Citra Gose
Hi-Wire Brewing

 

 

I got a can of this beer off the single shelf from my local Giant Eagle store. It poured a clear pale yellow with not much head and no lace. The scent had fresh citrus fruit notes. The taste is nicely balanced and easy to drink with tart citrus flare. The mouthfeel was lighter in body with good carbonation. Overall its a good beer.

L: Looks promising. Straw yellow. Partly hazy. 2 fingers of chalky head. I don't care for the label however.

S: A bit of malty, yeasty tanginess. The wheat ale base is traditional. Then it gets dry hopped. The coriander and citra hop added during this phase give it a Belgian Witbeer feel. Orange peel would not be out of place here--in fact it's hard to say what else they may have added during the dry-hopping phase.

T: I suppose what I'm tasting is, like the can says, coriander and salt on a wheat ale background. It's not tart or sour like I expected. Now that I'm reading the Wikipedia it seems it might be a traditional take on a German Gose style beer.

F: Juicy and fun. Light bodied. It's not tart or sour so much as it is curious.

O: Actually solid. I didn't want to like it, but it is indeed very good.

12oz can. Poured out a cloudy, straw-yellow color with a small, fizzy white head of foam. It smelled of citrus, wheat and saltiness. Tart and fruity with touches of caramel and wheat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reviewed from notes. Can purchased at Habersham Beverages in Savannah, GA. Poured from the 16 oz. can into an El Catador Barrel-Aged glass.

A: Yellow to light gold with mild haze. A good amount of visible carbonation leads to a two finger white head that fades to a ring of foam fairly quickly.

S: Citrus - lemon rind and zest. Milder orange and pineapple-forward tropical fruits. A modest lactic tart, with light cracker malts and some savory salt on the nose.

T: Big Citra hops up front – lemon and orange, pineapple and tropical fruits. Just a touch dank herbal as well. Lactic tartness and a table-salt type of salinity. A very mild Lactobacillus funk, and the palest of two-row malts. No pilsner character that I can get, but just a touch of huskiness. A mix of hop bitterness and lactic tartness in the hang.

M: A light body, maybe even a very light body, but not watery. Average carbonation sensation for style (which is to say high), and minimal if any alcohol presence.

O: A tasty beer. The hops are certainly “out of style” for any gose, but it is what they promised. But I wish they made an imperial version, where the hops and the tart and the funk were ratcheted up - I think it would be way better. As it is, an easy drinking light beer that could have been custom made for golf or beach or barbecues. But it needs to be “turned up to eleven”. Scores given are for personal preference, as scoring this as a traditional gose would be unfair to the brewers' intent, in my opinion.

 

 

 

 

 

Pours a clear light straw color, big billowy head. Nose is tropical and citrus with some earthy funk. Typical gose flavors with citrus mixed in. Interesting concept - usually this style is paired with a fruit or vegatable. Don't love it, but it is not completely offensive, definitely crushable.

5/11/18
16 oz can from NC dated 3/14/18
3.5 rating