White beer review

The most recent Twitter Taste Live beer (#ttl from here on out) was a tasting of witbiers or Belgium style white beers. These are wheat ales brewed without hops, but with a gruit. A gruit consists of fruit and spices for preservatives instead of hops. They are unfiltered and have yeast floating around in them. As the Hoegaarden bottle says, you should pour your witbier 2/3 down the side of the glass, then swirl the last 1/3 and pour it on top of the beer. This will give you a good head (we’re always looking for good head) and dislodge any yeast stuck in the bottle. They are called white beers because of said sediment in the beers, in addition, to the bright white heads on the beers. These happens to be one of my favorite styles of beers. Fantastic in the summer, one of the most refreshing brews around. But do yourself a favor and don’t put any fruit in that, ok?

Alaskan White

Stats:
Witbier. 5.3% ABV. Alaska.

Orange color, similar to the Sam Adams, but less than the Blue Moon. Not too much of a head.

I get apricots for days on the nose. A little orange, tangerine, and some yeast, but not hugely aromatic.

Decent mouth feel, with some good carbonation.

Lot of apricots again on the palate, and a little hint of spices. I also get a really nice coconut flavor out of it too.

I like the flavor, but I wish it was more flavorful, as it’s fairly subtle. 82 points.

Blue Moon

Stats:
Witbier. 5.4% ABV. Colorado.

The most orange colored out of the bunch. It is also the only one with zero head at this point.

A ton of orange and coriander on the nose, but not getting too much else. They pretty much dominate

Similar mouth feel to the Alaskan. Also, decent carbonation, fine mouth feel.

All orange and coriander on the palate as well, with perhaps a few more spices coming through.

I think I actually like this better than the Alaskan (yes, I know it’s Coors). It’s just more flavorful, and the orange is pretty delicious. This is usually my bar choice, cause I think it’s better than what is usually on tap. 84 points.

Hoegaarden

Stats:
Witbier. 4.9% ABV. Belgium.

Pale yellow color, much more so than any of the other ones.

Far more aromatic on the nose than the first two. Bananas and lemons dominate on the nose for me. Coriander and orange also come through, along with more spices.

Seems like a slightly more viscous mouth feel than the first two.

Just ridiculous amounts of bananas and lemons on the palate. The taste is very similar to the nose, and pretty damn delicious.

This is for sure my favorite so far in the tasting. Easy to find, and you need to have one of these. 87 points.

Ommegang Witte

Stats:
Witbier. 5.1% ABV. New York.

A yellowish, orange color. In between a Hoegaarden and Blue Moon.

Smells slightly rubberish, but I do get some orange and banana, as well as some blueberries, of all things. The nose is pretty similar to Hoegaarden, but not as aromatic.

I think it’s probably a little thicker than the Hoegaarden, but very similar mouth feel to the rest of them.

Also tastes similar to Hoegaarden, but more of a spice play than the fruit of Hoegaarden. More yeasty and orangey.

Pretty decent, but again, I’m disappointed it wasn’t as flavorful as some of the others. 88 Points.

Sam Adams White Ale

Stats:
Witbier. 5.2% ABV. Massachusetts.

Slightly less orange than the Blue Moon in color.

Totally different nose on this than the others. I actually get this buttery component, and it seems much sweeter than the others. Also, there is less fruit, but it does have some orange and banana.

Less carbonated mouth than the others.

Definitely more sweet than the others, with lots of spices, and quite a bit more yeast. But not a whole lot more, unfortunetly.

Not my favorite of the bunch. It’s not awful, but the buttery, sweet thing, throws me off a bit. It’s alright. 84 Points.

St. Bernardus Wit

Stats:
Witbier. 5.5% ABV. Belgium

More pale colored than the Sam Adams.

Much more yeasty on the nose than the rest of them. But the fruit comes through a lot too. I’m getting some bananas, lemons. Oranges, and a pretty cool, mead/honey thing.

Seems more carbonated than the others, but good/refreshing mouth feel.

Orange, banana, honey, yeasty, wheaty, slightly funky, and fantastic.

This is the best by a long shot. Super complex, rich, refreshing, flavorful, yeasty and wheaty. Fantastic brew. You should give this a try if you can find it. 91 points.

Pretty good tasting overall. You can find most of these beers at your local grocery store, I did anyways. If you like wheat beers, please give one or two of these a try, especially the St. Bernardus. and you might find something new you like. Though, I’m gonna give big props to Blue Moon. I do think it is a pretty decent beer, especially for the availability and price of it, good session stuff. I think I’m gonna institute a “question of the post” type of deal, so my question is: when is the last time you had a white beer other than Blue Moon, if you have? If not, why?