Jun 6, 2013

Boulevard Brewing 80-Acre Hoppy Wheat Beer

There’s a small group of us at the office — four to be exact — who get together every Thursday toward the end of work day to share a beer. Each week one of us buys a six pack of whatever we like to enjoy with our small pack. It’s only been going on for a couple of months, but this is the first time that I’ve been presented with a beer that I had not enjoyed at some point in the past. Boulevard Brewing 80-Acre Hoppy Wheat Beer (that’s a long name) is a 5.5% ABV American Pale Wheat Ale that apparently is “hoppy.”

The brewery utilizes a blend of Bravo, Zeus, Summit, Cascade, Nelson Sauvin hop varieties to give the beer an earthy and leafy character that you don’t typically find in a beer of this style. Now, wheat ales aren’t typically my thing, but as I’ve said in the past, if you throw enough hops at a wall, I’ll probably end up enjoying it. Well, Boulevard Brewing 80-Acre Hoppy Wheat Beer isn’t a wall, but hop-forward flavor suits me just fine.

Appearance

The beer pours a slightly hazy, straw yellow in color with a small, but frothy white cap of foam.

Aroma

Soft wheat lingers behind leafy, grassy hop notes. Hints of orange, grapefruit and pine persist through the life of the beer.

Taste

Boulevard has certainly nailed the naming of this beer as it’s got a fairly strong hop character that is earthy and leafy with latent hints of grapefruit. The wheat base still lingers in the background a bit along with other grains and subtle bready malt. The bitterness that the hop blend brings is of a moderate level that refreshes nicely along with the crisp mouthfeel and light body.

Overall

Overall, Boulevard Brewing 80-Acre Hoppy Wheat Beer is a pretty darn tasty beer. It’s not my favorite and I’m still not 100% sold on wheat ales, but this is a prime example that if there are enough hops thrown in, I’ll enjoy something outside of my realm of comfort. The beer has an aromatic nose that screams IPA, but the more pronounced wheat character in the flavor let’s you know that it’s not. Still, it’s quite drinkable and refreshing with a welcome hop presence.

Rating: 3.5/5

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