company to expand beyond draft-only sales and increase their exposure and distribution. In recent years, a partnership with Utica, NY’s Matt Brewing Company has allowed supply and distribution to increase even further. Awarded the title “Best Brewery in New York State” by the TAP New York Beer Festival in 2005 & 2007, they’ve also been recognized as the “Best Brewery in the Hudson Valley” three times, in 2003, 2005, and 2007. For more info on their excellent brewpub and beer, call (518) 523-3813 or visit www.ubuale.com.