Bayern Brewing in Missoula, MT

When Bayern Brewing in Missoula boasts that a beer they make is the most labor-intensive and time-consuming beer they sell, it’s obviously required drinking material. Considering the time and attention that goes into brewing something like Dragon’s Breath or their Oktoberfest, to say that their seasonal Face Plant Doppelweizen is the beer that can only be brewed during the winter because of its time commitment is something special. This would not be a run-of-the-mill German knock-off. Face Plant might even be face plant-inducing. Or so I’d see.

Pushing 8% ABV, Face Plant was a perfect beer for after work on a colder day. The graphic design for the bottle and 6-pack was also something that immediately caught my eye, so props to Bayern for that. Face Plant poured a very rich, dark nut-brown color, with maybe a half-finger worth of off-white head. It almost looked like a pint of slightly more see-through Guinness, save for the nitrogen injection. I was pleasantly surprised to find the beer to be so dark and rich-looking, but the nose didn’t hint at anything too overpowering. With just a sprinkle of roasted malt and chocolate notes, the scent didn’t have any expected alcoholic dominance, but still had a welcome mat of malt to entice a hearty sip. Bayern says five different malts went into the brew, and the taste surely reflects the advertisement. A slightly bitter, roasty front was quickly smoothed out by the light, watery feel to the beer before a surprisingly bitter chocolate and nut-tinged finished it off. The beer had a pleasant arch of malt flavor that somehow finished rather chocolaty without being too rich or too filling.

Despite having a higher alcoholic content, Face Plant didn’t feel overly powerful or overly rich for a darker beer. Even better was the way you had chocolate hints without the beer tasting like a dessert. However, I think the beer feels lighter than it actually is, and after downing two or three of these, you’d find yourself a little more than full and a little more than tipsy. But as far as a really hearty beer with a cloyingly sweet taste goes, Face Plant would be a great compliment to a thick steak or even a good burger. Make sure you give Face Plant a try. All the extra work put into it makes it a winter staple for dark beer fans.