The Weiss Principal comes in a crown-capped 22oz bottle, screw-top oddly enough. It pours out a beautiful topaz color, with a thick and fluffy white foam. The foam lasts a ridiculously long time, and leaves behind a ton of sticky lacing. The brew is very hazy, if not completely opaque, and the resemblance to a great hefe is getting me even more excited!
The nose is dominated by the hops, very bitter, American style hops. I'm quite surprised by how much citrus and grapefruit I'm getting in the aromas. The label describes some banana and clove from the German Weiss yeast, but this smells much more like an IPA to me.
Once I take a sip, I'm sorry to say, I'm very disappointed. This has American IPA written all over it, with more in-your-face hops than I can enjoy. There is definitely a hint of hefe present, but it's very subtle, and over-whelmed by the IPA side of this Jekyll and Hyde brew. I am seriously not into this beer. However, my hop-loving friend absolutely loves the Weiss Principal Ale!
As I near the bottom of the bottle, I give it a good swirl to stir up some of the yeast. I'm expecting the yeast to be a little more appealing to my sweet, hefe loving palate. Well, it unfortunately doesn't make the Weiss Principal any better for me. Sorry! Overall, a pretty cool beer. It's the first hefeweizen I've ever handed to my hop-head friend that he liked. Actually, he loved it, and hasn't stopped raving about it throughout the entire bottle. Although it's not my favorite brew, I can sincerely appreciate the creativity of the Weiss Principle Ale. It really is the "international love child of a Hefe-Weisse and an American IPA" as the label states.
Peak Organic Brewing
Weiss Principal Ale
TCSH Rating: 6.5/10
AKA - I don't like it, but hop-heads will love it!
Eli
Bibo Ergo Sum
As the Weiss Principal warms up to room temperature, it has completely evolved! The hops have faded to the background, the banana and malty sweets have pushed through to the top! I'm not saying I love this beer now, but I don't think I've ever seen a beer change so drastically from one temperature to another!
ReplyDeleteWow, if you haven't tried this one, you need to!