Wishful Drinking Wheat Ale
Peace River Brewing

Wishful Drinking pours into my glass hazy, and an amber color reminiscent of ripe hay. Streams of pinpoint CO2 support a cloudy, off white head, with good retention.
Taking a sniff, the aromas of bubblegum and clove make their presence known first. Aromas of yeast and raw dough come in second, lending their support. Somewhere in that yeast and bread dough center, I’m picking up just a little bit of fruit ester. Closer examination shows me banana and just a drop of what might be lemon. Just the faintest trace of leafy hops brings up the rear before fading quickly into the distance.
As I take my first taste, I notice up front flavors of clove and some fruit tartness. Fruit tartness tastes more like navel oranges combined with a banana chaser. Wishful Drinking tastes of wheat in the form of fresh baked bread. Unfortunately, fruit tartness tends to dominate its flavors. Brief flavors of hops come out in the finish before fading away into nothing.
Wishful Drinking has most of the flavors and aromas you would expect from this style of beer. Unfortunately, they don’t come together in a harmonious fashion. The aromas strike the right notes, but not in a way that entices me to drink deep. And the flavors are just a little too dominated by flavors of fruit, when the yeast and wheat should be the stars of the show, in my opinion.