True North Wunder Weisse
Magnotta Brewery

True North Wunder WeisseTrue North Wunder Weisse
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From:
Magnotta Brewery
 
Ontario, Canada
Style:
Hefeweizen
ABV:
5%
Score:
83
Avg:
3.54 | pDev: 9.89%
Reviews:
19
Ratings:
20
Status:
Active
Rated:
May 22, 2021
Added:
Jun 13, 2003
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  1
An ultra-premium Bavarian-style wheat beer at 5% alc./vol. Yellow colour with slight, natural wheat beer haze. Subtle aromas of yeast and delicate ripe banana. Slightly tart and mildly malty with a perfect balance between flavours of clove and banana. Silky mouthfeel. Wonderfully refreshing and thirst quenching. Enjoy with fruit salad, seafood and shellfish, egg dishes, smoked meats, lemon and other fruit pies and cakes, and edam and swiss cheeses.
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Ratings by pootz:
Photo of pootz
Reviewed by pootz from Canada (ON)

3.32/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Sampling the bottled product under the name "True North" Wunderweiss

The pour puts a decent enough clouded straw ale in my glass with a 2 finger cap...but this does not stack out of the glass as we are used to seeing with German hefeweizen or stay as long as it shoud so we know there is a lack of wheat protiens in this bottled version...the carbonation is not natural although it is spritzy.

It picks up points in the nose department where the banana-clove-tangerine aromas are there ( with a slight mustiness) but subdued compared with the same product on draft.

Has only a portion of the peppery tongue the draft version has....smooth, light fruit ( banana-vanilla) and clove tastes over barley malt spine, hopping puts a light citrus twang to it mid gulp,....finishes fast and not so dry as it should be....light fruit aftertastes. Not a bad stab at a bottled hefeweiss for the local ontario beer market...they are the only one in the field until Denison gets his Hefeweizen out...this is easy to take...definately not as good as the draft version but will do in a pinch on a hot weekend if there are no imports around...Hint to the Brewer: more unmalted wheat would dry out the finish.
Mar 21, 2006
More User Ratings:
Photo of Pmicdee
Reviewed by Pmicdee from Canada (ON)

3.89/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Pours a nice gold colour, darker than many hefes. Big head to start,disappearing in 25 seconds. The smell has faint bubblegum notes and I swear I can smell the carbonation. The taste is quite nice, classic cloves and banana with hops in the background. Bubbly mouthfeel.
May 21 2021
May 22, 2021
Photo of DawnOne
Reviewed by DawnOne from Canada (ON)

3.95/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Only had it on tap and unfortunately hard to find, especially in winter. It is the best Ontario wheat beer (Hefe-Weizen) I've found. Somewhat over spiced to my taste, but nevertheless superior to all other local brewery attempts
.
Jan 24, 2015
Photo of Mit
Reviewed by Mit from Canada (ON)

3.58/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Very nice straw coloured cloudy..nice head...

Citrus...orange peel...coriander...

Citrus at the fore...very citrusy with a spicy finish...thoroughly enjoyable...I'll be getting this again.

Decent mouthfeel...in keeping with the abv....

Very nice addition to the Ontario craft scene...this takes the place of the IPA which was my favourite offering from Magnotta up to this point. If I can find this in the beer store instead of ordering at the Magnotta outlet near me I will be really happy.
Mar 22, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by batmanbach from Canada (ON)

May 07, 2012
Photo of treque
Reviewed by treque from Mexico

3.53/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
A: a pale yellow, tending to a witbier. With a good white head, some retention and lots of carb

S: too much citric and spicy, probably clove or coriander, very nice if you like the style

T: a good one, not too heavy nor too light, just on the middle of the style, a good beer to refresh yourself and dont get wasted

It is not a bad beer but i would preffer a german weizen if i had the chance to choose
May 04, 2011
Photo of karait95
Reviewed by karait95 from Mexico

3.92/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
A: Really nice yellow color, cloudy color with good head but small retention to the glass and fast dissipation.

S: Straight wheat aroma, maybe some combination could be a plus but its simplicity is nice.

T: As some good wheat beers you can feel the banana behind the wheat flavor.

M: A little dry ending with a nice wheat starting.

This is a very straight forward wheat beer to try.
Aug 12, 2010
Photo of Sammy
Reviewed by Sammy from Canada (ON)

3.5/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Funky aroma and taste, yeasty, and although not a great example of the style I found this unfiltered beer interesting and one of the better of the Magnotta line. Yellow and obvious yeasty appearance. Average mouthfeel, decent drinkability. Rep recommended adding frozen blueberries to get a decent taste.
Aug 08, 2010
Photo of ThatWineGuy
Reviewed by ThatWineGuy from Canada (ON)

3.85/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured carefully so as to exclude the milky sediment on the bottom of the bottle, light yellow champagne-like appearance with haziness and a thin white head, low carbonation for the style but a bit of sheet lacing to begin with. The smell was banana and a spearmint or peppermint with yeast.

I found this beer sure tasted like a wheat beer with citrus fruit hoppiness and a touch of spice combining to create an effervescent mouthfeel. I couldn't taste much bitterness or malt individually, the overall impression was a nice, fruity balance with modest sharpness that improved with air and warming. The ring remained with some lace as the glass was emptied, tasty and thirst quenching; nice job Magnotta Brewery.
Mar 08, 2009
Photo of biegaman
Reviewed by biegaman from Canada (ON)

3.64/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Apart from a dusty haze nothing about this appearance gives the air of a German-style wheat beer - notably, it's top is utterly naked. Even with constant swirling, the beer is shamefully bare, without any foam, suds, or even white lining. The light lemon tinged colour and misty complexion are well suited for the style but a German weisse beer without a big, puffy, long-lasting head just isn't right.

Luckily the aroma steers us right back onto the road to Bavaria. This aromatic bouquet blends a moderate amount of phenols and plenty of fruit esters. The combination most resembles some sort of clove and banana cocktail; certainly one I'd like to drink. I note a distinctive tinge of vanilla and a bit of biscuit crust. This smells like a wonderful banana meringue pie!

I'd add banana smoothie now that I've tasted it but do maintain it's closer to banana meringue pie. Despite the sour lemon taste, fruit becomes more scaled back and the bready, grainy character comes out more. The vanilla also seems to have parted but I'm now noting more bubblegum. I'd recommend introducing the sediment ('mit hefe') for maximum flavour.

The mouthfeel is equally deserving of both commendation and condemnation. I'll start first with the good: the scratchy, grainy texture brought about by a grist containing at least 50% wheat is noted and appreciated. Also, although the fruit flavour isn't quite as dynamic as I'd like, it's still always noticeably present and fairly effervescent.

The other half of an ideal wheat beer, however, should be a lot more spicy. The phenols (more so than the esters) of this yeast seem tired and subdued. If I were Magnotta I'd push this yeast to work a little harder. Secondly, as noted in the appearance, the beer is far under-carbonated (which is to say hardly at all) and that really detracts from drinkability.

This is a solid wheat beer simply in need of a few minor fixings. With a little more carbonation to add a creamy fullness and spritzy finish, this could be a truly refreshing warm-weather beer. All things considered, it's not a bad draft on the Bavarian classic but I wouldn't bet the brewer is from South Germany. As far locals go, this is no competition for Denison's Weissebier but it does makes a more than respectable runner up.
Mar 05, 2009
Photo of GodOfBeer
Reviewed by GodOfBeer from Canada (ON)

3.68/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
I was not expecting much from this beer, I was expecting it to taste like a typical lager, but it turned out quite well.

Pours a nice hazy orangey/yellow with a small head that sadly completely dissapears.

Smells of bananas, citrus and various spices.

Tastes delicious, banana, malty, lemony and yeasty, alot better than what I was expecting.

Very refreshing and pretty drinkable.
Jul 06, 2008
Photo of Frozensoul327
Reviewed by Frozensoul327 from Michigan

3.18/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A rather average hefe. Pours out to a medium cloudy golden color with a small head of dense white foam. Nice lacing, and medium carbonation. Presentation is appropriate so far... Aroma of malt and bananas, with some lemon grass thrown in for good measure. Unfortunately, the taste didn't follow suit; bland bready malt, touches of banana esters and some sour lemony notes were among the otherwise bland display that met the palate. Mouthfeel wasn't overly exciting either, but was still appropriate for the style. Drinkability is average. Nothing great here. Worth a try.
Aug 03, 2006
Photo of headlessparrot
Reviewed by headlessparrot from Canada (ON)

3.82/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
My third sampling of a Canadian interpretation of the classic German weissbeer, this is Magnotta Brewery's True North Wunder Weiss. Magnotta is better known as a winery... and perhaps also as a distillery, but let's see how one of their flagship beers stands up.

Of the three Canadian wheat beers I've tried (not including Unibroue's witbier), this is without a doubt the most accurate interpretation of the hefe weizen style, and it's also the tastiest by far. The Wunder Weisse pours from a twist-off ISB bottle into my weizen glass a pale yellow-straw, but with enough cloudiness and haze that it is recognizable as a hefe (unlike Upper Canada's lager-pale hefe). It's topped with two fingers of fairly creamy foam that doesn't quite capture the standard German hefe experience, but is still nice looking. It dissapates rather quickly, however, to half a finger or less (and eventually nothing), and leaves considerable (though fairly runny) lacing. Not a bad looking try at the hefe style, though it lacks some of the defining features.

Smell is rather nice - again closer to a true hefe than any Canadian brew I've sampled. Dominated by wheat, and a sort of mustiness that's distant and hard to capture but is rather pleasant. Also heavy emphasis on banana, and cloves, and citrus fruit (mostly tangerine, curaco oranges, lemon). Faint creaminess, bubblegum, pepper notes and a bit of malt round out the rather wonderful nose. I'm a huge fan of the hefe style, and this is pretty mouthwatering.

Taste is also quite good, though not quite up there with the smell. Definite wheat notes, with the unusual mustiness carrying over. Bubblegum again, and fairly smooth. Banana returns, with a touch of vanilla, cloves, and more citrus fruits (again, most notably tangerine, but also lemon). Creamy and faintly peppery. Finish is dry and wheaty, with faint clove and fruit notes on the palate even several minutes later. Quite good - and I've heard that the draught version is even superior.

Mouthfeel is not bad - body is nice and light, but the carbonation feels a touch unnatural. Still, it's difficult to take issue. The light body lends itself to good drinkability, although the fruity-sweet character might make more than a few bottles unbearable.

Magnotta has really impressed me with this hefe weizen; it's probably the best Canadian take on the style that I've tried (although I've yet to sample Denison's); it tastes great and its very refreshing in this unbearable heat. I'll definitely be picking up more.
Jul 26, 2006
Photo of PlowKing
Reviewed by PlowKing from Canada (ON)

3.08/5  rDev -13%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
Served from a 375mL bottle into a glass at 4-6 degrees C.

This is the first beer I sampled from Magnotta, better known for their winery. In the glass, it had a pale yellow/straw colour, topped with a dense white foamy head, and the cloudy haze created from the yeast sediment (a beer with "naturtrub" as the Germans call it). This weissbier was light in carbonation and smooth in texture, with aromas of cloves, bananas, and hints of cream. Banana flavours were evident with a slight taste of cloves, but lacking any of the spice or body associated with this type of wheat beer.

Certainly, the Wunder Weiss was easy to drink and would be recommended for someone has never explored the realm of German weissbeiers. Unforunately, I expected more complexity in the taste and there was not.
Jul 09, 2006
Photo of Mindsquall
Reviewed by Mindsquall from Canada (ON)

3.61/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Passed by the brewery the other day and decided to get myself some of this stuff. It poured a nice cloudy yellow with a quick forming head that lasted for a bit, but quickly subsided. Smell is a bit musty, but I do detect some banana clove essence in there. This stuff tastes pretty good, it has that banana clove body with a wheaty aftertaste. Amazingly smooth, this went down effortlessly. Very good beer for a hot summer day. This brew however is difficult to come by, other offerings out there like Paulaner, Schneider and Hacker-Pschorr, run around the same price, much easier to get and are overall better than this one. But this one should not be overlooked. This is the first Canadian produced Hefe-Weizen I have tried, and for being an attempt at the great Hefe Weizen style, it's a pretty decent beer.
Jun 09, 2006
Photo of DrJay
Reviewed by DrJay from Texas

3.37/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Light hazy yellow with a fluffy, bright white head. Looks pretty good, decent head retention and spotty lacing. It hits the aromas associated with a weisse - bready, citrus, cloves, banana. Flavours of sweet, bready malt, mild citrus and spice, mild bitterness. Off-dry, medium body with generous carbonation. Not bad, definitely a serviceable weisse, but certainly not out of the ordinary.
Mar 16, 2006
Photo of CAMRAhardliner
Reviewed by CAMRAhardliner from Canada (ON)

3.5/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pours a slightly hazy straw gold color. Its not hazy enough for the style, it looks like a pilsner poured into a dirty glass. The head is moderate with an average amount of lace webbing. The aroma is of wheat and barley malt with a tartness that must come from the yeast. Banana esters are there too. The taste is wheaty with some banana and cloves. The esters tend to get overpowered by a tart, almost bitter flavor. It doesnt make the beer undrinkable but it detracts from the beer. The mouthfeel is too watery, with spritzy carbonation. The finish is long with crisp wheat and that tart twang dominating.

Im not sure what that acidic/tart/bitter flavor is but Im sure its not a skunk issue, its also too strong to wheat related. That being said this is still a pretty tastey wheat beer thats worth a try. I wont be buying another six pack though.
Nov 20, 2005
Photo of Derek
Reviewed by Derek from Canada (BC)

3.21/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5
Now available in the bottle, under the "True North" name. What a let down (after the wunderful draft). Where's the hefe?

A: Golden yellow with a fluffy white head. Poor head retention.

S: Slight odour of citrus & cloves.

T: Citrusy biscuits. Hint of bananas in the aftertaste.

M: Light body, moderately high carbonation.

D: Refreshing & quite drinkable.

Seek out the draft!
Sep 19, 2005
Photo of Viggo
Reviewed by Viggo from Canada (ON)

2.48/5  rDev -29.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
Compared to Denisons this is ditchwater. Pours a very pale yellow, slight haze, tight white head and nice lace. Smell is vanilla, light cloves, a hint of honey and tiny amount of banana. Taste is lemony citrus, little bit of banana, little bit of clove but otherwise very tasteless. Mouthfeel is very light and thin, lower carbonation, tart finish. I don't recommend this one, Toronto people don't need to go past Denisons for a weissbier. Thanks Ralph at Volo for the sample.
Aug 16, 2005
Photo of Popsinc
Reviewed by Popsinc from Canada (ON)

3.6/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
A yellow-ish pour with a medium head....could have been bigger and more lively. The nose was quite big on the banana notes which was quite impressive and sweet.

The taste was better then i expected. A light cream mouthfeel with hints of banana and clove and more of a tangy lemony zip on the finish. While it doesn't compare to some of the great Weisse beersof the world, i found it to be an adequate representation of the style and quite drinkable.
Aug 07, 2004
True North Wunder Weisse from Magnotta Brewery
Beer rating: 83 out of 100 with 20 ratings