The dark ("dunkel") counterpart to the pale German Hefeweizen beers, this ale combines 50% or more wheat malt with darker Vienna and/or Munich malts to produce a beer that is murky to cloudy (typically unfiltered) and reddish-brown in appearance with a very generous and fluffy off-white head. As with Hefeweizens, the aroma and flavor of the dunkelweizen feature balanced ester (normally banana) and phenolic (normally clove) notes over a grainy wheat base and virtually no hop presence. The darker malts of the dunkelweizen add a touch of toasted and caramel flavors to the experience, which leads to a more robust flavor profile than a standard hefeweizen.
