Widmer Hefeweizen | Widmer Brothers Brewing Company

3.45/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

L: Cloudy gold, with a soapy white head and streaky lacing.

S: White bread, lightly toasted, with hints of apple and lemon, and grass and earth.

T: Lightly toasted, white bready malt, apple, pear, lemon, and hints of grass and clove on the finish.

M: Medium-light, moderate carbonation, very drinkable.

O: A crisp, refreshing thirst quencher, but not the most flavorful hefeweizen. Taste closer to something like Shock Top.

★ 428 characters

3.23/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Served in a pint glass.

Appearance: Barely cloudy gold color. Heavy bubbles.[White] Head is roughly half a finger's length off the body. Drops quick with almost zero lacing.

Smell: Light hops and a bit of banana skin, very bland scent.

Taste: Light malts and pieces of banana skin. Lightly bitter and real easy to drink.

Mouth: Medium carbonation and average stickiness.

Overall: I want to like it but it's a tough brew to judge, somewhere in the middle of like and leave alone.

★ 488 characters

3.17/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

The beer is a darker straw color with a haze that I can still see the fast rising carbonation through. The head was thin and reminded me like a small layer of soap. Very faint, almost no aroma, a slight wheat smell but that is about it. The beer is medium bodied and I do get a nice bubble feel off the carbonation. The beer itself tastes i get a slight spice, not overly strong or distinguishable, not your typical clove or banana flavors. Then a get a sweet wheat flavor. Overall the beer is fine but not a very good hefeweizen

★ 535 characters

3.26/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

Nice yellow hazy appearance replete with an almost full inch of white head. Aroma kicked down citrus, lemon and grapefruit.

Taste is almost surprisingly bitter and moreso tart. The wheat and lemon remain continuously perceptible. If you want more lemon than banana in the traditional hefe yeast strains, this might be up your alley. Definitely a hybrid of tradition and American ingenuity here.

This stuff is everywhere, well distributed, plenty popular, I wouldn't say it does anything bad.

★ 499 characters

2.75/5  rDev -15.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.25

Not a true hefeweizen. No banana/clove.
Color and mouth feel is right for style but the taste is missing the hallmarks of the style. Might be a below average wheat beer. Will not get again.

★ 191 characters

3.99/5  rDev +22.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Honestly overall I'd have to say I'm pleased with it. I fell in love with Franziskaner dunkel and this reminded me of it without the banana nutty flavor and a little hoppier. Great beer IMO right amount of alcohol and goes down very easy.

★ 238 characters

3.89/5  rDev +19.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 4.25

Decent heff from Portland; the land of a million craft beers. Also the original american heff from one of the original craft breweries. Does not disappoint. Smooth citrusy with floral notes in the nose and finish -- decent alcohol content. Great!

★ 246 characters

3.32/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a Shaker pint glass, there is no "best by" date that I can find.

APPEARANCE: pours a dense, hazy, straw color with one-finger white head that slowly dissipated until a thin, unbroken layer of small bubbles remained, there is significant lacing on the glass and medium carbonation (I think?).

SMELL: very faint to the nose, bread and faint banana and lemon citrus note.

TASTE: initially sweet bread and lemon citrus, then faint banana, everything understated.

PALATE: medium body and carbonation.

OVERALL: this is an underwhelming example of a style I truly enjoy, it was a great looking beer but smell and taste were very faint, I would not buy this one again as there are better options available.

★ 742 characters

3.63/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

This beer is my first Hefeweizen so perhaps i'm not the best judge of a good one, but I very much enjoy this beer. Poured into a glass chalice, head dissipated slowly into about a half-finger. looks like a hefe ought to, and tastes exactly how I expected one would. Very bready with a nice smooth finish. Very drinkable, and at under 5% abv, a lightweight like myself could enjoy as much of it as I wanted to.

★ 409 characters

4.21/5  rDev +29.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

A golden orange beer with a thick haze. The head is very thin.
The smell is very much like a wheat.
The taste is very smooth, with a wheat flavor with minor spices.
The beer is light and is smooth and is easy to swallow.

Overall, this been is smooth and delicious. It isn't really like your traditional Hefe, but it certainly has its own flavor that is just as pleasing.

★ 372 characters

3.43/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Curious, this one. Had it twice. Still can't place it. Maybe because it is almost creates a new style: the American Hefe.
Widmer's is the second most rated American-made Hefe (and sixth overall including the Germans), but you have to go down to the 17th hefe to find one with a lower rating than Widmer's.
I gave it points because I like the Widmer Bros rags-to-riches rendition for craft brewers; starting in the late 1970s as home-brewers who made a cash cow (their Hefe) who, as I understand it, made riches; having been bought by a larger company envious of their large following.

Listed on the "1001" beers, it obviously is an arguable inclusion. But Michael Jackson set the tone.
MJ's 1999 edition gave it 3 of 4 stars with this telling review "Widmers Hefe enjoyed great success with its (intentionally) densely sedimented Hefe which tastes somewhere between a beer and a fresh, sweetish grapefruit juice, but deserves points for that distinction."

★ 956 characters

4.11/5  rDev +26.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Pours a beautiful hazy golden orange with lots of bubbles and some particles floating about. Small foamy white head that dropped down fairly quickly but still left about a half a finger of head.

Smell is deliciously clean bready smell with notes of wheat through out.

Taste is very clean with a spicy note hitting the middle of the tongue with a crisp somewhat wet finish.

Mouth feel is pretty light with the carbonation adding some nice tingle as the beer goes down.

This beer just seems so underrated with a BA score of 75 and The Bros with 80 at the time I am doing my review. This beer ranks right up towards the top of my all time favorites. An easy drinking, tasty and refreshing beer that is so consistent with it's wonderful flavor.

★ 746 characters

2.8/5  rDev -13.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75

A - A mixed bag. Golden body, opaque. White head. Some lacing.

S - A big smack of skunk notes. A touch of grass. Off.

T - A hit of toasted grain, but the flavor is awash with sour off notes. Plastic. Skunk. Not good, with none of the banana yeast hits or favorably funky flavors of a standard Hefe.

M - Spiky close, and a bit harsh.

O - Not anywhere close to the Hefe elements of German brews. Terribly disappointing.

★ 430 characters

4.27/5  rDev +31.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Magnificent color, smooth taste and goes down just right. Hint of malted weight and finishes with just enough citrus to keep you coming back for another drink. Love it!

★ 168 characters

2.99/5  rDev -8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75

Pours rather cloudy amber beer with relatively (for weizens) thin head, low retention.
Smell - bread, corn, wheat, citrus, cereals.
Taste - bread, malts, slight bitterness in the finish.
Light body, soft carbonation.
1) Not hefeweizen at all.
2) Poor even for wheat ale.

★ 270 characters

3.92/5  rDev +20.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

L: Cloudy golden/orange
S: Toasted wheat and a tad bit of citrus
T: Bread and malt
F: Crisp
O: My favorite hefe. Light and crisp beer. Goes well with citrus garnish.

★ 165 characters

4.09/5  rDev +25.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4

L: Cloudy, golden, almost orange color. Head does not last very long. Grains are visible. Reminds me of a typical wheat beer.

S: Yeasty bready smell, subtle fruity smell, and some citrus/lemon

T: Bready malt, with a subtle citrusy aftertaste and a subtle hint of spicy flavor at the end

F: Grainy, with quick carbonation that fades away, goes down smooth. Once again, a wheat beer comes to mind. I enjoy the texture, like a an oily grain-like feeling.

O: definitely like it. Does not seem like a 100% traditional Hefeweizen, but it is delicious none the less. DO not mind the cloudy, yeasty ness that adds to the flavor, feel, and taste. A good American take on a Hefeweizen,.

★ 680 characters

3.46/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12 oz. bottle, no bottled on date present. Acquired a single bottle of this stuff from a friend via trade. My second beer from Widmer Brothers Brewing Co.

Poured into a Duvel tulip glass.

A - It pours a cloudy golden body with lots of dark flecks of sediment. Less than a finger of quickly fading bubbly off-white head. No real lacing to speak of. Looks nice.

S - A somewhat restrained aroma - lots of bready yeast presence, spritzy carb, and some fruit presence, but not necessarily what I would describe as citrusy. More of a nectary banana - pineapple aroma. Not what I would describe as spicy, with no hint of cloves, which is to my liking, but not necessarily to style.

T - Taste is the same - the crisp bready yeast is apparent, with notes of fruit in the shape of bananas and pineapples. Some crisp, creamy, almost cidery notes reside at times. Doesn't always taste very Belgian in nature.

M - Smooth, crisp, & creamy. Light-bodied, and easy-drinking with good carb.

Overall, an average at best offering from Widmer Brothers, not exactly very hefe in nature, if I didn't know any better I might just think of it as a regular American pale wheat ale.

Widmer Brothers Hefeweizen -----3.5/5

★ 1,209 characters

3.38/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Cloudy and orange/gold/yellow with visible, yet tiny bits of hop/wheat floating about. One of the murkier beers I've had. Almost no head on pouring from a 12oz bottle in a tilted glass, but steady flow of CO2. Smells almost earthy, which is probably how I'm interpreting the grassiness, along with an obvious presence of citrus. Not catching the "banana" myself. Aroma is malt/wheaty, as is the taste. Citrus flavor is such that I feel a lemon garnish would be unnecessary, but never hurts. Good summer beer on a hot day. Probably won't go out of my way for it in the future, but drinkable and pleasant enough.

★ 614 characters

3.3/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25

A: Pours a cloudy medium golden yellow in color with light to moderate amounts of active visible carbonation rising from the bottom of the glass and faint honey orange highlights. The beer has a half finger fizzy foamy off-white head that reduces to a small patch of thin film and a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Minimal amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Light to moderate aromas of wheat malts and citrus/lemon with a light aroma of grassy + herbal hops.

T: Upfront there is a light to moderate flavor of wheat and bready malts with a hint of sweetness. That is followed by light flavors of lemon citrus and a light flavor of grassy + herbal hops which imparts a light amount of lingering bitterness.

M: Light bodied with slightly more than moderate amounts of carbonation. Crisp and smooth.

O: Light and refreshing, easy to drink but not quite as flavorful as some of the other beers in this style (especially the German options). Alcohol is well hidden.

★ 968 characters

3.25/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Has a cloudy orange-yellow color, smell and taste of bananas, tastes lighter than most hefeweizens. It's not one of the better Widmer Brothers beers, but overall not a bad beer to have once in a while.

★ 202 characters

3.99/5  rDev +22.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A light and easy drinking hefeweizen. Pours a murky yellow-gold in color. Notes of grass, hay and banana mostly fill the profile here. Bready and lightly spiced.

★ 161 characters

2.28/5  rDev -29.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 1.75

Definitely a wheat beer, but to call this a Hefeweizen--unless the 6 pack I had was a bad batch--is misleading. None of the banana or clove notes found in say, Sierra Nevada's Kellerweis, or Weihenstephaner hefe. The head is a nice cloudy white, with some lacing that hangs around for awhile. Mouthfeel is somewhat effervescent and refreshing, but lacking compared to nearly every one of the beers I've familiarized myself with representing this style. The beer appears cloudy and has the typical yeast settled at the bottom of the bottles. Flavor is extremely hop forward, reminding me of a Belgian IPA. IBUs are listed at 30, which I would need to investigate in order to compare to other hefeweizens. I know the brewery markets this as an American hefe...could this account for the atypical bitterness? I don't taste any fruity notes, and outside of appearance, the wheat backbone of a typical Hefeweizen is absent. I would not buy again, other than if I could get a single bottle or on draft to see if my six-pack happened to be a bad one. Certainly unique, but not in a good way.

★ 1,084 characters

4/5  rDev +23.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This beer is always been best when it is fresh. I've started appreciating it more after trying at the brewery. My previous aversion to it could have been due to bad experience with old bottles. This beer is unique among hefes being a pioneering American craft beer. It's not your traditional yeast fruity flavors and is smooth and clean. Refreshing and satisfying.

★ 367 characters

3/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a light copper with a rather forgettable head. Aroma is faint, mostly grainy sweetness and a touch of citrus and yeast. Taste is uneven, the fruit coming and going quickly, leaving the wheat dominating the flavor for most of the swallow. Mouth feel is quite thin and watery, which doesn't do much to make the flavors stick, which might be why they feel so off to me.

★ 372 characters