Fort Collins Major Toms Pomegranate Wheat

Brewed by Fort Collins Brewery
Style: Fruit Beer
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

First... this beer frightens me... I despise fruit beers. Well... time to open the bottle, and see what comes out... Aroma... not so bad... standard witbier aroma, with a hint of sweetness hiding behind it. It pours a straw like color, with a white head that quickly fades to a tight cap. Gods... what have I consumed? There’s a taste hiding in the background I can’t place, but I know it’s no pomegranate. It’s more of a sour-bitter flavor. There’s a slight finish of pomegranate, but that’s being curbstomped by this off flavor. Something I shall stay far far away from... At least it’s drinkable and not a drain pour.

Bottle pours a cloudy gold with a frothy head. The aroma is almost entirely malty. The flavor is crisp and malty with a bit of acidity. The fruit flavor is mild and mellow. The it finishes with some sweetness and just a slight touch of sour. Not a bad summer beer.

On Tap at the River St. Ale House in Pittston which sells micros for $2 during happy hour. It has a lemony almost grape-like flavor with some citrus and wheat. Easy to drink and it has a medium finish. Its not mind blowing and I think the grape-like quality is a bit too tart for me.

Glass-clear gold body supports an impressively white soapbubble head. Nearly zero aroma... the barest suggestion of sourdough; grapefruit and steamy lockerroom emerges after the head has completely collapsed. Tates like... white bread dipped in gatorade. It’s actually not bad, just very understated and citric. Pomegranate flavor does not come through well. Watery mouthfeel. Clean finish leads to a mild nectarine aftertaste with very, very faint charcoal bitterness. It looks like beer but tastes like grapefruit juice and Sprite. I wouldn’t mind drinking one at breakfast, but there’s nothing "beer" about it.

12oz bottle. Aroma: Wheat malt, yeast, light spice, and a touch of pomegranate. Pomegranate has a touch of fruitiness and the sweet/tart aroma of the real fruit. Appearance: Light amber in colro and slightly hazed. White head was full and foamy with good retention. Good lacing. Flavor: Wheat malt, yeast, light earthy hops, pepper. Pomegranate is there but is pretty subtle. The tartness of the fruit and the tartness of the wheat malt kind of meld together. Light bitterness and a dry finish. Palate: Medium-light bodied. Medium-high carbonation. Overall: I think they skimped on the pomegranate juice. The tartness is there, but lacking a nice intense pomegranate flavor. Mediocre.

It’s a sunny spring day, and I can see a field of soccer players from my window competing in perfect Colorado weather. Instinctively I reach for the first light beer I can find, returning with the bi-plane adorned Major Tom’s Pomegranate Wheat. The head is crisp and taut, a bit like a bed mattress, colored white with the slightest hue of peach flesh orange. The body is colored like an amber, but lighter, promising a full bodied wheat experience. If the beer’s appearance advertises a flavorful and appealing drink, the aroma is the fine text revealing the whole and unsavory truth. A dry wheat dominates, but there’s enough hops to assert itself. Pilsner skunk and wet moss also make uninvited appearances, giving the beer an overall smell similar to powdered hand soap. In other words, gross. The beer is partially redeemed by the textural sensation when my lip meets the lip of the glass, and the head collapses onto my upper lip like snow bunched up by a snow plow. The flavor is simultaneously sweet and bitter, and above all refreshing. Assorted nuts and pilsner skunk appear again, as unruly as before, bolstered by a smooth and heavy palate. Meditation on the mouth feel yields the elusive pomegranate, which is merely the dry part of the fruit and none of the sweet. At least the seeds aren’t a nuisance here. What may be even more disappointing is the complete and curious absence of any wheat, despite Major Tom being a wheat beer. The idea is attractive, but this pomegranate wheat has no wheat and only marginal doses of pomegranate. Somehow it is still refreshing and suited for sports viewing from a third story window on a sunny day, but any other time and the Major Tom’s would be a complete let down.

12oz bottle pours cloudy amber with a big fluffy white head that stays well and laces some. Aromas of yeast, I guess pommegranate which I’m not real sure what that smells like but I presume it is the tropical fruit aroma. The flavor is pretty well dominated by the same fruitiness from the aroma and some yeast as well as some slight lemony flavor. Crisp pretty clean and quite refreshing on the palate. I can only compare this to the Saranac Pommegranate wheat and this one was definitely better.

6/14/2007: Fort Collin’s Major Tom’s Pomegranate Wheat is golden yellow in color and slightly hazy. It has a generous amount of carbonation and an ample, foamy, white head that slowly fades away and leaves foamy lacing all the way through. The aroma is sweet and yeasty with some lemon citrus and floral notes. The flavor has some pale and wheat malts, a unique fruitiness that is hard to describe (it’s like a faint mango flavor or something; must be the pomegranate coming through...) and some light citrus, and a nice spicy and floral bitterness flavor toward the finish. There is also a slight bitterness in the finish that balance the mild sweetness of the beer. This beer has a medium body and is pretty smooth. Overall Major Tom’s Pomegranate Wheat is crisp, refreshing, and something a bit different.

12 oz bottle from The Hop Shop in Indianapolis, Indiana.