Berliner Weisse is the city's traditional sour wheat beer: 3 percent ABV, tart-fermented with lactobacillus, served in a half-litre coupe with a green woodruff or red raspberry syrup shot.

Berliner Weisse was first brewed in the late 16th century and reached its peak in the late 19th century when over 700 Berlin breweries produced the style; Napoleon's troops in 1809 reportedly called it the Champagne of the North. Production collapsed through the 20th century to two industrial brands (Berliner Kindl Weisse and Schultheiss Berliner Weisse), both heavily sweetened. The 21st-century revival was led by craft brewers like Schneeeule in Wedding (founded 2016 by Ulrike Genz), who restored the wild-fermentation traditional methods. The syrup tradition (Schuss Waldmeister green or Himbeer red) dates to the 1950s, an attempt to balance the beer's natural sourness.

2 editor picks for Berliner Weisse in Berlin, ranked by editorial score. All Berlin signature dishes · Berliner Weisse across every city.