Boulder Beer Co. Sweaty Betty

The third beer I tried out of my Boulder Beer sampler was the Sweaty Betty, a blonde wheat ale:

Appearance: 9/10

Let's face it: with a foamy, white, one-inch head and that beautiful, hazy straw-colored hefeweizen look, this is a gorgeous beer.  The head fell pretty quickly, though, leaving slight lacing on the glass.

Aroma: 19/25

The aroma didn't really draw me in like I was hoping, especially since I didn't pick up on the phenols and esters that I was looking forward to.  I'm a big fan of hefeweizen beers, but I didn't really smell much in the way of banana or clove here.  Instead, I got more of a light wheat nose and a grassy, earthy, straw-like aroma -- not a bad aroma, just not what I was expecting.  There were also some faint citrus notes, but they were more subdued.

Taste: 31/40

The grassy and earthy flavors came through the strongest for me.  I could taste both the malt and the hops, which again gave a nice balance to the beer, but I wasn't overly fond of the main flavor profile.  My husband had a taste of this one, too, and he said it has a bacon-like flavor (we also notice a bacony taste in Troegs' Dream Weaver wheat).  I don't taste the bacon as strongly in this beer as I do in Dream Weaver, but there is still a faint hint of it.

Mouthfeel: 7/10
I didn't really notice the mouthfeel much at all when I tasted this beer.  A moderate level of carbonation didn't bring the sting on the tongue, nor did it make the beer feel more full-bodied.

Style: 3/5
For a Bavarian-style hefeweizen, there are a few points where this differs from the style expectations, especially in the esters/phenols (banana and clove were noticeably lacking in this beer), and the head retention.

Drinkability: 7/10
I'd drink it if someone else bought it for me, but my money would be better spent on other beers.  It's a good beer to have after you mow the lawn and the grassy taste is already in your mouth, I suppose.

Overall: 76/100
If you love the clove and banana scents/flavors common to hefeweizens, you may be disappointed with this beer.  It's the first of the Boulder beers that I'm not overly thrilled with.  I wouldn't stoop so low as to use it for cooking stock, but I also won't be going out of my way to buy it again.

One left to try.  Cheers!