Heavy Weizen (Imperial Unfiltered Wheat Ale)
Southern Tier Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

22 ounce bottle into weizen glass, no bottle dating but this has been retired for a couple years at least. Pours very hazy golden amber color with a fairly dense 1-2 finger white head with good retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Spotty foamy lacing on the glass. Aromas of big banana, lemon, pear, wheat, caramel, honey, clove, bread, orange, pepper, bubblegum, earth, and yeast spices. Pretty nice aromas with good strength and decent balance; the age is definitely apparent. Taste of banana, orange, clove, pear, wheat, biscuit, caramel, lemon, pepper, honey, earth, toffee, and yeast spices. Lingering notes of banana, light fruits, wheat, biscuit, clove, caramel, pepper, and yeast spices on the finish for a good bit. Nice balance and complexity of flavors; good fruity/spicy flavor balance; zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a slick and creamy mouthfeel that is good. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a very nice imperial hefeweizen. Nice balance and complexity of flavors; and very smooth to drink for an 8% beer. Very enjoyable offering, despite the noticeable age.

 

Review from 2/2010 notes. Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pours a medium orange gold amber with a thin off-white head with decent retention. Aroma of wheat, banana, cloves and other Belgian spices. Flavor follows, with Wheat, banana and clove elements, almost like a cross between a tripel and a weizen. Has an odd bitter taste in the middle and end. Medium bodied. An odd take on a hefeweizen, but interesting.

Found a bottle of this in a liquor store in Rehoboth Beach. I now see that its retired. I hope its still good!

A-cloudy gold with a large frothy cream colored head

S-smells like bananas, nectarines, and cloves. very good smelling. strong scent.

T-comes in with a strong and bitter taste of wheat, bananas, and cloves. there's also a hint of alcohol to it. the after-taste has a plasticy bitterness with a hint of the wheat. its an odd and unbalanced beer.

M-creamy with very low carbonation and a watery finish.

O-the idea of a strong hefe really intrigued me, but as i expected it really isn't well done. i have a feeling that if Southern Tier toned this down a bit, that it could be a very drinkable beer, yet never reaching the greatness of the German hefes.I think ST knows this, so they amped the beer up to be an imperial hefe so that it had some sort of allure to it. I'm glad i tried this, i'll finish the bomber with a smile, but i won't get this again.

 

 

Sampled at Brew Sherpa’s "Beer, Deer & Christmas Cheer" event at The London Club in December 2011. Bottle was purchased at Ryan's Party Store in Port Huron, MI.

Pours an unfiltered and hazy golden hue with amber edges and a sliver of white foam that subsides after a few sips.

Smell is yeast esters, lemon peel, clove, unripened banana, bubblegum, light phenol, wheat husk, melon fruit, and ethanol.

Taste is honey, wheat malt, banana, and lemon upfront; grassy, herbal and leafy hops precede an assertive bitterness with some cantaloupe and liquor on the cough.

Mouthfeel is full-bodied and creamy, brief astringent hop bitterness transitions to a warming alcoholic finish.

Overall, Heavy Weizen is a pretty decent take on a hoppy double wheat ale. In many ways it reminds me of Les Trois Mousquetaires Weizen Impériale (though not as stellar). I was expecting more spiciness and less booze from the palate, but on the whole this beer has solid flavours and aromas that are consistent with the style.