Enjoy flavorful, crisp lagers at von Trapp Brewing, located at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont.
Over the course of many visits to Austria, Johannes von Trapp, the youngest son of Maria and the Baron, gained an appreciation for the crisp, clean Austrian lager beers. When the craft beer movement in the United States gained momentum in the early 1990s, there was a noticeable lack of focus on lagers. It’s not surprising, considering that lagers are more challenging to brew, take longer to mature, and are therefore more expensive to create. For two decades Johannes dreamed of building an Austrian-style brewery at the Trapp Family Lodge, and in 2010 that dream came to fruition.
A humble brewery with the capacity of 2,000 barrels per year attracted attention under the name Trapp Lager, and the brewery received requests from all over the United States. The von Trapp family, who had always been reticent to commercialize their family heritage, realized that they had a product deserving of the family name. The new facility, completed in 2015 under the name von Trapp Brewing, allowed the family to expand beyond their home territory and spread the gospel of craft lagers.
Brewery draught, 6/15/24. Moderately hazy, muted bronze. Medium-sized, white head, good retention. Fruity, juicy, clean, aromatic. Rich malts and lightly juicy hops. Clean. Richly malted, good attenuation. Straightforward hop character shows citrus and mango. Very biscuity, lightly sweet. Very low bitterness, but ample. For a lager brewery, this is impressively well-done.
Brewery draught, 6/15/24. Unfiltered bronze. Small, white head, slowly to partial cover. Crusty bread and old wood smoke, but in an endearing way. Bit of herbal hop, even. vT doesn't have much aroma?? Guess again. This is snappy, clean, malty and balanced. Deliciously malty, brightly herbal, with dry woodsmoke and a bit of hickory. So malty and well-attenuated. Clean and flavorful, very balanced, very crisp.
16 ounce can. Mahogany brown color. Frothy tan head. Toasted malt aroma has yeasty notes. Flavor is sweet, toasted malt with a hint of maple syrup. Added notes of banana and clove on the backend. Destined for Top 50 status.
Can, best before 8/11/24, drunk 5/21/24. Clear, dark brass-golden. Small, white head, steadily to ring. Spicy, clean, bright German hops in the nose with dainty, honey-like malts. Quite malty up front with expansive carbonation and plentiful floral and grassy hops. Spicy, moderate bitterness with a snappy, lager-like finish with more bitterness lingering. Well-hopped, clean, nice and malty with good dryness.
Not a bad dunkerweizen, on the sweet side thanks to the maple syrup but with a healthy dose of clove and brûléed banana and a dry, floral back end. Not my thing but drinkable.
12 ounce can from Lower Merion Beverage in Ardmore, PA. Clear, pale gold color. Large frothy snow white head. Decent lacing. Bready malt aroma. Flavor is biscuity malt, mild citrus and a hint of minerality. Clean and crisp. Herbal hops on backend . Very good.
Pour is a black with a large mocha tan head. Aroma is an ok roasted malt and bitter bakers chocolate. Flavor is a decent roasted malt and hop combo. Very floral hop is left on the tongue. Ok schwartzbier. A little more roasted malt would help things out here.