Day 23 – Fruit Beers: Chick Beverages or Serious Brews?

The other day I raised the question of whether fruit wheat beers were “for women only” or a style worthy of consumption. I can’t speak for brewers, of course, but some notable companies make award-winning fruit wheat beers, so I’m inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Whether this style is intended more for the feminine market or not, I tend to like the beers I’ve tried. This might not say much for me as a beer drinker. Put another way, perhaps it says it all. I don’t like IPAs, but I like the fruity stuff? I can see the beer geeks rolling their eyes right now. Even the BMC pack might be looking a bit haughty at this point. “Swill?” they might say. “At least my beer doesn’t come with little paper umbrellas.”

I don’t care.

That’s right, you heard me. I. Don’t. Care. I stopped caring half a lifetime ago. There was a point in my twenties when I did care. I wanted people to think I was sophisticated, so I drank scotch as a way of expressing that to others. I drank it on the rocks. No water or carbonated mixer. Just scotch and ice.

I started with Cutty Sark, which I thought was good stuff. It tasted like turpentine. So I moved up to Chivas Regal, thinking the upper shelf variety would be infinitely better. It tasted like regal turpentine. So I moved up to Johnny Walker Black. Ha! Now I would know the true meaning of smooth. Now I would be the sophisticate I pretended to be.

It tasted like top shelf turpentine. Yuck!

So here I was trying to choke down some pricey paint thinner while everyone else was having a good time consuming what tasted good to them. No one effing cared that I was drinking scotch. One person one time made the comment “hard core” when I placed my order, but that was the end of the recognition. And I’m not all that sure it was meant as a sign of respect.

That is when I wised up. I liked beer, so I gave up liquor (almost) completely and stuck to beer. At the time I drank Coors when I could get it (this was back when the brand rarely crossed the Mississippi) or Strohs (local brew) if I couldn’t. Then I tried Miller Genuine Draft and loved it. That was my brand for quite some time before my palate demanded more taste.

So here is where I’m going with this conversation. I have a wide-ranging appreciation for beer. I like red and brown ales, porters, stouts, and many different lagers. I like beers that are balanced – not too sweet, but not too bitter, either.

My preference, however, is for wheat beers. Whatever style it may be, if it is brewed with wheat, I tend to like it. So why would I not like fruit wheat beers? As long as the fruit doesn’t overpower the wheat, I’m fine with it.

It’s no different than those individuals who order mocha-choca-cappa-lattes instead of coffee or the folks who add cola to Jack Daniels (you know who you are). You drink what you like, not to impress others, and if someone doesn’t like it, fuck ‘em if they can’t take a joke.

So feel free to look down your nose at me for liking Sam Adams Cherry Wheat more than Sierra Nevada Torpedo IPA. To each his own, I say. You can have my share of the really bitter stuff and I’ll take your share of the really good stuff.

Which leads me into what I tried today. Not good. Not bad, but certainly not good. The first fruit beer was from Leinenkugel's (courtesy of MC of BMC fame) called Berry Weiss. Looked like a wine cooler, smelled like a wine cooler, tasted like a wine cooler. If you like wine coolers, it was pretty good. If you're looking for any beer taste at all, move on. This was like that Wild Blue (from B of BMC fame) I tried a couple of weeks ago. If you have any respect for beer at all, pass on that as well.

The second was from Sea Dog Brewery called Apricot Wheat Beer. I had tried their Raspberry Wheat Ale a couple of weeks ago and thought it wasn't bad. This was a little worse than that, but better than the wine cooler masquerading as a wheat beer. At least there was a hint of wheat in the taste.

I'd still rather drink one of these two fruit beers than an IPA, but I wouldn't sing their praises, either. Maybe there's hope for me yet.

Cheers!

Goal...............524.....365
Progress..........40.......23
Remaining.....484.....342