Rattlesnake Mountain Helluva Hefe
Rattlesnake Mountain Brewing Company

 

I was poured a 12 ounce pint glass at Kimo's in Richland, Washington. I had to instruct the bartender to not include a lemon slice (It is typically served with lemon to all customers!!). The menu indicated that this brewing of the beer had an ABV of 4.9%.

A: It poured a hazy, bright yellow body with a robust, sticky white head. The head did not retain as well as expected but left a dense curtain of lace as it melded back into the brew.

S: It smelled of doughy white bread yeast, soft white fruits (apples and banan

T: It presented a yeasty, creamy sweet malt front with plenty of bananas and white spices. However, like many of the brew-pubs efforts the flavors seemed diluted and thin making this beer taste like a cross between a hefeweizen and a APA. However, they offered another beer on the menu that was indeed a blend of the hefe and the honey amber so I am led to believe that I did sample their "helluva" hefe.

M: It was "near to" medium-bodied brew that after an initial taste seemed thin and watery. It had a a creamy feel on the tongue, a sweet front and a wet and sweet finish.

D: It was a serviceable hefeweizen but not one I would take long into a session. The flavors were a bit off style.

Presumably any beer with both yeast and wheat can be called a “hefeweizen”, though my personal expectation is that a hefeweizen is a beer brewed to the classic Bavarian style with bold estery yeasts. Helluva Hefe is nothing of the sort and can only be called an American Wheat Beer (no apologies for being a stickler for semantics). And the lemon wedge – which I yearned to flick across the bar – doesn’t make it any more “hefe.”

Still, a fine drinking beer – crisp, dry, quenching and satisfying. Helluva is very pale yellow with an ivory white head that soon faded but looked quite regal at first. The finish is slightly dour though not to any depreciative degree. A very wholesome beer, though constantly American. Clean where it should be and enhanced by spry carbonation.