Wheatwine - Under Appreciated or Terrible?

I had a taster of Two Brothers' Weiss Wine yesterday and wasn't impressed. Smuttynose's Wheatine is the best I've had so far and I really enjoyed it. The Bruery White Oak is the worst I've had and my least favorite beer by one of my favorite breweries. Really wanna try a rye wine now though since I too have never heard of such a thing.

 

Huge fan of Wheatwine and I do believe they're extremely undervalued, simply because not too many people know about this particular style of beer. The Smuttynose wheatwine is VERY solid, as well as the NH Pilgrims Dole too. I just recently had the Boulevard Harvest Dance and really enjoyed it.

If you see a wheatwine and have never had it before.. give it a shot, it might be your new favorite! Also, anyone that wants to trade me a Bruery Chocolate Rain- hit me up!!

 

kuhnhenn wheat wine was pretty damn good

 

Love Short's Wheatwine

 

Gotcha. What a shame. Not my favorite style, but I do love Ithaca 13. Something tells me I might even be able to grab a bottle or two near me. Hmmmmm. It was that or White Gold. Smuttynose is pretty good as well, and I'm really looking forward to White Chocolate when the time is right!

 

Forgot about Harpoon Triticus! Might be the best I've had. Had Short's and wasn't impressed at all.

 

OP, I'm actually a big fan of wheatwines and always wish that more breweries would try their hand at it. I think they're not as common and not as popular because a) it's a bit unorthodox in a craft market that goes totally gaybones for barleywines and imperial stouts, and b) people don't seem to know what to make of a wheatwine or are expecting something else. With that in mind, I think there are a couple of different approaches that you see in wheatwines, and I have my preferences (same goes for Belgian IPAs—there are a few distinct "strains" of that style, but that's another conversation).

For one, there's the wheatwine that imitates a barleywine, like Smuttynose's Wheat Wine. Oftentimes they're sweeter and thicker and heavier, and personally I think the unique character of the wheat malt gets lost in it sometimes.

Another possible type (I say possible because I don't think they're as common) is the pale, hopped-up, high-gravity, high-wheat content beer, like Ithaca 13 (which I personally don't think of as a wheatwine, but let's say that it is for the sake of argument). They're really more like a heavy DIPA with a shitload of wheat and without the emphasis on in-your-face hops, but they can still be plenty hoppy. (Ithaca 13 was, in my mind, more like a very wheaty DIPA, and I loved it.)

And then there's something like Brooklyn's The Companion. Personally, I fucking loved that beer (second highest-rated by me, after Heady Topper (4.75 and 4.8, respectively)). It was big and full-bodied, but not overly boozy and was balanced enough that it retained that light, fruity, tart character that I love so much in wheat malts. Consequently I thought that beer was waaaaaaay underrated and underappreciated.

So there's my two cents.

 

Sidenote, I'm really interested in the possibility of brewing a wheatwine with a Belgian yeast strain like Ommegang's, and essentially making it a less spicy, amber, wheat version of a BSPA. I think that has loads of potential.

Also, some good barrel aging, but let's be honest—bourbon barrel aging is kinda uninspired these days, so I'd love to see a wheatwine aged in rye whiskey or wine barrels. Or if there are any triple sec barrels out there, that tangy citrus flavor would be perfect paired with the pronounced wheat malts at their peak.

 

Unfortunately The Companion was a one-off—it was brewed to coincide with the Oxford Companion to Beer or whatever that was called. The only commercially-released bottles came in gift packs along with the book for like $80 at the brewery, but it was around on tap for a while. Real shame, too, because it was outstanding.

 

Same with Ithaca 13. Unbelievable on tap, can't believe it's gone for good. There must be some way we can petition the brewery, right . . . ?

 

My answer is: yes.

 

White Oak is the only one I've ever had and I loved it. I would certainly like to try more

 

Both are fantastic! Damn you Ithaca!!!

 

I've never seen a Wheatwine before. I've always wanted to try one! I'm not huge on barleywines, because they tend to be too sweet.

 

Don't get too many Wheatwines in the Bay Area but I do like the Marin Brewing Star Brew. It's not easy to find in the East Bay but traveling to Novato Bevmo usually allows for a bottle or three. A bomber can produce palate fatigue, but the event is fun and flavorful. I dig em but it's just hard to find the style around these woods. Hoping that changes and my input would be more meaningful.

 

Ithaca is the most infuriating brewery in the East.

Side note - drank a bottle of Alphalpha very recently and it was still damn good. This wouldnt be too suprising to me but we're talking about a brewery that's flagship IPA tastes best in the car ride home.