Tasting Notes: Summer Lemon Hefeweizen

A pint of Summer Lemon Hefeweizen

I’ve been tardy. . .half the keg of my Summer Lemon Hefeweizen is already gone and I haven’t posted any tasting notes yet.  The fact I’ve been drinking it, instead of writing about it, may give you a hint about how it turned out.

It is great!

Aroma: The aroma of this beer is what you’d expect of a hefe – yeasty, with a bit of fruitiness.  I was hoping for a bit of lemon on the nose, but sadly, it is lacking.  None-the-less, the aroma is pleasing and dead-on for a hefe.

Appearance:  The picture is somewhat misleading – this beer is cloudy, just as a hefe should be.  The cloudiness has faded as the keg has aged, but it retains a nice white haze that typifies most wheat beers.  This beer is a hard pour – a thick, creamy head forms as quickly as you can pour the beer.  If I’m in a rush I sometimes end up spooning off the head so I can to off the glass!  This thick head does something I’ve never seen before – it condenses into thick “islands” of almost clumpy head – it looks almost like kraussen.  I’m not sure what to make of that.

Flavour:  The flavour of this beer is very refreshing – a perfect pint for a summer afternoon.  The American Hefe yeast imparted a modest banana flavour, but not nearly as bold as a conventional hefe yeast.  Unlike conventional hefe yeasts, there is no clove flavour.  As you would expect, the high amounts of wheat give a bit of body to the beer.  Behind the banana and wheat flavours is a subtle bit of lemon.  The one thing I would change with this batch is the mount of lemon I add – I’d double-up and use two lemons + their zest.

Mouthfeel:  Silky, like a wheat beer should be.

Overall:  I love this beer – easy to brew, quickly maturing, and a real refreshing brew to enjoy on a hot summers day.  As I said above, the only thing not as I’d prefer it to be is the degree to which the lemon comes through – so brew it with 2 lemons, or add a slice of fresh lemon to each glass!