Widmer Brothers Lemongrass Wheat Ale, the limited Fall 2011 release from Widmer Brothers boasting lemongrass, muscat grapes, and champagne yeast additions, poured a transparent gold into the glass, with little head or carbonation to observe. Lemongrass came through in the nose, but saw slightly thrown off my the distinct odor of fermented sweet grapes and dry, dry wheat.
Widmer Brothers Brothers' Reserve Lemongrass Wheat Ale opened with the funky sweet tang of newly fermented muscat grapes and sugar. As the sweetness subsided, the ale thickened and dried simultaneously (not desirable, but impressive) and the lemongrass came through to give an oddly bitter, citric edge to the juxtaposition of grapes and a dry wheat base. The ale faded rather abruptly, taking any everything but a marked mustiness with it.
On paper, Widmer Lemongrass Wheat Ale should have worked out. The addition of champagne yeast, muscat grapes, and lemongrass evoke a dry, sparkling Sauvignon Blanc full of citrus and spice, but the end result is cloying, with off-putting fermented fruit flavors and nothing that lingers or develops from the mess.
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