Today's beer is one that I wanted to try back at the Cincinnati Winter Beer Fest. I was in line at the Lost Coast booth and a tangerine wheat sounded intriguing. Unfortunately by the time I got to the front of the line the keg of Tangerine Wheat had been tapped out. I had to go for their Indicia IPA. Which wasn't to bad, if memory serves. I was at Jungle Jim's a while ago and saw this beer sitting there and I finally had my chance to try it. To the beer!
Tangerine wheat pours a hazy golden orange topped by a finger of bubbly white head.
This beer earns its name. Huge, bold tangerine aromas. Actually it really reminds me of those sugar coated gummy candies shaped like orange wedges which I always loved, but I'm not sure that's what I'm looking for in a beer. The tangerine aroma is pretty dominant. It overpowers anything that I might get from the hops, malt or yeast.
The tangerine aroma really dominated the beer, it's just the same with the flavor. Big fruity citrus flavor with a pretty light body. There's a bit of creaminess with a hint of a clove like spiciness. The mild hop presence gives the beer a decent crispness. There's an unpleasant astringency on the aftertaste. Apart from the intense Tangerine flavor and aroma this beer doesn't have much going for it.
I really didn't care for this one. There's surely a ton of tangerine here, but I think it's kind of just covering up a beer that's just not that good. There's no real hop or malt character here and that astringent taste is enough to keep me from coming back. If you're a fan of beers like Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy you might dig this one. Not for me though.
HD
Why was this at the winter beer fest? Seems like a summer beer! I do not like tangerine at all so I will be skipping this one...
ReplyDeleteI believe this is one of Lost Coast's core offerings and not a seasonal. That's probably a good call, Heather.
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