Baltika 8 Pshenichnoe (Wheat)

Brewed by Baltika Brewery (Baltic Beverages Holding - Carlsberg)
Style: German Hefeweizen
St. Petersburg, Russia

Aroma is a mix of bannana, citrus and a sharper spicy note that is very foreign to my nose. It’s enticing though. Body is a cloudy pale yellow with a beautiful, lasting and creamy two finger thick white head. Very nilla wafer creamy cake tasting in the fore. Kind of a vanilla/bannana mix. Yeasty and while creamy sweet with that vanilla/’nanna mix it is far from cloying. This is a pretty damn unique beer that plays with the style and still tastes good doing it.

Highlandlad that’s hilarious but personally I don’t think spellcheck could save them. Also have to agree that I’d lost interest in this style but a beer like this could easily woo me back. Tasted from the tall, thin-necked brown bottle with original label up-front and humourously translated English label on the back (purchased out of date from a south of everywhere beer shop). Poured into a stein glass, a mountainous, rocky white head grew to a good inch and a half and held firm for the length to leave behind daubs of froth on the glass. The beer a hazy, sunny gold with high effervescence. Weird blend of bubblegum, bologna (cold-cut meat), gritty wheat grain and malt vinegar wafted from the first sniff in the bottle but once in the glass it was smooth sailing ester and phenolic tones that could easily top the better Bavarians. Mmmm, wheat beer. I’m honestly surprised. Who knew a Russian interpretation could be so good. Its spritzy and lively on the tongue, quite light in body as to not way down the drinker, and oozing with summery flavours. Light clove-like and dusty phenolics blend into flourishes of ripe bananas, berry ’Hubba bubba’ bubblegum and tangy grips of wheat. Though fresh on the palate it seems quite dry for a hefe-weizen and manages to drop of short in the finish. Its only shortfall being a touch of higher alcohols shining through between swallows, but thats just nit-picking. A refreshing thirst quencher. Cheers!!! (50cL, 27/01/06, Jandakot Liquor)

Hazy orange body, with anice creamy foam.Fruity aroma, with a nice bitternes in the finish. A nice beer.Medium body.

Pours a three finger white head that fades slowly to a thin layer leaving a reasonable lace. Cloudy amber color. Good carbonation and medium bodied. Yeasty nose. Starts sweet, lemony, yeast and hops are balanced nicely in background, finish is clean. Not a bad Hefe. $1.95 for a 500ml bottle from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma.

Classic hazy lemon, medium large, shortish lasting white head. Medium light heading towards watery body. Light fruity esters and light asian spices, lightly grapefruit pith sour/bitterness, medium light grainy sweetness and a touch of hop bitterness in the light dry finish. Thanks Yarra for this one.

The President of Baltika Brewery of St Petersburg, Russia, Mr T.K. Bolloev, declares on the label of this beer that this is an "unfiltred wheat ale" that "countains special yeast which gives it cloudness and creates a reach taste". His English is better than my Russian, but he should sack his translator. Or try Spellcheck. Fortunately his brewers know what they’re doing. This is a fine hefe and the easily the best of the three Baltika brews that have crossed this gullet. In the glass, it was a lovely-looking cloudy gold construction with a fine onion-domed head like the Kremlin itself. Okay, I made that up - no onion dome, but wouldn’t that be cool? It has the classic hefe aroma of bananas and cloves - very much to style. There’s loads of yeast and wheat - if you close your eyes you could be standing in the vast wheatfields of the Steppes, a sickle in your hand and hope in your heart as you gaze towards a bright new communist future and dream of picking up Olga in your new Lada. Come to think of it, the future would probably be behind you. But you get the idea. This beer holds up well in the mouth, with some bready malts to complement the bananas and a sprinkle of spice in the swallow. It’s creamy-smooth and full-flavoured - or indeed "reach" in taste. This has restored my taste for hefes. Thank you comrades. (500ml bottle from some dodgy Noosa bottlo, bb 20/7/06)

Hazy orange body under a huge white and lasting head. Delicious fruity aroma. Taste of banana. Watery mouthfeel and slightly too sweet. This is not the first time a wheatbeer proves very suitably to chicken food.

21 Mar 2006 - Light bubblegum sweet aroma. Cloudy yellow colour, good head and sheet lacing. Sweet wheat and light hop flavour. Medium mouthfeel with a banana aftertaste.