Wheat Beer Review- Sierra Nevada & UFO Hefeweizen + SA Summer Ale and a burger

My girlfriend left these beers at my house so, you know, eventually, I had to drink them. She is a fan of wheat beers, I'm not, but wheat beers are known to be very refreshing and I came back from the outdoor shooting range today drained, sweaty and dehydrated. So, y'all know what happened next...

First, we have the Sierra Nevada Wheat Beer from the Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., in Chico, CA (www.sierranevada.com).

It pours a light, hazy, golden color, kind of like a cloudy lemonade, with a nice amount of white head. This is an unfiltered beer, so good luck trying to see though it. The smell is mostly of wheat, slightly hoppy with a touch of lemon. The taste is very much like the smell- wheaty and citrusy with some mild citrus hop on the backend. This is a thin, crisp and very refreshing beer. The finish is crisp and very dry and when you're done there's some nice lacing on the glass to look at.

All in all, this beer goes down like heaven after you've been outside in the Miami heat for a few hours. I'm still not a huge fan of wheat beers but lately I've realized they have a place and a purpose. This one is, most definately, a glass 1/2 FULL, almost pushing 3/4. Get yourself one... Cheers!

Next up, we have the UFO Hefeweizen, from New England's Harpoon Brewery (www.harpoonbrewery.com).

This, of course, is another unfiltered wheat beer. Hefe is German for yeast and weizen means wheat. This one also pours a light gold, cloudy lemonade color but does not develope as much head as the Sierra Nevada, nor does that head that it does develope last very long at all. Also, it seems under-carbonated and, conversely, it leaves no lacing to speak of.

The smell is of wheat and lemon and the taste makes me think of wheaty lemon water. Not hard to drink at all but not special in any way- and definatly thinner than the Sierra. It had some bite to it and felt slightly chewy when the head and carbonation were present but they didn't last and even that couldn't save it from being blah. Once the head and carbonation were gone this truely became wheaty lemon water.

Pure blandness and the fact I'm not a huge fan of wheat beers make me call this one a glass 1/2 EMPTY. It's not bad, its just whatever. There are better wheat beers out there, like the Sierra Nevada. But dont take my word for it, go and try them for yourselves... 

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Now, remember what I said about wheat beers having a place and a purpose? Well, the other night the g/f and I went to Outback Steakhouse. For those that don't know, Outback has some kick-ass burgers and they stock the Samuel Adams Seasonals, which right now happens to be the Summer Ale, also an unfiltered American style pale wheat ale like the Sierra and UFO. 

I spent the second half of my workday last friday drooling over the thought of one of those kick-ass burgers and a Summer Ale so, of course, when I got there I had to get it in the 'Big Bloke' 22 oz mug.

Actually, I had to get two of them =)

So yes, wheat beers have a time and a place, and they go great with a burger. I must admit that the Samuel Adams Summer Ale is the better beer, in my opinion, but it is brewed with lemon zest and 'Grains of Paradise', a rare pepper from Africa that gives it a distinct taste and an unfair advantage. Maybe one of these days I'll give the Summer Ale a full-blown review but until then I suggest anyone who is curious, or just lives in a hot ass climate, go pick up a 6'er and give it a try on a hot summer day. I promise it'll do ya right. Cheers!