Pyramid Haywire Hefeweizen

I don’t think there’s really any reason to argue with Pyramid Hefeweizen (bottle). It’s easy to find, it’s relatively cheap, and it’s just a solid beer. It pours cloudy with gradations of deep hues of yellow, orange and brown. It’s not in-your-face with any of citrus, spice or wheat flavors, which adds to its drinkability. I think that, unlike other wheat beers that claim to be "hefeweizens," this is one of the few that can withstand scrutiny as such. Of course, I’m not saying its even in the same league as the best of that style, but I’m honestly suprised I like such a commercial beer.

Pours a very hazy yellow-orange hue with a nice little creamy white head. Funky piquant nose of distinct yeast, fruits and spices. Initially sharp flavor with big wheat roundness that finishes bready and mealy. Pretty easy drinking American style hefe.

Cloudy orange pour with a very light smell of fruity wheatiness. Taste was nice and smooth, with maybe less than average carbonation. Very easy to drink, and friendly for beginners. Not bad, but not my favorite American Wheat as it lacked some of the hearty flavor of other wheats.

On tap. Very cloudy, thick orange looking. Light orange hefeweizen smell. Subtle smell. Not as crisp as I would like. Kindof bland and lemony tart. Looks like frozen, canned, concentrated orange juice put into a glass with some water, and its in the process of thawing and has yet to be mixed. Not appealing. However, it is drinkable.

Sample at a beer tasting. Aroma was weak, but hinted of citrus which leaned more toward lemon. Slightly metallic flavor and plenty of citrus that didn’t combine well with the wheat malt. Nice and cloudy.

8/15/07 from the bottle. Aroma is sour wheat malt forward with a solid hop citrus and spice balance. While not to style, it does have a slight clove note. Appearance is hazy gold with a gool off-white head. Flavor is sweet wheat malt forward, lightly grainy with sourness and low bittering. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with light creaminess and low carb feel. Overall, a simple, well made hef that is refreshing and easy drinking.

Draft. The server at this bar decided that it was appropriate to just go ahead and squeeze the lemon all into the beer and leave it in the glass... and she didn’t even ask first! I don’t let anyone just put foreign objects in my beer. I tasted mostly lemons, and some grain.

Bottle. I heard a lot of good things about this beer so I had to give it a shot. Poured a golden orange color with a fair amount of head that dissipated pretty quickly. Taste is super smooth with wheat and spice, and a little tin flavor. This is a great warm weather beer, highly drinkable and very smooth. It’s definitely not one of the best hefe’s out there, but it’s not bad either.