Official American Wheat IPA
Bell's Brewery - Eccentric Café & General Store

RB transfer

 

 

 

Pkgd 2/14/19 - happy Valentine’s Day! Bells Special Wheat Glass.

A: pours a turbid yellow with a thick finger of lasting, just off-white head.

S: reeks of fruit juice as soon as you pour it. Bells house yeast is super fruity, combine it with fruity hops and this is what you get. Smells like sugary tropical citrus. Remember High Five from the 80s? Used to come in a concentrate? Like that. Concentrated mandarin, tangerine, lime, and mango.

T: less sweet on the taste than the nose. Fruity, wheaty, then hoppy. Surprised, actually, at how much the wheat comes through. Finish has a good bit of lingering green hop bitterness, but it is mild overall. As I drink it I find the somewhat drier taste an interesting counterpoint to a cloying aroma. Is that alcohol I taste? Usually can’t in any Bell’s beer except Expedition.

M: lighter side of mid weight with very active, tingly, carbonation. Cleaner than most wheat beers.

O: perhaps this would be better in the summertime, but this isn’t doing it for me. I love Bells; fully half of my favorite beers are theirs; but this one is a miss for me. Maybe it’s just because I don’t dig the hazy IPAs so much.

 

 

 

 

I love IPA’s and I love wheats. Thought this was really well done. Hard to rate characteristics as the two don’t always line up. Lower score on adjunct qualities because of my love for stinky, sticky hops when I think about these in a beer. My IPA bias. Nonetheless, this is a great beer if you love the two styles. Neither wins out so fans looking for dominance in their variety might jump ship. Inspirational beer for these times. Love it. Could be a hopeful model for our body politic.

I like many wheat beers though this isn’t one of them. It’s OK but has no special qualities. Bell’s is better than this.

Crystal clear golden brew. Good head production and excellent retention.

Nose is prominently hoppy, with grass, pine, and resin.

Palate follows: it's an easy drinking, relatively low ABV hoppy ale, with dank hops being the primary driver of the profile. Brew is very smooth, owing no doubt in part to the wheat.

This is an excellent ale to find on tap.

 

 

Only keg of Official in the state of Alabama!

Pours golden, lightly hazy, with full-bodied, sticky lace that leaves patterns of lace clinging to the glass.

Mild but full of citrus fruits. Smooth, no off bitterness. As it warms you get a subtle malt bill that piggy-backs on an emergence of overripe mango. Very inviting.

Light hop bitterness, but a predominance of bread and bright citrus flavors. Undertones of mango and pineapple, there is an ice underlying complexity to this beer.

Smooth, crisp, crushable. Light-bodies, good finish.

Had on tap. Interesting hybrid of hazy neipa and wheat pale. Haze is from the wheat, yet hops bring big citrus, lemon and orange especially, that pair well. If looking for an ipa you will feel the wheat weighs down the beer, but if open to the pale wheat ale side it is a brighter experiment with more hops than expected. Could use some refinement on the edges of the flavors, wheat and hops need a third party to round out