Cold Spring Honey Almond Weiss

Brewed by Cold Spring Brewery
Style: Wheat Ale
Cold Spring, Minnesota USA

From the Bottle at the GABF Colorado Convention Center, Denver 10/10/2008 Some spice aroma. Golden coloured and hazy in appearance. Sweet honey flavours. Crisp and slightly dry in the finish.

Found a single of this and how could I not snatch it knowing the quality that this brewery puts out. Upon looking at the prior scores this looks to be an above average effort from the place. A decent looking pour. Cloudy golden color with a tall, lasting off-white head. Sweet aromas of pears, apricots, wheat and marzipan. After awhile some light almond scents sneak in, but still seems sticky. Fairly thin and nearly water feel. Some pale lager notes, mixed with almonds, bread and hints of citrus. Seems to go quickly, which in some ways is a good thing. I do catch a bit of hops bitterness in the linger. Somewhat simple. Certainly not gut wrenching like some of the Gluek products.

12 oz. bottle from HI-Time. Hazy orange-tinged color with a very few white bubbles for head. Aroma is floral and dusty over pale malt/biscuit. Near medium body with near creamy carbonation. Flavor starts slightly citrus tart, but quickly flattens out to just a decent wheat beer. A little citrus sour lingers at the finish which is pretty clean. Have no idea where the hops are. Fairly refreshing drink.

Picked up a single 12-oz bottle at Heritage Liquors in Maplewood, MN. Pours a semi-clear golden pale blonde brew with a fast dissolving white head that dissipates to a thin film and white ring. Aroma of light bread malt, a touch of flowery hops, a hint of yeast and some light marzipan. Taste is light bodied, some extra carbonation with flavors of light multi-grain malt with some wheat, flowery hops and a touch of sugar. Finish is light, crisp with a quick disappearing wheat aftertaste and finishes clean. A solid wheat ale but very light bodied.

Copper color with a medium head. Slight almond aroma and lots of grain. Very watery grain flavor. Little to no wheat.

Wheat with a little sour citrus. Cloudy yellow. It is like honey weiss from Leinenkugels, only considerably better.

18-Aug-08 (12-oz bottle: Purchased 16-Aug-08 for $1.29 at Holiday Wine Cellar in Escondido, CA) Apparently new to the San Diego market, a trio of Cold Spring six-packs was stacked for "quick movement." Certainly an odd decision for this normally fine bottle shop, so good luck with that. Only the Honey Almond Weiss was available as a single-bottle purchase, so that’s all I picked up. The beer pours a hazy, golden-amber color with a very small, filmy, white head that quickly dissipates. Aromas of bread, honey, cheese, socks and cardboard suggest this beer is old, but presumably it’s not. Bready malt base mingles with vague flavors of sweet honey and artificial almond, plus a hint of tartness. The flavor is passable, but certainly doesn’t inspire much enthusiasm for subsequent sips. Maybe it’s the almond flavoring that makes the beer taste cardboardy and old, but that’s the beer’s biggest downfall. Body is light but not watery, carbonation is light-medium, the mouthfeel is smooth and easy, and the slight tartness does help to keep this wheat beer from sitting all fat on the palate. I can’t say I’m a fan of honey or almond in beer, so it’s not surprising I didn’t find this enjoyable, but the beer isn’t awful.

Tasted at the San Diego International Beer Festival. Hazy yellow with a fizzy head. Honey, malty, and mild almond taste.