16th Anniversary Ale Red Wheat Wine
SweetWater Brewing Company

16th Anniversary Ale Red Wheat Wine16th Anniversary Ale Red Wheat Wine
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From:
SweetWater Brewing Company
 
Georgia, United States
Style:
Wheatwine
ABV:
11%
Score:
86
Avg:
3.81 | pDev: 10.76%
Reviews:
35
Ratings:
128
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jan 01, 2023
Added:
Mar 10, 2013
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  16
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by suspect:
Photo of suspect
Reviewed by suspect from New York

4.49/5  rDev +17.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Poured from a 22oz bottle courtesy of Bulbman into a Samuel Adams Perfect Pint Glass.

A: Crystal clear red in color. Aggressive pour leads to a foamy slowly growing khaki colored two-finger head. Lacing is spotty and inconsistent. Very nice ring around the top.

S: Big malts, nice caramel and sweetness. Not much bitterness to this one, very simply, nice smelling beer.

T: Perfect balanced, simple wheatwine. Nice malted wheat flavor, good sweetness balanced by some bittering hops. Very excellent caramel, spices and a touch (just a touch) of alcohol to let me know it means business at 11%.

M: Smooth finish, big bodied beer. A touch undercarbonated but that's not a detriment.

O: A delicious, easy drinking wheatwine. Very nicely done, Sweetwater. Cheers to 16 more!
May 31, 2013
More User Ratings:
Photo of argock
Reviewed by argock from Virginia

3.74/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
Received long ago as a gift from good friend Erinn. Bottled in 2013. Poured into a Chimay chalice.

A: Dark amber with a thin rim of bubbles at the chalice interface with some scrappy blobs of lacing hanging on.

S: Medium caramel and breadiness, with some plum and date fruitiness and light herbal hop character. A whiff of fruity alcohol in the back end of the aroma. Retronasal with more caramel and dark fruit.

T: Flavor is sweet on the whole with light nuttiness, burnt medium caramel (probably enhanced by oxidation), with date and prune with herbal, grassy hops. Alcohol is warming but not a flavor-killer with light fruity esters. Enjoyable but very sweet.

M: Very light body for the ABV with reasonably spritz carbonation for the age and soft finish.

O: Sweetwater Wheatwine 16 has held up pretty well but some oxidation holds it back at 9 years from being excellent.
Jan 01, 2023
Photo of NolaHopHead
Rated by NolaHopHead from Louisiana

3.95/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Held up nicely after 6 years.
Jun 11, 2019
Photo of brentk56
Reviewed by brentk56 from North Carolina

4/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance; Pours chestnut brown with a frothy ecru head; a few spots of foam cling

Smell: Crusty bread, caramel and overripe stone fruit; herbal and piney tones buttress

Taste: Crusty bread, caramel and strong earthy and herbal tones; piney bitterness, through the middle, and boozy warmth in the finish

Mouthfeel: Full bodied with moderate carbonation; warmth in the gullet

Overall: Four years in and this wheat wine is drinking nicely indeed
May 29, 2017
Photo of KensWorld
Reviewed by KensWorld from Florida

4.47/5  rDev +17.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Found this dusty bottle and had to get it. high alcohol told me it should be still drinkable.
L = 1/2 inch of light brown foam over cloudy muddy brown.
S = Like a Barleywine, very malty.
T = Smooth & mellow malt forward, slight alcohol burn, toffee & caramel aftertaste.
F = Very light for such a big abv beer.
0 = Way better then expected. I wish I was able to try this fresh To see how it had changed with aging. I believe it has mellowed out to perfection!
Oct 06, 2016
 
Rated: 3.63 by TWStandley from Massachusetts

Mar 22, 2015
Photo of BeerAdvocate
Reviewed by BeerAdvocate from Finland

3.92/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
From BeerAdvocate Magazine #75 (April 2013):

First off, cheers to Sweetwater for 16 years of success and a respectful nod for taking on the Wheatwine style. A really great example of the style, a style that has not really been fully explored or even defined. Seek this brew out, well worth the effort.

STYLE: Wheatwine
ABV: 11.0%
AVAILABILITY: Limited

LOOK: Clear ruby red, impressive lacing

SMELL: Sweet, bready, caramel, stone fruit, peppery alcohol, tangerine pulp

TASTE: Creamy, smooth, full bodied, malt bomb, loaf of bread, warming alcohol, mildly spicy, earthy, leafy, dates, hay, dragon fruit, parsley, semisweet alcoholic finish
Mar 07, 2015
 
Rated: 3.25 by mrn1ceguy from Illinois

Feb 11, 2015
Photo of Paincane
Rated by Paincane from Georgia

3.49/5  rDev -8.4%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Reddish amber body with a light tan head with good lacing. Red wine, wheat, grain, dark ripe fruity nose and flavors. Medium bodied.
Jan 19, 2015
Photo of MNishCT77
Reviewed by MNishCT77 from District of Columbia

3.17/5  rDev -16.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
22 oz. bottle from Fri., 01/02/2014 tasting (thanks, Erich and Sara!), unknown brewing/packaging dates, poured into a snifter glass, drank over ~30 minutes
Jan 09, 2015
 
Rated: 3.07 by nathanmiller from New York

Jan 05, 2015
 
Rated: 3.5 by Kyrojack from Indiana

Nov 01, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by thatoneguymike from Georgia

Oct 30, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by KAF from Iowa

Oct 27, 2014
Photo of Jadjunk
Reviewed by Jadjunk from Georgia

3.97/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
"For our super heady 16 year anni beer we stepped on the gas and headed down the road less traveled! Our B-day present to ourselves is a Racy Red Wheat Wine Ale Racy Red Wheat Wine Ale Racy Red Wheat Wine Ale. Sucker! The SSAB "not a SAAB" rips down the road at Alc. 11% by Vol., fueled by a 45% wheat bomb with an afterburner hop shot of Amarillo, Willamette, Nelson Sauvin, and US Goldings that pushes this baby to the limit of sensory overload." Brewed in the style of a Wheatwine. Available in limited run 22 oz. bottles and on limited draft.

Poured from a 22 oz. bottle to a SweetWater snifter. Served above 53 degrees fahrenheit.

(Appearance) Pours a crisp, frothy caramel white head over a maple brown body with red highlights. Plenty of specked pulpy sediment is in tow and there is light relaxed carbonation. Retention is above average and lacing is light and patchy. 3.5

(Smell) Aromas of wheat , caramel sugar and a syrupy fruitiness. Aromatic notes of banana and clove light up the nose. At this stage, there is nearly no perceivable alcohol, but a fair deal of complexity. This has aged quite gracefully, very aromatic and smooth in presentation. 4

(Taste) Soft chewy wheat malt with a lesser caramel grain malt joined by a soft sweetness. Fruit notes of raisin, fig and date accompanied by some mild grain alcohol give a half-subtle nod to the 11% ABV. It's a little edgier than the aroma suggested but overall far toned down from my expectations. 4

(Mouthfeel) The texture is slick, moderately sticky, medium chewy and medium dry. Carbonation generates a soft frothiness for a smooth, slick mouthfeel. Body is medium+ for the style, shy of heavy overall. Balance is slightly grainy and fruity over sweet. The alcohol presence is moderate and off characters are minimal to none. 4

(Overall) This is certainly one anniversary ale that you could carefully age for a good long while without significant issues. It's quite an enjoyable wheatwine too, with noticeable wheat in the flavor as well as in the texture and despite the high alcohol content, it's considerably reserved in how much of that booziness comes forward. I have another bottle that I will no doubt save for a later time. If you find a dusty bottle of this ale lying around, it's worth giving a try and seemingly not past its prime. 4

SweetWater Brewing Company's
So Fine 16 Red Wheat Wine Ale
3.98/5.00
Oct 09, 2014
 
Rated: 3.73 by Fordknox from Tennessee

Oct 09, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by indy351 from Indiana

Oct 07, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by One1Asterisk from Florida

Sep 30, 2014
 
Rated: 4.36 by WarrenGofstein from Maryland

Sep 27, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by ColSanders123 from Georgia

Aug 06, 2014
16th Anniversary Ale Red Wheat Wine from SweetWater Brewing Company
Beer rating: 86 out of 100 with 128 ratings