From Kettle River Brewing in Kelowna comes their “Spruce Willis IPA” a White IPA with spruce tips. The beer pours a cloudy orange colour with a white head. The aroma consists of citrus, tropical fruit, wheat and floral hops. The flavour is of spruce, resin, citrus rind, citrus, light tropical fruit, wheat yeast and bitterness. The alcohol content comes in at 6.2% and comes from the batch Lot 380. A well made White IPA is a treat and I consider this one in that category.
From the temporary gypsy brewers Fuggles & Warlock Craftworks comes “The Last Strawberry Wit”. The beer pours a cloudy orange colour with a white head. The aroma is of strawberries, lactose, sweetness, wheat and some yeast. The flavour is of strawberries, wheat, yeast, lactose and some mild citrus but is not overly sweet. The alcohol content comes in at 4.9%. Fuggles & Warlock know what they are doing when they create a weird beer and this is no different. It tastes great and smells just as good.
Vancouver’s Granville Island Brewing has, in it’s Under the Bridge Series, the Hey Day Hefeweizen.
Not super cloudy, I can see shapes on the otherside but it is cloudy enough that I feel like it is a Hefeweizen. It is a pleasant orange-gold colour with a startlingly white head.
There is a nice grassy aroma from the beer, a little bit of hay and a hint of banana. A little bit of spice comes out if you swirl the beer.
Banana is at the forefront of the flavours up against a dryness that makes the banana nice rather than cloying. There are some nice clove and allspice notes underneath the main flavour. The carbonation is a bit prickly, you can feel it going down in a satisfying way.
Summer Seasonal
From Mt. Begbie Brewing Company in Revelstoke BC comes their “Illa Swilla Wit”. This review is part of my lost notes that were recently found from my Summer trip to the Kootenays. The beer pours a cloudy golden colour with a white head. The aroma consists of wheat, citrus, orange peal and yeast. The flavour was of wheat, coriander, citrus, orange peel and some big yeast notes to finish it off. The alcohol content comes in at a sessionable 4.5%. I would happily swill this beer all summer.
Commercial Description: This unfiltered Belgian Wit beer is a fantastic ‘patio’ beer. It is refreshingly fruity with background hints of coriander and chamomile. The light creamy mouthfeel and crisp, tart finish are thirst quenching and perfect for a hot summer day.
Food pairing as per brewery: Wit beers are the most universal beers for food pairing. They are equally paired with lighter foods such as seafood and a salad to richer foods such as burgers and steaks.
Limited Release
From Surrey BC’s Russell Brewing Company comes their new limited release the “White Rabbit Hoppy Hefeweizen”. The Hefe pours a cloudy golden colour with a white head. The aroma is of wheat, citrus, banana, clove and yeast. The flavour is of wheat, citrus, banana, clove, yeast and hops bitterness with a semi sweet finish. The alcohol content comes in at 6%. I have heard mixed reviews for this beer but I quite liked how the hops bitterness and hefeweizen worked together.
Commercial Description: Brewed with Citra hops that display stone fruit and grape flavours with combine with banana and clove character of the hefe yeast. The result is a big tropical taste with a spicy clove finish. Let our White Rabbit lead you to golden wheat fields where the hops burst with flavour.
Mike's Craft Beer 