Tuesday Top Ten: Wheat Beers

As the weather gets warmer, you want –- no, need –- a nice refreshing beer to drink.  That's where wheat beers come into the picture.  In my opinion, wheat beer is the perfect summer beer. 

Wheat beers, as the name implies, combine malted wheat with the usual malted barley.  Many of them are unfiltered, which gives them that cloudy appearance.  They are generally not very hoppy at all (which I like), and they are usually higher in carbonation, which gives them that thick head.  Often they have some spice or fruit flavors and/or aromas.  Some people like to squeeze a slice of lemon or orange into their wheat beer.  I do not.

If you see a beer with any of the following names, it's a wheat beer:

-Wheat beer, wheat ale, weiss, weissbier, weiß, weißbier, weizen, or hefeweizen (unfiltered)

-Kristallweizen (filtered)

-Witbier, witte, white ale, or beire blanche (Belgian-style wheat beer)

-Dunkelweizen (dark wheat beer)

With that, here are my top ten wheat beers.  Last year, I posted my Top Ten Summer Beers, and this list will overlap somewhat with that.  I think you need to come to grips with the fact that I like to drink beer in all seasons.

Honorable mention:  Two Brothers Ebel's Weiss; Summit Hefe Weizen; Wittekerke witbier; Gordon Biersch Dunkelweizen; Bell's Winter White; Ommegang Witte; New Belgium Mothership Wit

10 (tie).  Erdinger Weissbier

This is a great beer to drink when you are watching Indiana make a surprising run to the NCAA championship game.  The trick is that you must drink exactly three before halftime and exactly three after halftime.  And no matter how much she begs, don't let your roommate's girlfriend have a bite of your Pasta-Roni, for that will spell certain defeat for the Hoosiers at the hands of Maryland.  I can't stress that last part enough.

10 (tie). Goose Island 312

Goose Island describes 312 as an "urban wheat," which means that it wears skinny jeans and listens to bands you've never heard of.  It's not as heavy as a lot of wheat beers, and it's a great cookout beer. Now that Anheuser-Busch InBev bought Goose Island, 312 (which, for those who don't know, is Chicago's main area code) is no longer made in Chicago, which is strange.  Apparently it was moved out of state so that they could increase the volume.

9.  Allagash White

Allagash Brewing Company in Portland, Maine is probably best known for their Allagash White, which is a witbier.  It's refreshing and a little spicy, and quite good.

8. Hoegaarden Witbier

Germans aren't the only ones who can make a good wheat beer. Belgians can too. Hoegaarden, which I refuse to pronounce correctly because "ho garden" is funnier than "who garden," is a delicious, unfiltered, spicy wheat beer.

7.  Piece Dark 'n' Curvy

In addition to great pizza, Piece Brewery and Pizza here in Chicago makes some fantastic beer.  Unfortunately, you can only get it in the restaurant.  The Dark 'n' Curvy is my go-to beer when I'm there.  It's an award-winning dunkelweiss, and it's awesome.  (Piece's Top Heavy Hefeweizen is also really good.)

6.  Upland Wheat

Upland Brewing Company is located in beautiful Bloomington, Indiana, not far from IU's campus.  They brew great beers that are, unfortunately, not available in Illinois.  Probably their signature beer is their Wheat Ale, which is spicy and refreshing.  I definitely try to grab a few sixers whenever I go back to Bloomington (or when I'm anywhere in Indiana, for that matter).

3 (tie). Hacker-Pschorr Weisse, Paulaner Hefe-Weissbier, and Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse

The Germans do good things with beer, and particularly with weissbier, since they invented it and all. Hacker-Pschorr, Paulaner, and Franziskaner make three of my favorite regular weisses.  It's not fair to try to pit them against each other, so they tie.  All three are easy to drink, and generally remind me of drinking outdoors in Munich.  In fact, I just picked up a case of Paulaner at Costco the other day and am drinking one as I write this sentence.  Yes, I can drink and type at the same time.

2. Franziskaner Weissbier Dunkel

It was a tough call between this and Oberon for my #1.  I can and do drink this dark weiss year round. It is particularly enjoyable at the Englischer Garten in Munich (or any biergarten in Munich for that matter), but if you're one of those pansies who hates to fly, then just go to Binny's and drink it in the privacy of your secure, locked, xenophobic home.

1. Bell's Oberon

This is a delicious and refreshing unfiltered wheat ale made by Bell's each spring/summer.  It's always a happy day every spring when I go into a bar and see that orange sphere on top of a Bell's tap, indicating that Oberon is back for the year.  Likewise, it's a sad day in September or October when that orange sphere is put in storage for the fall and winter.

Any other recommendations?