Scuttlebutt Hefeweizen

Date: September 09, 2009
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewpub
Appearance: hazy orange, wispy white head, streaks of drippy lace
Aroma: light sweet malt aroma
Flavor: sweet malt flavor, touch of fruityness, light bitterness
Aroma: 4/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 5/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 8/20
Rating: 2.3/5.0
Drinkability: 6/10
Score: ** /4

Brewpub tap; malty with citrus undertones that are not as strong as a normal hef; poured a nice straw color; little bit of a disappointment. (#29)

On draught at the brewpub in Everett, Washington. Pours a hazy golden amber brew with a creamy white head that slowly dissipates to a thick off-white ring and some spotty lacing. Aroma of light golden grain malt with wheat, a touch of lemon zest and some light barnyard hay. Taste is light bodied, very light carbonation with flavors of wheat malt and some citrus and grassy hops. Finish is semi-sweet wheat malt with a touch of citrus. Definitely a wheat ale rather than a hefeweizen.

Rather uninspired hefe. Pours a light hazy gold. Aroma of cardboard and wheat. Light lemon. A funky wheat flavor with a crisp finish. Not much to this one. Did not like the wheat flavor. Basically a blonde ale brewed with wheat malt.

Draft at the brewpub. Cloudy medium gold with scantest white head. Veerrrrry mild bready nose. Rich attack and mid-palate, but inappropriately so for a hefe/amwh, really (they’ve cheated and added the wrong hops). Medium body and tingly carb. More like a lightly hopped blonde--piney flavors on the finish. Meh.

On tap at the brewery. Orange-yellow with moderate haze. Oily-slick mouthfeel with a little malt in finish. Slight citrus flavour. Not much to it.

On Tap at Scuttlebutt Cloudy light amber/yellow. Soft creamy white head and wispy lacing. I loved the soft smoth of this one. Pale malt flavors and very low on the hops. Lacking the German hef fruity yeastiness.

(Draft: Scuttlebutt Brewing Co. in Everett, WA) Well, the Sequoia Red was the first beer I sampled here, and I was really encouraged, but the hefeweizen is much less impressive, and doesn’t really even attain an "average" status. Somewhat non-descript nose is lightly grainy, and while it’s pleasant enough, it doesn’t smell like a hefeweizen at all. And even in the flavor, there isn’t much that reminds me of a hefeweizen. I swear, this is closer to a blonde ale to me, as I taste more grainy maltiness than anything else. Hardly any perceptable impact from wheat malts, and certainly no yeast or banana or clove that should be apparent in this style. Even the slight citrusy flavor is probably more from the lemon wedge I ripped off the glass as quickly as possible. Light bodied, but not watery. Fairly cloudy golden body has a small, off-white head that settles to a thin layer, leaving patchy lacing on the glass. If I rated to style, this would get bombed, but I rate to taste, and this seems like a typical blonde ale to me, so my numbers will be higher.