Witte (Ommegang)

As I'm recapping my holidays in beer (catching up on notes), this is the start of my NYE-Eve pub crawl beers. I began at Paddy Long's with this brew, fried pickle spears, and a bacon and cheese board.

I know that a witte is not your standard winter brew. Frankly, it's not something I have much anytime of the year. It's been ages since I've had this gem. So long ago that I had no notes on this brew.

General Thoughts
Look and Smell: This yellow brew had a thin white head. I could smell the wheatiness and a little citrus over all of the food and people around me.

Taste: It had a touch of lemon flavor to go with the wheat. Fresh and acid. It made it nice and crisp. I don't know why I rank this at the top of my wheat list. Maybe it's the balance. Maybe it's because it's so smooth. It's hearty without being too thick. This is one I definitely recommend to my wheat and not-so-wheat friends. It's a good beginner beer.

The love story/novel from the Ommegang site:
Ommegang Witte is our take on a Belgian-white, or Witbier. Adhering closely to traditional ingredients and flavor profiles, Witte proved its worth at the 2011 Great American Beer Fest by capturing Gold and at the 2010 & 2008 World Beer Cup by capturing Silver in its category amongst the best in the world. Initially the first Ommegang beer available on draft, Witte is now featured as the Summer Seasonal in our featured-seasonal draft rotation. Though available for year-round enjoyment in 750 ml and 12 oz bottles, summer is the ideal time to enjoy a Witte draft at your favorite warm weather, draft beer destinations.

Imagine...

High, white, fluffy summer clouds. A soft breeze through a citrus grove. A heavenly bite of orange chiffon cake. All of these come to your mind as you lift our pale golden wheat ale to your lips. It's so soft, so light on your tongue, you think, as the tart lemon, bitter orange, and subtle spiciness of coriander arrive to round out the intriguing delicacy of this delicious ale. You smile, knowing you have more in the fridge.

Witte is brewed with malted and unmalted wheat, barley malt, a light hops addition and spiced with sweet orange peel and coriander. Though adding a slice of citrus fruit is common while enjoying a wheat or Wiess beer, we feel that Witte's gentle spicing and slight tartness renders the fruit superfluous.

Here's to Summer...