Clipper City Heavy Seas Hang Ten

Brewed by Clipper City Brewing Co.
Style: Weizen Bock
Baltimore, Maryland USA

This was a pleasant surprise, when I saw that it was an unfiltered wheat beer, I was expecting a pale, slightly biscuity light tasting beer. Instead, this was a dark reddish brown, full bodied bee, with the nose and taste of malty dark fruits (raisins, dates, grapes), mixed with pleasant clove and other spices, with a tad of bananas, apples and other lighter fruit, atop the biscuit. Every sip or sniff brought out something different. Not to mention the 10% abv that never made itself known outight, but could be felt below the surface. I will definitely have more of this.

Pours from the 12 oz. bottle a rust colored brown with a thick two finger off white head that quickly fades int a medium collar. Carbonation is light and the body is hazy & opaque. Aroma is sweet and fruity...hints of banana and apricot are detected. 1st sip brings hints of spice, fruit, and honey. The finish has a peppery spice to it. There is almost NO hint of the 10% abv, so be careful with these, they go down much too smoothly to be this potent! Mouthfeel is a little on the light side, but hardly watery. All in all, good stuff! I don’t come across many weizenbocks (Victory’s Moonglow is the only other one i’ve sampled), but if this is what the style is all about, I definetly want more!

Bottle. A dark cloudy amber to brown color pour with a small offwhite short lasting head , some spotty lacing left , lively carbonation. Aroma of cloves , bubblegum , apples, banana , ginger, and a sweet malt . Flavor is slightly boozy at first , sweet wheaty malt , cloves,apple, caramel , and a hint of maple syrup . No apparent hop flavors. A dry yeasty finish with a lingering spice aftertaste . Medium body , with a slick mouthfeel . I would call it quite drinkable and a pretty good brew .

Big bubblegum aroma, with some phenolics and alcohol; aroma is a mix of caramelly banana, clove, esters, and a slight alcohol astringency (it is 10% after all!).

There are so many radical cowabunga clichés running through my head at this moment as I contemplate the Hang Ten before me from Clipper City Brewing’s Heavy Seas line. Eighties surfing humor aside, she claims to be a weizen doppelbock which certainly sets my mouth watering. A good American version of a traditional German wheat or hefeweizen is nigh impossible to find, many choosing the American interpretations of wheat beers. Not only does Clipper City go for the sauerkraut and liverworts, they also delve deep into doppelbock territory, and I am reminded greatly of another delicious German wheat doppelbock, the Aventinus from Schneider-Sohn. If this is their inspiration for Hang Ten, I am in for a deliciously lip-smacking treat of epic German weizen doppelbock proportions.

A deep murky depth of brown mahogany with slivers of amber highlights shimmer beneath a whisper of soft foam. Hang Ten wastes no time showing me her worth in a voluminous nose replete with caramel and molasses drenched malts and thick, chewy, moist dark breads. Banana bread fresh from the oven, anyone? A slathering of brown sugars and spice are soaked in rum with a soft, juicy addition of raisins and prunes. A playful nip of alcohol warmth brings her together harmoniously, just in time for me to rile things up a little bit as I savor the first of many quaffs. Let it be known I love German hefeweizens. The more banana and banana bread, cloves, coriander and spice the better, which Hang Ten has in spades, along with further sensory delights of doppelbock. Bready and lightly sweet with caramelized sugars, maple, caramel, and molasses while spices of nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger powder linger in the back of my throat. My breath is warm with rum soaked raisins. The banana is a subtle undercurrent, prominent more so in the sense of warm banana bread with crunchy pecans. My cheeks are a-glow and a smile of bliss graces my visage as each quaff is a perfect sup and repeat. Her mouthfeel remains soft and full while her warmth slowly soothes and relaxes. A final nip of rum raisins and wisp of vanilla seal our last kiss, and then she was gone.

Aventinus is still tops on my list, but deserved kudos for Clipper City Brewing for their Heavy Seas Hang Ten. A brilliant reproduction of classic German weizen doppelbock heritage. I’ll gladly take another 4pack of Hang Ten home with me and where they will share precious fridge space with Schneider-Sohn’s Aventinus.

Bottle. Moderate aromas of grain and roasted for the malt, flowers and orange for the hops, heavy barnyard and musty for the yeasts, with background notes of wood, toffee, clove, pepper and mace. Head is small, wispy, white with a little lacing and is almost fully diminishing. Color is murky reddish brown. Flavor starts moderately sweet and lightly acidic, then finishes moderately acidic and lightly bitter. Palate is medium, creamy with a soft carbonation and finishes lightly alcholic. Complex, spicy and bold, this is how you turn wheat into something that kicks ass.

The appearance is clear red with a hint of orange. Lots of carbonation bubbles. Creamy rose-white head. The smell is really nice, spicy Belgian ale. Ginger ale & sour cherries. Lemon zest and sweet orange peel. Not at all funky or musty. The taste is sour Belgian, with a pungent, puckery yeast. Sour cherries, sweet grapes. A little Belgian brett-funk as well at the end, and it all works. The feel is smooth and oily with a fizzy bite at the end. Dry, white wine finish. This is one helluva nice Weizenbock. Sweet and dry both. Heavy yet smooth; a great choice.

BBD June, 09. Bottle from Siciliano’s Market, Grand Rapids, MI. Hazy dark brown with medium to large, creamy beige head. Aroma is raisin, alc, some oxidation. red and purple fruit, banana, wheat and bread. Flavor is red and purple fruit with alc, overripe grapefruit, wheat, some dough and banana as well. Medium to full creamy body, active carbonation. Nice .