Thirsty Dog Brewing Company
Akron, OH
This hefe is made with 50 percent wheat malt and pure German wheat yeast. This yeast shows in the cloudiness of the beer, and also creates the delightful clove vanilla and banana aromas.
ABV: 5.2
ABW: 4.16
COLOR: N/A
BITTERNESS: 10
ORIGINAL GRAVITY: 1050
Smells righteously hefe as soon as it hits the glass: big barely-ripe banana character, a spicy hint of clove, and a pleasant hint of fresh meadowgrass. The texture is right and there’s a good balance of sweet malt and wheat cut; the finish is a bit bitter and strengthens a mineral thread that’s been running through it. Could be a bit more intense, could have a lot more head, and the bitterness is a bit too American… but I’d run with this one.
Medium gold and densely cloudy, this is one of the wheatiest wheat beers I can recall, despite using only 50 percent wheat in the mash. (Some Bavarian examples use up to 80 percent wheat.) The nose mixes a whiff of sulphur with banana and soft, almost cinnamony spice. The body, however, is dominated by a sweetish cereally character, with light apple and banana fruitiness and hints of clove and petrol. Curiously cloying for a beer meant to refresh, but a pleasant companion to a turkey sandwich.
Lew Bryson writes about beer and whiskey from his home in southeast Pennsylvania. He has a family and two dogs. That’s all you need to know.
Once described as “beerdom’s Brillat-Savarin,” Stephen Beaumont is the author of five books and countless articles on beer, spirits, food, travel and how it all goes together.
