Mild golden-bodied wheat ale lacks fruity luster in canned version. Washed-out hard-candied Jolly Rancher watermelon tartness lingers softly through blanched rye wheat backbone. Subsidiary mandarin orange, peach, and cantaloupe illusions fade fast as abysmal pale-malted white-breaded sorghum slouching reaches soapy melon-limed finish. Watermelon juicing clearly needs deeper resonance and latent cloy nature proves troublesome.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: 21ST AMENDMENT BREWERY, SAN FRANCISCO, CA.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: THE BRUERY, PLACENTIA, CA.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Profusely mouth-puckered beige-hazed yellow-glazed ‘tart wheat ale’ creates vinous Sauvignon Blanc or Belgian Gueuze feel (when not sweetened by raspberry and woodruff syrup). Sour green grape, Granny Smith apple, and unripe lemon fruiting reinforces wild yeast herbage and leathery barnyard funk. Grassy-bottomed horsehide, hay, and maize illusions breach tertiary tannic cherry tartness at tail end of light-bodied carbolic spritzer. Despite heightened brettanomyces level, acidic tendencies are kept in check.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: KONA BREW. CO., PORTSMOUTH, N.H.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Washed-out light-bodied limited edition ’09 release splashes passion fruit tedium across sour lemon-lime indifference. Tart kiwi-mango-plantain tropicalia disrupted by astringent citric-hopped doldrums to unstable white-breaded rye-dried cracked wheat spine.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: FLYING FISH BREW. CO., CHERRY HILL, N.J.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Well-balanced bottle conditioned hazy straw ‘pale wheat’ ale (celebrating Jersey Turnpike exit) juxtaposes piney floral-hopped lemon-orange zest and mild grapefruit-currant bittering against tangy apricot-apple-tangerine sweetness. Candi-sugared Belgian yeast softens alcohol burn at fruity sherbet finish. White peach, purple grape, and parfait illusions come and go.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: THE BRUERY, PLACENTIA, CA.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: PHILADELPHIA BREW. CO., PHILADELPHIA, PA.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Perfumed floral-herbal highlights enliven sunny Seltzer-fizzed lemon glaze, tart blueberry midst, and orange marmalade reminder. White-peppered jasmine-lavender floridity bolsters ancillary eucalyptus, cardamom, and ginger herbage. Evergreen-fresh mint julep and mojito illusions provide further peculiarity.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: HARPOON BREWERIES, BOSTON, MA.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Bland wheat ale lacks expectant maple saturation. Raw-honeyed wheat base can’t hold up barren marzipan-caramel stead or modest cherry, raspberry, and grape illusions buried in diacetyl midst.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: ANDERSON VALLEY BREW. CO., MENDOCINO COUNTY, CA.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Funky grape aroma consumes complex golden-bodied white wine-y wheat beer. Sweet yeast, spicy cider, and floral hops merge at peaceful honeyed finish, but tangy citric grape recess falters and light carbonation needs more snap, crackle, and pop.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: APPALACHIAN BREW. CO., HARRISBURG, PA.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Sunny haze, fizzy hop tingle, and yellow fruit tartness reminiscent of tangy summer ale. Banana-peach-lemon adjunct brightens unfiltered dry wheat spine. Grainy finish receives aromatic honeyed maple nuance.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: ARCADIA BREW. CO., BATTLE CREEK, MI.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Slack sweet malt sulk, listless grain snub, and soured grapefruit-berry-marmalade undertone leave weak off-dry finish exposed. Further tasting revealed more prominent red grapefruit tang undercut by danker sucrose plethora.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: AVERY BREW. CO., BOULDER, CO.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Upsetting acidic astringency and flaccid wheat pretense given decent lemon-lime fizzed insistence, but barren flowery hop blandness kills the deal.
- Author: John Fortunato
- Brewery: AVERY BREW. CO., BOULDER, CO.
- Category: Beers A-Z
- Comments: None
Clear straw-hued billowy white-headed pumpkin-scented Belgian ‘wit’ reaches sour yellow-fruited wheat plateau before unripe banana-gourd climax tempts middling lemony coriander-clove finish meagerly donning candied orange tartness. Fruit-spiced fodder suits lighthearted drinkers.