This page is dedicated to informing you a bit about hefeweizens and wheat beers of all kinds, as well as providing links to the reviews I have done for some of these brews.
To start, let's break down hefeweizens and wheat beers down into several distinct categories; each with their own characteristics: Hefeweizen, Dunkelweizen, Kristalweizen, American Dark Wheat Ale, and American Pale Wheat Ale.
Hefeweizen: originating in Southern Germany, hefeweizens are heavily comprised of wheat as their main wort ingredient. Hefeweizens typically utilize yeasts that impart flavors of bananas, cloves, other spices, etc. Hefeweizens typically are a hazy straw color in appearance, have low hop bitterness, and are often garnished with a slice of lemon (lime, orange, different citrus fruits). Their ABV is typically in the range of 4-7%. Examples: Franziskaner Hefeweizen, Paulaner Hefeweizen, Hacker-Pschorr Hefeweizen, Shiner Hefeweizen, etc.
Dunkelweizen: also from Souther Germany, dunkelweizens are basically just dark version of the hefeweizen. They are characterized by more malty flavors and share the low bitterness that hefeweizens have to impart some balance to the beer. They also share the typical 4-7% ABV of their lighter hefeweizen brethren. Examples: Franziskaner Hefeweiss Dunkel, Hacker-Pschorr Dunkel-weisse, Shiner Holiday Cheer, etc.
Kristalweizen: kristalweizen is simply a filtered version of a hefeweizen, which lends itself to a clearer beer. Kristalweizen are typically light straw to amber in color, are softer on the palate, but will still give you the banana and spice flavors that you get in a normal hefe (note that the flavors will be more subtle given the filtration of the yeast). Typical ABV is still in the 4-7% neighborhood. Examples: Leinenkugel's Honey Weiss, Hacker-Pschorr Kristall Weisse, Franziskaner Club-Weisse Kristalklar, etc.
American Dark Wheat Ale: this is basically America's copy of the dunkelweizen. This beer will give you a low hop profile, caramel/toasted maltiness, and some fruitiness to go with a light/medium body and a very high level of carbonation. Per usual, ABV is roughly 4-7%. Examples: Boulevard's Lunar, Berkshire Brewing's River Ale, Pyramid Breweries' Amber Weizen, etc.
American Pale Wheat Ale: fitting with the theme, this is America's lighter copy of the hefeweizen. Colors will be pale to gold, can be filtered or unfiltered, and will have a light/medium body with high levels of carbonation. Hop profile can range from very low to quite high, but most are moderately bitter. Again, ABV approximately 4-7%. Examples: Bell's Oberon, Sam Adams' Summer Ale, Three Floyds' Gumballhead, Widmer Hefeweizen, Lagunitas' A Lil' Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale, Goose Island's 312 Urban Wheat, etc.
So there you have it - a review of the basic styles of hefeweizens and wheat beers. Now here are the beers I've reviewed so far with their respective grades:
Dancing Man Wheat - New Glarus: A-
Gumballhead - Three Floyds Brewing: A+
In-Heat Wheat - Flying Dog Brewing: B
Wheat Monkey - Lakefront Brewery: C-
Thumbprint Imperial Weizen - New Glarus: A-
312 Urban Wheat - Goose Island Brewing Co: B+
Little Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale - Lagunitas: A-
Weissbier - Franziskaner: A
Hatha-weizen - Ale Asylum: B-
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Hurls
Editors note: Thanks to BeerAdvocate.com for some help with the characteristics/descriptions.
