Piece Top Heavy Hefeweizen

Brewed by Piece Brewery & Pizzeria
Style: German Hefeweizen
Chicago, Illinois USA

Draft at brewpub. Decent session beer. I just dont’ think it can compare to a great German hefe-- especially Schneider on draft in Germany. Actually reminded me a little of a saison I brewed a few years ago. Decent session beer, but nothing to write home about. Probably a good beer for all the yuppies that live in the area.

Pours a cloudy straw yellow with virtually no head or carbonation. Tart vegetal aroma is over the top and smells of rotting plant matter. Fortunately, it tastes a lot better than it smells, with all the appropriate hefe characteristics there in spades -- lemony citrus, fresh bread, banana, and an extra dose of spicy clove. Medium body and surprisingly lively palate. A great-tasting hefe that misses that mark aesthetically.

Draft at brewpub. Poured cloudy yellow color with an average fizzy white head that mostly lasted with fair lacing. Moderate banana, clove and citrus aroma. Medium body with a sticky texture. Medium sweet flavor with a solid sweet wheat finish of moderate duration. Good refreshing brew.

This was a solid hefe, and I have never been a wheat beer fan. Peice does all their wheats well though, so it was no surprise this followed suit. Very smooth but it still had some muscle, and great with the pizza. Basically what I expect a hefe to be.

On tap at Piece Brewery, and served in a tall weizen glass. This beer poured a hazy, bright golden amber color with a small, white head that quickly faded away, Not much lace. The aroma of the beer was made up of very strong notes of bubblegum, fruity banana esthers, and also a bit of clove. Very appealing! The flavor did not disappoint either. The strong notes of bubblegum and banana came to the forefront, but were not cloying or overpowering. Beautifully balanced. The mouthfeel was crisp and medium-bodied with a decent amount of carbonation. I really loved this beer. In my opinion, a hefeweizen can’t be done much better that this! Excellent!!!

On tap @ the Brew pub: Pours a hazy gold with a white head. Aroma, spices, cloves, yeast and some wheat. Flavor, yeast, light fruits, wheat and some cloves. Good stuff.

GTMW 2007. The beer pours to a murky yellow-orange body with a thick, dense, huge, creamy white head. The aroma is light flowers, oranges, dry wheat, banana, and white pepper. The flavor is floral with oranges, dry wheat, and bananas. The palate is medium-light bodied with a dry lively short lasting finish.

On tap at GTMW 2007

After several barrel aged imperial stouts (in 90+ degree heat) I was ready for something lighter and more palatable. While those were worth the cost of admission it was just too hot to continue to drink them by the halfway point. This was a great change of pace - Piece is currently one of my favorite brewpubs. I wouldn’t be too disappointed if it were the local one at all.

Aroma / Appearance - The cloudy yellow body did not let much light escape. As it swirled around the poor designed kolsch glass I saw a bit of white head form. The nose is mostly banana but not intensely so.

Flavor / Palate - The taste was pretty simple and clean, just as I was hoping. Banana and yeasty notes formed the bulk but somewhere in there was a little spiciness. This was a very well made hefeweizen which is perfect for days like the GTMW.