Sea Dog Blue Paw Wild Blueberry Wheat Ale

Brewed by Sea Dog Brewing (Shipyard Brewing Co.)
Style: Fruit Beer
Topsham, Maine USA

Pours a clear amber that seems to have just a little touch of pinkish to it (from the blueberry I am guessing). Nose is like a basket of blueberries and not much else really able to immediately overpower that. Flavor is like dirty blueberries in the midst of an ale. Hardly clean at all. Bitter and almost a slight metallic edge to it. No strong wheat characteristics to it at all. Feel is like standard beer with just a little more bubble perhaps. I can’t say it is overly drinkable due to it’s lack of grace or any smooth qualities whatsoever. I love blueberries, but this is not something I really enjoyed or would go hunt out again. For me as a blueberry lover, it’s hardly worth going back to...or even trying in the first place.

Bottle from Friar Tuck in Savoy, IL. Pours golden amber with a rocky white head. Nice strong aroma of blueberry cereal (boo-berry!). Medium-light bodied with some slight prickly carbonation. Initial flavor of wheat malt, honey, and stale grains that transitions to a blueberry middle, that carries through to the finish. Finish is a tad watery and perhaps a little buttery. Overall, much better than I expected. However, the mouthfeel and finish was a bit distracting for me.

Sample from bottle at the Halifax Seaport Beerfest. Pale golden colour with a fully diminishing fizzy white head. Fresh wild blueberry aroma. A bit more artificial tasting - like blueberry Eggo waffles. Light bodied, dry.

I wasn’t expecting a terribly complex beer when I purchased this one. The color is a light gold with a nice puffy white head that fades quickly. Aroma of blueberries, especially blueberry bubble gum and that familiar crisp wheat aroma. Very tingly carbonation, solid mouthfeel for what I perceive to be a lager appearance. The flavor was extremely well done, some fruit beers are fantastic in their balance while others are too over the top or too understated. This one has a fine grassy malt flavor (again, the wheat twang is there) with a strong blueberry backbone. It’s not too crazy, but it’s very good for a fruit beer.

Name: Wild Paw Blueberry Wheat Ale
Date: 04/07/2006
Mode: Bottle
Source: Pop’s

clear golden yellow, thin fine white head, lots of tiny bubbles, sweet blueberry aroma fills the air as soon as you pop the cap, smooth body, big sweet blueberry flavor on a nice light wheat character, not too sweet, light bitterness

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 5/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 7/10; Overall: 12/20
Rating: 3.1/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: **+/4

12 ounce bottle. Shaker glass. Golden with a thin head. Aroma - blueberry muffins. Taste was something like a pale lager with a hint of artificial blueberry flavoring added. Thin mouthfeel. Not very good.

Draught. Golden pour. Aroma of blueberries and sugar. Taste of blueberries with some yeast. Sweet aftertaste. One and done with this, way too sweet for a session.

Bottle. Watery orange color. Very powerful smell of blueberries. Decent taste. A little too carbonated and a bit too watery. Very faint flavor of blueberries and honey. A bland and somewhat boring beer.