My friend Shannon had scored some Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat and earmarked a bottle for me. So it’s probably not a stretch to figure out what I was drinking this evening. :)

I wondered briefly whether Shannon would be offended if I didn’t like the beer, but as it turns out that wasn’t an issue: it’s a pretty good brew. My notes:

Appearance: Very pale yellow, slightly hazy. Thick white head.

Smell: Yeasty, clean grain remniscent of a light (American) lager.

Taste: Light, crisp wheat with low bitterness, though there is a slightly detectable hop presence. A bit yeasty. Very slight sourness (citrusy), but it’s more of the "classic" American wheat style than the traditional weiss (no real esters, bananas, cloves). This would be a very good lawnmower beer.

Mouthfeel: Light and refreshing. Thin-bodied, you don’t really notice the "unfiltered" part here.

The BeerAdvocate folks are on the fence, scoring it 80 out of 100, with a 78% approval. On RateBeer it’s solidly average, 3.06 out of 5.

I’m a bit more generous than those reviewers. I could easily see keeping a six-pack of this handy during the summer months, if I lived in the Midwest…