Haystack Havoc
White Birch Brewing

A: Pours a hazy golden--somewhere between banana and honey, with a tall, bubbly head. Bubbles rise in the glass for sometime and the head never quite disappears. Very becoming.

S: The smell is strongly of yeast, almost a wheat smell, and very much like champagne. It's pretty similar to the BPA, but less grassy and spicier.

T: Quite tart, lemony citrus with a subtle, pleasant spiciness and enough malt sweetness to keep things in check. It's hard to place the hops, but they're there if you look for them, offering a prickly bitterness. The tartness is quite nice and refreshing, and subdued by light banana notes if you dump the sediment at the bottle of the bottle into the glass. Comparing a pour with little sediment and one with considerably more yielded fairly different flavors and colors.

M: Body leans toward thin, but the effervescence lends a solid degree of fullness. It's citric, but quite crisp and refreshing.

O: This is a very nice, subtle twist on the BPA. It's fairly similar in most respects, but noticeably more tart, and less earthy with the pear notes replaced by spice and banana. I'd love to see it offered again, and it would make an excellent substitution for champagne at any special occasion. I also love the name.

Poured from a 22Oz bomber into a tulip glass

A: Pours a cloudy pale wheaten color with a thick long lasting head that leaves a trail of lacing.

S: Spices are there in a subtle way. Wheat, slight malt background, citrus.

T: Spicy, but still subtle so that nothing overpowers anything else. Slightly sour, slightly bitter, lemony, slight malt, some hops aftertaste.

M: Light bodied. A very crisp and refreshing ale.

O: Interesting. You can taste spices but not readily identify exactly what they are. The taste is a good blend. I liked this beer and regret that it was a one time offering.

Pours out of the bottle a liquid that looks like cloudy lemonade with a head on it. Honestly this bottle sat in my fridge for a week after bought it, and I've had stouts that were easier to see through. Giant fluffy white head quickly dissipates and leaves a fair bit of lace. Smells a bit of lemon and Belgian yeast esters maybe some coriander and white pepper for good measure. Taste is lemony and sweet wheat malts with load of yeasty esters. Slight pepper and other non descript spices round out the flavor. Medium to thin body, spirited level of carbonation, tart citric mouthfeel. This tastes like the Belgian Pale ale to me, with maybe a hint more tartness to it.