Beer Styles

What is a Helles? A bottom-fermented, mild lager, golden in color with low bitterness, originating in Munich and now a fixture in every Allgäu inn. Per BJCP, its original gravity runs 11 to 11.9°Plato—the sugar content of the wort before fermentation—with alcohol at 4.7 to 5.4%. It tastes of bread crust and honey, finishing soft.

Helles differs from Pils mainly in its lower hop character. A German Pils runs 22 to 40 IBU per BJCP, while a Helles has just 16 to 22. Pils puts bitterness front and center; Helles leans on malt.

Wheat beer is the second pillar. Pale and hazy, with a dense white head and notes of banana and clove, it runs 4.3 to 5.6% alcohol. How much alcohol does a wheat beer have? Right in that range—barely more than a Helles. Wheat beer is top-fermented and brewed with wheat malt, while Helles is bottom-fermented with barley—hence their very different flavors.

Then there's Dunkel, made with roasted malt, Kellerbier with its yeast character, and, during Lent, Starkbier (strong beer). But Helles and wheat beer remain the region's defining styles. The guiding idea stays the same: beer meant to accompany a meal, not to be drunk alone.

Both styles can be found at Zötler in Rettenberg and Allgäuer Brauhaus in Kempten, as well as at Härle in Leutkirch. Dunkel and Starkbier appear too, depending on the house. The figures in the style profile come from competition guidelines, not recipes—individual beers may fall above or below them.