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I checked three times, and I have not reviewed this beer. It's kind of ... shocking... that I haven't, but here I sit. I have reviewed several Shock Top beers, and I remember them being pretty good. Before I started actually tracking my preferences for beer, I think I may have occasionally gotten them confused with Blue Moon. I mean, both breweries are very closely linked to their Belgian white beers, and they are (or were) frequently available as the alternative beer before the big craft brew renaissance.
This is solidly brown. It's the brown of the crust of a pretzel, really - possibly slightly darker. Immediately, I thought to myself that a pretzel caramel porter sounds like it would be delicious, but this is a wheat ale at its base. I can barely tell that fact with my nose down in it. The color change is directly reflected in the intense pretzel smell that overcomes the wheat almost entirely. It's pretty astonishing - pretzels are not particularly odiferous.
First sip is not the pretzel-nutty beer that was promised. The wheat ale may have a little pretzel flavor added, but there isn't any salt (that I absolutely associate with pretzels) and very little of the pretzel. It's odd that I got all geared up for a pretzel bonanza, as pretzels are fine, but they aren't my favorite snack. I do not recall the last time I went out of my way for a pretzel. It may have been at an amusement park for a soft pretzel.
Tip-in is slight pretzel added to a wheat backing with a taste of lemon and moderate carbonation. The middle becomes a dazzle of carbonation covering the mouth with grains flowing through the center. The finish is where I hoped the pretzel would stand out, but the wheat and bitterness drive it away almost entirely.
Bottom Line: Shockingly, I wanted more pretzel.
2.0/5
