Hefeweizen
Haven Brewing Co.

 

Appearance: A cloudy brass body that showcase ample, steady but slow carbonation that produced a finger of head and produced some lacing. The carbonation is doing it's best to keep the head around, but it just can't seem to get ahead of the game but it did leave some islands throughout the beer.

Smell: The potency is certainly there, and it didn't require warming to come out. Banana front and center with some orange notes and a minor hint of cloves. It's good, but it comes across as a bit generic the hefe.

Taste: Banana and wheat malt up front with some white breadiness that suddenly turns to a much more grainy experience with a slight hint of spice and ends with a crisp banana and almost mild sandy snap at the end.

Mouthfeel: The carbonation on this one is a bit too aggressive and sudsy, especially at the start of the beer, but it makes up for it with that nice crisp snap at the end, the transitioning is a little rough but interesting and a nice mild banana aftertaste does a good job.

Drinkability: The beer is a bit gassy and while it is on the lighter side of medium body, it's close to pushing outright medium. That said, it is a fairly easy to drink hefe with a lot of flavour and a crisp note I don't often see with the style.

Final Thoughts: This beer would be an ideal end of summer, early fall kind of drinker. It has a bit too much body to be a summer guzzler but still stands as a wheat beer meant for quaffing after a day of work. One of the better offerings from Smithhaven's and vastly superior to their Dunkelweizen.

 

Needs work. Carbonation is way too sharp for the style and is, frankly, distracting. Just too much bite. Very short-lived moderate head that simply disappears. Brew was clear cold and lacking the cloudiness you expect from a hefe. Taste dominated by citrus, only a bit of the breadiness and spice you'd expect.

My experience was so different from what else was posted here that I think I need round up a couple more bottles to see what's what. In the meantime, scored as shown. Drinkable, but needs work.

Much better on draft. Properly hazy, less citrus, more wheat and spice. Good enough to earn and upgrade from my original rating of 2.74. Not German, but not bad.

Kind of a "cookie cutter" Hefeweizen. Everything was there but nothing blew me away. Served in a proper glass at a desired serving temperature. Nice murky look with hints of orange and pine. Yeast strains seemed a tad light on the palate. Fairly refreshing and thirst quenching. I believe that if the Smithworks Brewing Company tinkers just a little bit with the receipt; this can become one awesome Hefe.