new favorite

I love Mirror Pond. At least I did the last time I tried it: I don't get it (or SNPA) where I live (Victoria, BC). But the first time I tried Mirror Pond I thought it was the perfect representation of an APA.

I lucked out that this year my wife's birthday coincides with Portland's (OR) first annual Jazz fest: So I'm going to take her to pdx for her birthday. Only one weekend tho... so many beers, so little time!

I agree that I'm not too wild about American style heffs. I've had the Ayinger, but to tell the truth I don't remember much about the beer..

-- Bill

and report back.

When I'm in Germany I prefer (in order of preference):

I've only had the Ayinger here in America, but I haven't bought it in again. I really do like the weizen-bocks better that are available here--maybe it's because they seem to stay fresher longer (Schneider Aventinus, Capital, and others).

There are Maisel breweries in Bamberg and Bayreuth. I'm guessing you mean the latter, but the beers from the former are worth tasting.

There's more than one Schneider brewery, too, but I'm guessing you mean the one in Kelheim (and, formerly, Munich). There's another good wheat beer worth tasting in Kelheim, from Aukofer.

So you prefer a Heineken-owned Munich beer to an Interbrew-owned one ...

Been to Aying? Nice little town.

I concur! That was one of three reasons I went to Germany last September, and our day in Aying was my favorite part of our visit. Go, enjoy the day in the biergarten, then walk to the brewery for the tour

The tour was 6 Euro, and they served us about that in bier samples, which were awesome of course.