Wies'n season

It's the time of year when German beer is that little bit more visible in the shops and speciality bars. There are the seasonal Oktoberfest variants, of course, but it seems to be an excuse for distributors and retailers to put other sorts in there as well, to fill out the lists and embellish the theme.At Tapped, they added Faust Sommer Festbier to the draught selection, offering a generous half litre for €7, which isn't bad in Dublin these days. It's a handsome deep golden colour with fine white froth on top. The appearance and its 5.4% ABV had me thinking I was in for a malty one but, perhaps because it's meant for summer, this isn't as sweet as I expected. It's quite light-bodied and the flavour opens on a bite of bitter noble hops, giving celery and salad leaves. The malt side adds enough cookie to balance this without overpowering it, plus a breadcrust element for bonus crispness. The end result is a masterpiece of drinkability. I felt I was doing it a disservice by sitting over…