Is Blue Moon an accurate representation of a Witbier?

[mciaio]

Forgive me if this has been asked before, and I did do a search. Blue Moon kinda tastes like a cloudy Coors Light. I would like to make a Wit and will be really dissapointed if it tastes like Blue Moon.

 

[RCCOLA]

Try hoegaarden for an accurate rep. of a wit. BM is an americanized wit IMO.

 

[JAG410]

No. It's a good representation of what "the man" wants you to believe is an exotic wit beer. It's certainly drinkable, and makes a decent session beer because nearly every store carries it.

Hoegaarden is the next most commercial example of a wit, but it actually has a long history. Give this one a try, and if you don't like it, Wit beers aren't for you.

 

[Pappers_]

try Unibroue's Blanc du Chambly, it's delicious IMHO, I think I have an old extract recipe if you're interested

 

[Brew-boy]

I was drinking a Blanc du Chambly on Sunday when I was brewing my Wit.......Yum

 

[SumnerH]

Blue Moon is basically in-style, but it's pretty bland on all the major points. Hoegaarden is the one that really helped popularize the style, but it's also not considered a particularly great wit either.

Probably the 2 best widely available wits are St Bernardus witbier and Allagash White. The latter is on tap up and down the east coast, and not that hard to find at beer stores with decent selection elsewhere.

Being as you're in Philly, you ought to have no problems finding Allagash White at a decent beer bar in the city.

 

[Coastarine]

I love hoegaarden, also wittekerke.

F*ck blue moon. F*ck in its eyesocket.

 

[fastricky]

F*ck blue moon. F*ck in its eyesocket.

Ha, agreed!

 

[mciaio]

I love hoegaarden, also wittekerke.

F*ck blue moon. F*ck in its eyesocket.

OMGROTFLMFAO

I always wanted to put someone's quote in my sig and now I have one!!

 

[Coastarine]

Its like clockwork, every saturday morning I log on to HBT and find myself in a half-dozen signatures.

 

[Chupacabras]

If you're Canadian, our version of Blue Moon is Rickard's White.

 

[TurboBrew]

What makes hoeegarden so white? I've brewed several wits (extract mind you) and have never had a "white" beer

 

[Jewrican]

i am aparently not a wit beer fan. Had a hoegarden last night and I'd rather drink from a hoe in a garden.. ugh!

 

[RCCOLA]

i am aparently not a wit beer fan. Had a hoegarden last night and I'd rather drink from a hoe in a garden.. ugh!

I'm wit ya on that one.Prob'ly the only style of beer I have ever drain poured.

 

[zanemoseley]

I'm a big fan of Mothership Wit too, I used to like Blue Moon till I tried better wits now I'm not a huge fan. I will occasionally get a bomber of it just for the hell of it.

 

[SumnerH]

i am aparently not a wit beer fan. Had a hoegarden last night and I'd rather drink from a hoe in a garden.. ugh!

Hoegaarden's not a great wit, though it's certainly decent. Most of the commercial review sites grade Hoegaarden, Blue Moon, and Wittekerk around a "B", which is about where I'd put them.

Try an Allagash White, St Bernardus Wit, or if you want a bigger wit try the Brooklyn Grand Cru. All are decently widely available. I know I've gotten Allagash products in GA before so they should be around; I think I've seen Brooklyn stuff too.

 

[944play]

Try an Allagash White, St Bernardus Wit, or if you want a bigger wit try the Brooklyn Grand Cru.

...or Southampton Double White.

I kinda like Blue Moon. I remember thinking it sucked when it first came out.

 

[JesseRC]

I agree with the other folks who lover blanc de chambly. I did a AHS clone of it, I think it was perfectly balanced, while blue moon just seems overly spiced.

 

[Fat Guy Brewing]

blue moon just seems overly spiced.

Agreed, I think it has too much hops which is not the point of a wit.


What makes hoeegarden so white? I've brewed several wits (extract mind you) and have never had a "white" beer

I brew extract also, hence I call mine Brown Belgian White.

 

[Saccharomyces]

Blanche de Bruxelles and St. Bernardus are two good examples.

 

[Homercidal]

I prefer Blue Moon to Hoegaarden.

But, I like Celis White better than both. Wish I could find it around here. You'd think that if it was brewed in state, it would easy to get!

There are many brands that I'd like to try. I've done a wit a few times using extracts and it's generally a bit darker than what you find in the store due to the extracts. It's hard to get a real light beer that way. Have not tried an AG version yet. (kinda burned out on that style right now.)

The wheat gives it a lighter appearance with suspended particles.

 

[Hokie]

After keeping an eye out forever, I finally found a place that sells Celis White near me and I got to taste it for the first time. I am quite impressed to say the least (compared to other Wits at least).
As for Blue Moon, it's certainly introduced the masses to a unique beer flavor combination (coriander and orange peel), but from what I understand, it's brewed with American ingredients and a clean fermenting ale yeast. With that said, you'd be hard pressed to approximate the benchmark Wits brewed in Belgium with Belgian ingredients.

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

Allagash white, wittekerke, and Unibrue Blanche are my favs.

This is one of the hardest styles to brew well IMO. Extracts will not get the job done.

 

[Cookiebaggs]

After keeping an eye out forever, I finally found a place that sells Celis White near me and I got to taste it for the first time. I am quite impressed to say the least (compared to other Wits at least).
As for Blue Moon, it's certainly introduced the masses to a unique beer flavor combination (coriander and orange peel), but from what I understand, it's brewed with American ingredients and a clean fermenting ale yeast. With that said, you'd be hard pressed to approximate the benchmark Wits brewed in Belgium with Belgian ingredients.

I like Blue Moon. I find it a nice summertime beer and it is a crowd pleaser. In fact, I just brewed up 11 gallons last Thursday.

Here is a good thread on Blue Moon from one of the people who developed it.

It is indeed fermented with a clean ale yeast to bring out the coriander and orange peel. This is probably why those that like traditional wits don't really think Blue Moon is a good example. It would be interesting to see what it would be like with a wit yeast.

I used the percentages that Wayne1 said to use and this beer turned out great.

I know another post stated that Blue moon is hopped too much. I disagree. I just had a tap of Blue Moon over the weekend. It is very lightly hopped.

 

[SumnerH]

After keeping an eye out forever, I finally found a place that sells Celis White near me and I got to taste it for the first time. I am quite impressed to say the least (compared to other Wits at least).

I haven't had a chance to try one of those yet. I'm keeping my eyes open. FWIW, reviews lump it in with Hoegaarden in the "solid but not great" range just a cut above Blue Moon:

Celis White - Michigan Brewing Company
Hoegaarden Original White Ale - Brouwerij van Hoegaarden
Blue Moon Belgian White - Coors Brewing Company

compared to some of the top Wits (I've had Allagash, St Bernardus, and Brooklyn and they're all great; someone upthread vouched for the Southhampton one):

St. Bernardus Witbier - Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV
Allagash White - Allagash Brewing Company
Brooklyn Grand Cru - Brooklyn Brewery
Double White Ale - Southampton Publick House

 

[SumnerH]

With that said, you'd be hard pressed to approximate the benchmark Wits brewed in Belgium with Belgian ingredients.

One more note: 2 of my top 3 personal wits are brewed in America, but they're with Belgian-style yeast and ingredients. Though Allagash as a brewery is probably more Belgian (beer-style-wise) than half the breweries in Belgium.

 

[jgln]

Forgive me if this has been asked before, and I did do a search. Blue Moon kinda tastes like a cloudy Coors Light. I would like to make a Wit and will be really dissapointed if it tastes like Blue Moon.

Really? I have had both before and never thought one came close to the other. I now have a experiment to try and purpose for doing so.

But maybe I can buy just one can of Coors Light and a six of Blue Moon. I like light beers but never Coors much.

 

[williec30]

I love hoegaarden, also wittekerke.

<thread hijack>anyone have a recipe for wittekerke? i have searched high and low with no luck. there are a few threads with discussion... no ingredients unfortunately.</thread hijack>

 

[bob1852]

Blue Moon:Witbier as:

A: Coors Light:German Lager
B: All of the above.


not judging - just sayin'

 

[Hokie]

I should probably clarify some things from my previous post... I have nothing against Blue Moon and enjoy it every now and then as a matter of fact.
Also, I understand that some of the finest examples of the wit style are not even brewed in Belgium (much like the Vienna lager situation I suppose).
One problem I have with Allagash is their price for 4 bottles is more than 6 of a very decent alternative (in my opinion of course).