Circle Brewing Co. - Austin Beer Guide

SEASON’S DRINKING
Summer Wheats
OK, WE WILL ADMIT, NOT EVERYONE BOUGHT
the whole IPA being the “perfect spring beer”
thing last issue. I will take the blame. I still think
it works. But this time we know we got it right.
Summer definitely equals WHEAT beers. And
the brewers had plenty to say about wheats. So
much so, we could have filled five pages. It was
quite difficult to keep it to one spread. Summer
is long, good thing there are so many good
wheat beers out there. —Aaron Chamberlain
What makes your wheat
special and/or different?
NATE SEALE
(512) Brewing
In most ways, (512) WIT is
a very traditional Belgian
Witbier. Where we break from
tradition is in adding dried
grapefruit peel, rather than
bitter orange peel, and it
gives our beer a slightly more
bracing dryness that isn’t
found in other wheat beers.
JEFF YOUNG
Black Star Co-op
Elba—American wheat ale
with lemongrass, grains of
paradise, bitter orange peel;
Cul Sec—Belgian wheat ale
with bitter orange peel; Waterloo—sour
mashed American
wheat ale with peaches.
Elba is special because it was
designed by a forum of co-op
owners. It was only supposed
to be around for a couple
months but ended up being
so popular that we keep it on
tap for half the year! Waterloo
is a very technically difficult
beer to make. Being sour,
light, and hiding nothing,
Waterloo gives peaches the
attention they deserve while
being a truly Austin inspired
beer.
JOSH WILSON
Draught House Pub & Brewery
All my beers are “special,”
haven’t you heard! I tend to
use more hops than many
current styles dictate. I try
and understand the core
of a style and why it works,
then try to riff on that. Add a
twist, subvert the meaning or
compound it.
JEFFREY STUFFINGS
Jester King Craft Brewery
Although most of our beers
have at least some wheat in
the grist, Bonnie the Rare
Berliner Weisse and Drink’in
the Sunbelt Hoppy Wheat
Beer are the two wheat beers
we make. Both are session
beers with alcohol by volume
below 4%. Bonnie the Rare
incorporates souring bacteria
to add tartness to the beer
and is not boiled in order to
preserve a starchy wheat
character.
CHIP MCELROY
Live Oak Brewing Co.
We brew a proper Bavarianstyle
Hefeweizen. In a crazy
mixed up world where
American wheat beers are
sometimes named “Hefeweizen,”
I guess that makes it
special. Though, it shouldn’t
be that way. It’s like having a
restaurant with “sauerkraut”
on the menu, but serving cole
slaw instead. Just because
they’re both 95% cabbage,
they are nonetheless two different
foods. Nomenclature
should reveal, not obscure,
identity. I’m not sure who said
that.
JAKE MADDUX
Thirsty Planet Brewing Co.
The Yellow Armadillo is an
American-style wheat. Most
peoples’ perceptions of wheat
beers generally focus on
German-style Hefeweizens
with their banana and clove
esters. I find that people that
generally don’t like hefes,
after trying our wheat come
around to the style again.
AMOS LOWE
Uncle Billy’s
Nothing, we copy the
Germans and Belgians.
What is your favorite aspect of
wheat beers? What makes a
good wheat beer?
WILL GOLDEN
Austin Beerworks
My favorite aspect of a wheat
beer is it’s effervescence,
banana, clove, and vanilla
esters. These beers also
have a great digestive quality
to them. With the correct
cell load they also appear to
glow.
BEN SABEL
Circle Brewing
It’s the perfect brew for a hot
day or not. I can’t imagine a
situation where a good wheat
beer isn’t always welcome.