21st Amendment "Hell or High Mango" Wheat Ale

Do they call this a wheat ale? No. Wheat lager? No. American Pale Ale? Again, no. Instead, these guys just call this a beer that is brewed with mangos. There is a reason you don't leave crucial information off of the label, guys. If this beer doesn't sell well, you may look to the fact that you don't identify the style as a contributory factor. At least there is the website... that also doesn't say what kind it is. You guys are committed, at least. 

The somewhat hazy, straw-colored beer produces quite a pronounced head, but it boils away to a very thin layer with just a smattering of lacing left on the sides while the main concentration lingers around the sides of the glass. The aroma is, not entirely unexpectedly, mango. There are other fruits tossed in like a bit of cantaloupe, orange, and tangerine, but the mango is ruling the day (although I don't recall a beer that smelled so much of cantaloupe before). 

First sip is a big heap of mango with a kind of weak wheat ale around the back of it. The grains are there, but they could honestly be anything. The mango is like a fire eater in the middle of a stage while the grains are the guys dressed in all black who are there just to put out the fire when everything goes wrong. It's.. uh... not great. 

Tip-in is very, very light carbonation with mango and vague grains. The middle is a big swell of carbonation while the mango gets drowned out, but the other flavors can't overcome any of it. The finish is flat and dry as the carbonation leaves and the mango finally lets the grains, cantaloupe, and tangerine see the light of day.

Bottom Line: A one trick pony, and the trick isn't great. 

1.5/5