• Type Ale
• OG 1.046 – 1.056
• FG 1.010 – 1.014
• IBU 10.0 – 20.0
• Color 14 °L – 19 °L
• ABV 4.5% – 6.0%

Aroma

Light to moderate spicy rye aroma intermingled with light to moderate weizen yeast aromatics (spicy clove and fruity esters, either banana or citrus). Light noble hops are acceptable. Can have a somewhat acidic aroma from rye and yeast. No diacetyl.

Appearance

Light coppery-orange to very dark reddish or coppery-brown color. Large creamy off-white to tan head, quite dense and persistent (often thick and rocky). Cloudy, hazy appearance.

Flavor

Grainy, moderately-low to moderately-strong spicy rye flavor, often having a hearty flavor reminiscent of rye or pumpernickel bread. Medium to medium-low bitterness allows an initial malt sweetness (sometimes with a bit of caramel) to be tasted before yeast and rye character takes over. Low to moderate weizen yeast character (banana, clove, and sometimes citrus), although the balance can vary. Medium-dry, grainy finish with a tangy, lightly bitter (from rye) aftertaste. Low to moderate noble hop flavor acceptable, and can persist into aftertaste. No diacetyl.

Mouthfeel

Medium to medium-full body. High carbonation. Light tartness optional.

Overall Impression

A dunkelweizen made with rye rather than wheat, but with a greater body and light finishing hops.

Comments

American-style rye beers should be entered in the American Rye category (6D). Other traditional beer styles with enough rye added to give a noticeable rye character should be entered in the Specialty Beer category (23). Rye is a huskless grain and is difficult to mash, often resulting in a gummy mash texture that is prone to sticking. Rye has been characterized as having the most assertive flavor of all cereal grains. It is inappropriate to add caraway seeds to a roggenbier (as some American brewers do); the rye character is traditionally from the rye grain only.

History

A specialty beer originally brewed in Regensburg, Bavaria as a more distinctive variant of a dunkelweizen using malted rye instead of malted wheat.

Ingredients

Malted rye typically constitutes 50% or greater of the grist (some versions have 60-65% rye). Remainder of grist can include pale malt, Munich malt, wheat malt, crystal malt and/or small amounts of debittered dark malts for color adjustment. Weizen yeast provides distinctive banana esters and clove phenols. Light usage of noble hops in bitterness, flavor and aroma. Lower fermentation temperatures accentuate the clove character by suppressing ester formation. Decoction mash commonly used (as with weizenbiers).

Commercial Examples

Paulaner Roggen (formerly Thurn und Taxis, no longer imported into the US), Bürgerbräu Wolznacher Roggenbier

Featured Roggenbier (German Rye Beer) homebrew recipes

Recipe name	Style	User	Type	Color	OG	FG	IBU	ABV
Rye Beer Mashup	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	petesownbrew	All Grain	15 °L	1.050	1.014	12	4.7%
Roggenbier	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	Bry723	All Grain	17 °L	1.056	1.013	13	5.6%
Quit your "rye"ning or Rye Not	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	bigjon35	All Grain	4 °L	1.074	1.020	72	7.1%
Pink Rye-no	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	bobz32	Partial Mash	15 °L	1.049	1.009	19	5.2%
Rogger	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	Dean Brundage	All Grain	13 °L	1.048	1.013	22	4.6%
Froggenbier	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	kbarron	All Grain	5 °L	1.041	1.011	17	3.9%
Roggenbier (JZ)	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	nbarrett26	All Grain	16 °L	1.068	1.017	20	6.7%
Rye Knot 10 gal	Roggenbier (German Rye Beer)	yjfun	All Grain	8 °L	1.061	1.015	32	6.0%