Beer Reviews: Five Wheat Beer Reviews

Traditionally, beer is produced with only four ingredients: malted barley, hops, water, and yeast. In some instances, though, either partly in place of or in addition to the malted barely, wheat will be added to the brew. The resulting beer, which is often fairly light bodied and may or may not be filtered, is called a wheat beer.

Wheat beers are sometimes referred to with several different names (or names of varieties). These include Hefeweizen, Witbier, Lambics, Weissbier, Weiss, and by German, Belgian, and French variations on the word "wheat".

In addition to many different names that wheat beer may have, there are several major styles of wheat beers; Belgian, German, and Lambic.

Belgian wheat beers (sometimes called "white" ales) tend to have flavors like coriander and bitter citrus flavors. I also find they tend to have a tough of a banana taste, which I believe is created by the very specific strain of wheat used to make these beers. Honestly, I love beer, and I'll try anything and everything, but I just can't seem to fall in love with Belgian wheat brews.

German wheat beers, which include both Hefeweizen (unfiltered) and Kristallweizen (filtered) styles, have citrus flavors without as much spice or bitterness as Belgian beers. I find them to be generally more drinkable than their Belgian brethren.

Lambic beers have very distinct sour taste, which is, well, interesting. I'm not sure I'm a fan, but it is very unique to the style and very different from other beers. You may love it or hate it, but it's worth at least a brief exploration.

To me, a good wheat beer is a perfect warm weather beer. Their light body and typically low alcohol content make them ideal "hot summer day" beers. When I think about hanging out all day at a cookout on a 90 degree summer day, I picture myself drinking a wheat beer.

As I try different beers, I tend to take notes on them so I can determine what I do and don't like, and to see how different styles of beer made by different breweries are different, and similar, to each other.

In my descriptions, I use a few terms that may need defining. ABV means "alcohol by volume" which is a measure of the alcohol in a beer. An ABV of 5% if pretty average. A "light" beer tends to be more in the 3-4% ABV range. IBU stands for "International Bittering Units", and are a measure of how bitter a beer is. Bitterness in beer is usually a result of the amount of hops that have been added to the beer during brewing. A light beer may have an IBU ratings as low as 5. An average IPA is usually in the 70 range. I've had beers with IBU ratings of 150 and up. Wheat beers cover a large range of alcohol contents, although they tend towards the lower part of the scale (4-6%). They also tend towards the lower end of the IBU scale, not being particularly bitter, often in the area of 15 IBU.

One other term that's particularly appropriate when discussing many wheat beers is the term "session beer". Basically, a session beer is a beer you sit down and drink a bunch of in one sitting, or session. Some beers are great in small quantities...perhaps they're rather heavy or have a lot of spice or strong flavor that becomes over powering in large quantities. Or, it has so much alcohol that drinking more than a few leaves you too drunk to continue. A session beer has enough flavor to keep you interested, but not so much flavor, alcohol, or body that you can't sit and drink them for hours if the mood strikes you.

Below are a few thoughts on a variety of wheat beers I have tried recently.

Black Dog Crystal Weiss

The first beer I tried was from the Spanish Peaks Brewing Company, makers of the Black Dog line of beers. The beer I tried was the Black Dog Crystal Weiss, a light, filtered wheat beer.

The beer is light of body and color, and sports a 4.5% ABV and 20 IBU's. This beer has a clean, crisp flavor that is just enough to keep it interesting.

It's not a strong tasting beer by any stretch, but it's another of those "summertime cookout" beers that I like...it's not the most flavorful or interesting beer, but it's a pretty good brew to drink a bunch of on a hot summer day.

It's light enough not to bog you down while quaffing it in the hot sun, but it's interesting enough to keep you drinking, and the low-ish ABV can get you on the way to a buzz, but won't get you sloshed before the burgers and dogs are served up.

Sierra Nevada Kellerweis

The next wheat beer I tried is from the Sierra Nevada brewery out of California. Sierra Nevada is one of the most successful and longest running (est. 1980) craft brewers in the US, and make a large number of great beers. I have sampled many of them, but had never had the Kellerweis.

The Kellerweis is a American Hefeweizen brewed in a Bavarian style using open fermentation. Open fermentation is, as it sounds, the fermentation of beer in an open container, as opposed to an airtight container, as is the norm. While this is a great way to potentially introduce contaminants, if done correctly, it can produce some very complex flavors.

The beer, which features a 4.8% ABV and 15 IBU, is an unfiltered yeast beer. In the bottle, most of the sediment settles to the bottom, which is the reason for the interesting pouring instructions on the bottle. The drinker is instructed "To serve, pour two-thirds into a glass, swirl and pour the rest." While as a home brewer, my first thought is always to leave sediment in the bottle (or avoid it with good bottling technique), this beer is better with the sediment mixed in. Go figure.

Anyway, on to the important stuff....how's it taste?! It tastes pretty good. It's got a light body and a spicy taste brought on from the Bavarian ale yeast. Also from the yeast you get a banana flavor, which work well with the spicies in the brew. It's got some citrusy undertones and aftertastes. The light color is complemented by the cloudy character from those stirred up tidbits down the bottom of the bottle. The beer starts strong with the spice and banana, then mellows to a smooth citrusy finish.

The brew has a nice light mouth feel and what I'd call a large amount of flavor for a lighter summer beer. I had three of the brews, and the beer was more than interesting enough to keep me drinking. I'm not sure I'd consider it a session beer, though, as it does have quite a bit of flavor and spice. Three was great...by the time you got to six or eight, it might be a bit much. Maybe not, though....I'd be willing to test my theory, as this was a tasty brew.

Wild Frog Wheat Beer

Next up was the Wild Frog Wheat from the Hoppin' Frog Brewery in Akron, Ohio. The Belgian-style wheat beer has a 6.0% ABV and 12 IBU's. It comes in 22 ounce bottles.

As I said earlier, I'm not a big fan of Belgian-style wheat beers. That being said, this brew certainly wasn't bad. It had a spicy character that kept it interesting, and while it wasn't my favorite, it struck me as a good example of the style. The beer had some undertones of citrus, and I'd bet an orange slice or lemon wedge would go nicely with this beer.

Rogue Brewing Mom Hefeweizen

This award winning beer from the Rogue brewery in Oregon is "Dedicated to the Mom in each of us." and contains no chemicals, additives, or preservatives. It is an unfiltered wheat beer brewed with coriander and ginger.

This Belgian-style wheat beer is sold in 22 ounce bottles and features an above average for the style 34 IBU. The beer is brewed with Saaz hops, which leant an interesting tough of bitterness and flavor.

The beer was light and very drinkable beer and wasn't short on flavor. I found that you can really taste the Saaz hops and ginger in the beer, and it gave it a nice spicy note that kept things interesting without being heavy.

For a Belgian-style wheat beer, I found this beer to be more to my liking than most Belgians. I assume the inclusion of the ginger and Saaz hops are a big part of why I liked this beer, which I'd certainly purchase again.

Brooklyn Brewery's Hopfen Weisse

The final beer I'll review is my favorite of the five, and quite honestly, probably the best wheat beer I've ever had. I've tried it several different times, and it never fails to satisfy.

The beer is the Brooklyn Brewery's Hopfen Weisse. This Hefenweizen has an 8.5% ABV and 40 IBU. Obviously, those two numbers are both the highest we've reviewed today, and this beer is a lot stronger (in both alcohol and flavor) than the others.

This beer has got spicy and fruity notes and is just a great, great Hefenweizen. It has very noticeable spices that give the beer a very robust flavor for a wheat beer. If you like this style of beer, don't miss this top notch brew from Brookyn.

I hope you found these reviews helpful. If you have a favorite wheat beer that shouldn't be missed, please leave a comment and let me know. I'm always on the lookout for more tasty beers to try.

Cheers!