Cape Ann Fishermans Bavarian Wheat Ale

Brewed by Cape Ann Brewing Company
Style: German Hefeweizen
Gloucester, Massachusetts USA

Location: 12 oz bottle from Norm’s, 8/11/09

Aroma: Yeast, dough, banana, clove, sweet, very much the standard hefe aroma
Appearance: Cloudy yellow-orange color, fluffy white head
Flavor: Similar to the nose, sweet and malty, banana, clove, mild earthy hops, a bit of an odd spice tang to it
Palate: Light body, clean, easy drinking
Overall Impression: This is a decent example of the German Hefe style. Nothing super exciting is going on here, but it’s drinkable and nice.

**Just submitted a Photo for this one as well, as it was missing one. (Randomly, this is the 3rd beer I’ve rated today and the 3rd one that’s missing a photo).

My Bottom Line:
Spicy hops are immersed in doughy yeast, banana esters and cloves in this lean and cuddly Hefeweizen.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A veil of foam covers the hazy amber.
-The finish is rather shy, as is the citrusy wheat character.
-The mild hop personality ends in wooden bitterness.
-The comfy carbonation helps drinkability.
-This is lean and clean, but compared to Sierra Nevada’s Kellerweis it is rather tame and simple.

Bottles.

(12oz bottle) Large off-white head that mostly disspates atop cloudy apple cider body. Aroma is medium sweet, banana, bubblegum, light clove. Taste is medium sweet, banana, bubblegum, some soda water. Light body, light effervescence.

Bottle from Ron’s. Pours turbid deep gold toward orange with 1-finger off-white head. Nose is hopcitrus, orangy, hoppy, with some spice. Tastes limey/orangy/citric, with pale malt, some hops, and some finishing spice. No real faults here, but not anything earth-shattering either.

12oz bottle labeled as Bavarian Wheat. Murky brown orange color with a thick off-white head. Fresh clove aroma, sweet malt. Sweet and rich on the palate, but quickly fades into a banana watery finish. Some lemon orange citrus flavors going on as well. A touch darker and maltier than most of the style, and it works quite well. I rated this higher on draft.

Tap at Barcade: Pours a near headless, muddy deep orange with light lace. The aroma has some papery wheat malt, touch of crisp character and banana esters, mild acetone, yet balanced and not too sweet. The body is slightly prickly, with a light tartness in the flavor. Evident banana notes blend with mildly tart/soft citruses (earthy oranges) Nice German Wheat notes in the body under a hint of clove toward the finish. A decent interpretation of the style, and good drinking for a summer day.

Tap at Barcade - pours a hazy burnt orange - semi-tart, wheaty/grainy aroma, with moderate clove, and quite an earthy character - fairly soft in the mouth - mostly tart, with just a hint of sweetness to balance it - quite a bit of banana and phenolics, a touch of clove - a tiny bit of nuttiness - strong wheat near the back end - seems very much modeled off of Schneider hefe, which for some is probably a great thing - fairly tasty.