Schokoladeweizen from Waldmann Brewery

This smooth beauty of a dark beer, with a mouthful of a name that essentially means chocolate wheat beer, really hit the spot on a recent chilly evening. It’s dark and roasty, but has a lighter body that makes it super easy to drink. There’s a little sweetness (and banana flavor from the hefeweizen yeast), but it’s definitely on the drier side. Brewers at Waldmann used a combination of pilsen malts, dark barley and four varieties of wheat to brew the beer, which has just enough hops to balance things out. If you haven’t been to Waldmann yet, it’s worth a visit just for the museum-meets-brewery atmosphere, but it definitely helps that they’re serving some of what I think is the best beer in the city and some really great German food as well.

International Bittering Units (IBU): 16; Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 5.6 percent

Waldmann Brewery: 445 Smith Ave., St. Paul; 651-222-1857; waldmannbrewery.com