Mayday "Yodel Ay-Ee Blue" Hefeweizen

For starters, does yodeling normally include guitars? I comment only because the woman on the label of the beer has a guitar, but she also has a very large beer in her hand, so it doesn't look like she could play the guitar if she wanted to. Further, she is almost definitely yodeling. The goats appear to be vaguely interested in whatever noise she is making, and there is a field of blueberries around her. She also, incidentally, has blueberries in her hair. Her hair is suspiciously red for someone in German garb.

The beer is not blue. I didn't actually expect it to be blue, but it says blue on the label. It is, of course, referencing blueberries. And I have to admit that the color that has been added the beer is that particular shade of red delving into purple that blueberry insides look like whenever you bite them in half. There will not be any lacing from the head that boils down to a thin and incomplete layer across the top of the beer. The aroma is tart blueberries and grains.

First sip is slightly tart with blueberries while the grains of the wheat are giving the beer a good solid base, but the combination of the two does not seem to be gelling. I'm not sure what exactly the problem is, but the mixture of the two is causing it tartness that mixes with dryness that mixes with the grains to make the whole thing feel scattershot. Possibly what this really needs is a full swig.

Tip-in is moderate carbonation frazzle with blueberry skin and grains carrying a vague sweetness. The middle makes the blueberries disappear entirely as the grains carry the day in a very German-like and fastidious manner. The finish is disorganized; blueberry tries to reassert itself, but it fails as tartness and dryness clamp on before the dry wins for the trail off.

Bottom Line: Like many beers, I wish this was better.

1.75/5