Wedge Weizen
Newport Beach Brewing Company

W Squared is a little bitter/harsh up front and finishes nice and tart especially witha lemon wedge (no pun intended) if you prefer it that way. I have only tired this a few times and it is definitely depends on your mood and palate. A good name for the beer based on the location, the Wedge is a solid summertime offering.

NBBC does a good job with samplers when it isn't a madhouse on the weekend and is always rotating through their beers. Turns into a bit of a madhouse with the college/vacation crew but there is never a dull moment in Newport.

On tap at the Bootlegger's 5th Anniversary Celebration held at The Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton, CA.

Pours a murky golden yellow with a foamy bone head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, grain, yeast, and spice aromas. Taste is much the same with yeast and spice flavors on the finish. There is a mild amount of spice bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a low level of carbonation with an almost flat mouthfeel. Overall, this is an above average beer that is drinkable but nothing special in my opinion.

On tap at the brewhouse in Newport. Served in a pint shaker. Color is a pale grayish yellowish that is like no Hefeweizen I've seen. Starts with a little foam but evaporates to a tickle on the tongue. A slight sweetness with a tangy edge.

This tastes more like an American Wheat style to me. There is, however, some aroma of clove, which is the best feature. A faint stirring of the spicy esters, but a hint of plastic as well. More bitter than most wheat beers. Not very pleasing, on the whole, and even worse given the innumerable delicious Hefeweizens made everywhere.

 

On-tap at NBBC last night, on to the beer:

Slightly hazy wheat field blonde in appearance, not quite as cloudy as I'd expect. What malt and a kiss of hops greet the nose, no banana, no spice, nuttin. The flavor is a bit more interesting. There is a hint of bubblegum at first, then a watery banana flavor debuts. A little peppery bitterness adds the "spice" to the beer. It's feel is the best part of the beer, as it is soft and creamy. It's a pretty good wheat ale, but as an "authentic hefeweizen", it needs more character.

*Make sure to tell them not to put a lemon in your glass.*

Has this on tap and it poured a nice cloudy lemon rind yellow and sawdust color with a solid frothy finger of head. The smell was a pleasing bubblegum and vanilla, spices. The taste is what you'd expect after waffing the aroma. A pleasureable effervescent bubblegum hits your tastebuds with vanilla and banana notes. A good rendition of the style. I would have giving this a higher taste score but on the finish, I could faintly detect what I would call an artificial sweetner finish. It didnt ruin it, but the brew would have been much better without it. I can certainly drink this all day sitting in the patio watching the beach girlies go by.