Shock Top Lemon Shandy - Anheuser-Busch

boilermakerbrew

Indiana

3.74/5  rDev +32.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A- Pours a bright, hazy yellow. Medium head that is gone quickly. Little to no lacing.

S- Lots of lemon and grain. Lemon smells natural, like an actual lemon. Grain flavor from the wheat is dominant over the lemon, but still a good intermingling.

T- Similar to the scent. Starts with traditional wheat beer flavors of very light malts and grains. Wheat is dominant and moves toward a mix of lemon towards the middle. Lemon tastes very natural, with moderate strength. Good mix with the wheat beer flavor profile.

M- Light, highly carbonated, and very drinkable. This is an all day summer beer. Slick across the tongue and highly thirst quenching.

Overall, a very solid summer-type beer. A good price point for a solid beer. I like it and will probably drink more of it in the warmer months. This may be the definition of a mowing beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 22:07:48 | More by boilermakerbrew

SometimesIfart

Michigan

1.71/5  rDev -39.6%
look: 3 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

A - Pours a yellowish orange with a one finger white head. Left no lacing.

S - Smells like lemon dish soap.

T - Tastes like lemon dish soap.

M - Medium bodied with medium carbonation.

O - Overall, Tastes like the most artificial soapy lemon I have ever witnessed.

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 05:14:28 | More by SometimesIfart

Stinkypuss

Pennsylvania

2/5  rDev -29.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

Shock Top Lemon Shandy

LOOK: Pours a cloudy yellow with a short lived head. Tons of tiny little bubbles rising to the surface shows a high level of carbonation.

SMELL: Artificial lemon scent and husky, adjunct ridden, cheap beer smell .

TASTE: Lemon flavor has faded to watered down lemon juice, and sharp grains with just a pinch of what may very well be hop bitterness . A bit of wheat, and kind of watery. Tastes like old, carbonated lemon juice.

FEEL: Lighter bodied with a gross, palate coating must.

OVERALL: Not too great. There are much better shandys out there. This just wasn't refreshing and a chore to drink.

Serving type: bottle

03-09-2013 21:50:26 | More by Stinkypuss

russpowell

Oklahoma

3.05/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Got this as part of a mixed sixer

Pours a light straw color with 3+ fingers of pearl colored head. Zero head retention & lacing

S: Light breadyness & stronger grassyness, lemons as well

T: Lemons, grassyness & slight wheatyness up front. More lemon & some crispness as this warms, so more wheatyness as well. Finishes slightly watery slight wheat tartness & a bit of grassyness

MF: Light bodied, near zero carbonation, got firmer as this warmed

Easy to down, but damn near water. Some of the shock tops are passable. To me the concept of Shandys or Radlers are sacrilegious, but this one is really setting the bar low

Serving type: bottle

02-25-2013 03:41:10 | More by russpowell

tectactoe

Michigan

2.69/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Pours a dingy golden-yellow, mostly murky and hazy with a thin, wispy white head that fizzles away until nothing but a thin ring is left around the very edge of the beer. Aroma consists of some lemon zest and slightly tart lemon juice with a faint grainy and wheat-like underbody. Not much really going on in the aroma, aside from the lemon. Lemon smells kind of artificial, but is more integrated into the beer rather than standalone (see: Lenie's Summer Shandy). Hops provide an extremely vague musky aroma, but then again - that may not even be from the hops. Who knows.

Thin bodied and highly carbonated, pretty much to be expected here. The taste contains a helping of grains and malts, mostly masked by a sweet lemon flavor. A little overdone, artificial, and slightly "off", however I still do prefer the taste of this to Summer Shandy. Lightly tart and puckering that turns into a dying sweetness, and believe me - it dies fast. The aftertaste is almost nonexistent, but contains very faint lemon and grain notes. Hops are seemingly missing on the palate, unless they're responsible for that slight twinge I'm picking up - can't tell if it's from the hops or just the carbonation.

Not the worse lemon beer out there, but I'm sure it's leagues away from being the best, too. I'd grab this before a Summer Shandy, but that's not really saying too much.

Serving type: on-tap

02-19-2013 16:56:41 | More by tectactoe

kylehay2004

Florida

2.18/5  rDev -23%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Tried at the end of the brewery tour in St Louis. Only one available I hadn't reviewed. Two finger bright white head on a cloudy but still bright golden body. Musty wheat, rice, hint of lemon citrus but very light. The flavor starts with rice, wheat ad grain with carbonated not so fresh lemonade rounding out the finish. Light body and high carbonation. Pretty gross beer. Worse than I would imagine lemonade being spiked with bud light.

Serving type: on-tap

11-17-2012 19:55:38 | More by kylehay2004

TheSixthRing

California

2.88/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2.5

Appearance - Pours hazy, but thin looking straw yellow with a white, 2 finger head. Average retention, results in very little lacing.

Smell - Decent aroma of wheat and lemon. That's the gist of it.

Taste - Wheat hits first, followed quickly by a moderate lemon sourness, leading the charge into a simple, quick finish. A faint lemon note lingers well into the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - Razor thin watery body, with almost zero carbonation.

Overall - Another substandard Shock Top brew. Not a bad flavor, but the lack of any kind of body leaves this beer tasting a bit like lemon water.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2012 22:14:34 | More by TheSixthRing

Lemke10

Wisconsin

3.1/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

It pours a semi-clear pale yellow hue with a quickly dissipating head. The scent is mild with creamy wheat and lemon aroma. The texture is slightly creamy with cheap grains and lemon hitting the taste buds rather weakly. This is essentially Bud’s version to compete with Miller’s distributed Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy. It’s a decent summer beer…maybe? I guess I would have to try both of them at the same time to give an honest opinion of which one is better but I have yet to have a shandy that tops Potosi Steamboat Shandy on draft. Overall this is average, maybe a little better but nothing that amazes me that much.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2012 02:46:09 | More by Lemke10

travipa

Kentucky

2.45/5  rDev -13.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

Was hoping for a "hard lemonade" taste. Got a severely watered down "Michelob Ultra"
lemon water. Shock Top's signature orange and coriander brew will probably be the best
they can offer.

Opened the bottle (decorative lemon take on the original orange mohawk label)
Poured into frosted pint glass; had some lemon scent with cloudiness.
Felt like low carbonation in mouth.
Disappointingly weak lemon flavor with the characteristic belgian edge.
No lingering finish. Nothing to savor.

The creative label could use a beer that matches it artistry.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2012 22:56:00 | More by travipa

jwc215

New Jersey

2.68/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Pours hazed yellow with a very thin head, looks like some fuzz, despite following the pouring suggestion on the label. Minimal lacing sticks.

The taste is of sugar-coated lemon. Sweet upfront, without much of the tartness associated with lemonade. Dry yeast and a hint of vague spicing balance out the sweetness somewhat. The finish is rather abrupt.

The feel is between fizzy and crisp. It does go down easily enough, I suppose.

Something about it just misses the mark of being a true shandy. Would be easy enough to drink on a hot day, but so would lemonade. Despite a slight "artificial sweetness" to it it's not "inoffensive", but it is weak, even for a low abv shandy. A rather shallow brew.

Serving type: bottle

10-03-2012 20:06:40 | More by jwc215

StonedTrippin

Colorado

2.5/5  rDev -11.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

a weird one for sure. has a funny smell to it, soapy and floral, yeasty and from concentrate. its weird for sure. lemony, but like canned lemonade, not like fresh lemons. the flavor is also odd. lots of polleny flowery notes from the yeast, but the lemon is sugary and unpleasant. it doesnt work. its acidic and candy sweet at the same time. the mouthfeel is off as well. lots of body i think from the unfiltered nature of this beer, but the flavors dont stand up with it, and it feels somehow artificial. carbonation is fine, but that soapy taste wont leave my mouth. id say its easy drinking, but i slammed mine only so i could move on to a beer i prefered more. i dont hate this, it just isnt good. it amazes me that BMC drinkers like this stuff but cant get into a real hefeweizen. how is that so?

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2012 15:50:11 | More by StonedTrippin

DavidS88

Massachusetts

3.15/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

This actually wasn't too bad and is probably one of my preferred Anheuser-Busch products. I had this straight out of the bottle, so I really cannot comment on the appearance other than to say it is a very hazy and cloudy beer, almost like a Blue Moon, which makes sense since it seems Anheuser-Busch may have been copying Coors with their own Belgian style wheat beer. The smell did actually have some wheat scents to it with what was definitely fake lemon scents added, but it didn't seem bad, just not as olfactorily pleasing as you could get with something like Samuel Adams Coastal Wheat which has lots of lemon scents. Similarly, Shock Top Lemon Shandy had a nice light wheat taste with hints of more fake lemon that definitely added to the taste. It wasn't really all that carbonated and went down very smooth. Look, it's certainly not going to be as good as smaller brewery could make a lemon beer or a wheat beer with lemon flavor, but for an AB product, this wasn't really all that bad. It's pretty cheap, smooth, and doesn't have a high ABV so you can definitely pound a few of these at a party and not really be all that worse for it. Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2012 19:38:18 | More by DavidS88

Analog_kid

Pennsylvania

3.35/5  rDev +18.4%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

As I was working up to this review and smelling my shandy, my 3 year old son did a full body check right into me. Now all I smell is shandy.

Anyway, I've had this shandy straight out of a bottle, poured, and on tap. Oddly enough, on tap in a plastic cup seems better than poured.The appeance reminds me of carbonated, slightly cloudy lemonade. The head disappears quickly, no lacing. The forementioned smell is rather enticing; a combination of warm spices, grain, and lemon lure you in. However, the taste belies the quality of this beer; it's not as inviting as the smell. In spite of the lemon presence, it's not as "lemony" as I'd like.

Mouthfeel is refreshing, crisp and clean. Overall, as reviewers have already said, it's a shandy; don't expect more than the flavor of lemonade mixed with beer. It's not bad, but if it were at a party with a cooler full of these shandies along Yuengling lager, I wouldn't even consider the shandy. As one reviewer said, drink this COLD.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2012 00:05:21 | More by Analog_kid

UCLABrewN84

California

2.65/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

On tap at Schooners Patio Grille in Santa Clarita, CA.

Pours a slightly murky light yellow with a foamy off-white head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Small streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of grain, ginger, spices, and artificial lemon aromas. Taste is much the same with a very medicinal lemon flavor on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty poor beer that has some very artificial lemony aromas and flavors.

Serving type: on-tap

08-31-2012 00:49:04 | More by UCLABrewN84

BlackBelt5112203

South Carolina

3.18/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle poured into a pint glass at refrigerator temperature.

L – Slightly hazy ale gold color with a 1.5-finger white bubbly head that dissipates immediately like soda. A steady stream of bubbles keeps a white ring of foam around the beer-glass interface for the duration. No lacing.

S – Definitely some wheat in here along with adjunct grains and lemonade. If the usual Anheuser-Busch adjuncts weren’t in here, it would smell really nice. Smells pretty good anyway.

T – Sweet all the way through with grainy malt, coriander, lemonade, and adjuncts. Pretty balanced between the wheat beer and the lemonade.

F – Light-bodied with good carbonation, a sweet and creamy mouthfeel, and a sweet and slightly dry finish. Lemonade and bready wheat sweetness lingers for a short amount of time.

O – This really is not a bad beer. It’s pretty much exactly what you would expect from a shandy: half beer and half lemonade. Also, the base wheat beer isn’t bad at all. If the BMC-style adjuncts weren’t added, this would be a really good beer for the style. Those extras just take away too much from every aspect of the beer. Nevertheless, this is a very drinkable and tasty beer that is very well-suited for a hot summer day.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2012 20:32:52 | More by BlackBelt5112203

BryanCarey

Texas

2.45/5  rDev -13.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

Yellowish in color with a cloudy body, Shock Top Lemon Shandy emits an aroma of lemons, a touch of clove, and a small amount of bread. Foam is okay at first, but doesn’t hold together very long.

This beer has a flavor that combines wheat, grains, lemons, and just a hint of clove spice. The taste keeps going back to the lemons, as expected, but there are some other flavors in there, mainly light wheat. The lemon flavor is the one most noticeable, but even the lemons are not that strong. The beer finishes watery and even though the product claims to use real lemonade, the taste is not that natural.

Shock Top Lemon Shandy does have one positve point, and that its thirst- quenching quality. Drink it very cold on a hot day and you won’t be disappointed; not thrilled, no, but not disappointed either. It seems made for this purpose, but little else. The body is a too light and too lacking in basic beer ingredients to recommend for anything else.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2012 03:14:29 | More by BryanCarey

hosehead83

Ohio

2.63/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Poured from a 12oz. bottle into a standard pint glass.
Cloudy, pale yellow in color, with a moderate head of quickly fading foam.
Aroma-Lemon and white sugar
Taste-faint lemon zest, soapy, thin-bodied. A rather weak-kneed shandy attempt. Don't get me wrong, on a hot day at ice cold temperature, a couple would go down easy, but a real glass of lemonade would probably taste better.

Serving type: bottle

07-30-2012 15:14:41 | More by hosehead83

Darkmagus82

Montana

2.78/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured from bottle into pint glass

Appearance – Pours a hazy yellow golden color with a large but thin white head. The head fades fast giving very little lacing.

Smell – The aroma is dominated by a lemon scent like lemonade, but it is not overly sweet smelling. Mixed with this is an ever so light wheat bread aroma as well.

Taste – The taste started out maltier with hints of wheat and some more bitter lemon. As the flavor advances more it becomes sweeter but never gets too sweet in the end one is left with a slightly sweet lemonade taste on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – Quite thin with a medium level of carbonation. It really does suit the flavors of the beer and creates a rather refreshing feel.

Overall – It’s a good, light and refreshing alternative to something like a hard lemonade if that is what you are feeling like at the time.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2012 23:15:27 | More by Darkmagus82

RickS95

Indiana

3.55/5  rDev +25.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a milky, straw golden color. Hazy after the sediment is mixed. The head is bright white and kind of generic looking, but has good retention.

Smells like what it is, a cross between a lemony fruit beer and a Belgian wit. Citrusy lemon, along with cloves fill the nose.

There's a slight lemon taste, but not much. There's a slight clove taste, but not much. It's mostly a tangy wheat taste that vetoes the other tastes.

It's really smooth in that the alcohol and all flavors are pretty submissive. There's a watery looseness to it. It does have a nice crisp, tangy feel. Mostly a dry finish with no lingering feel.

It's a decent beer for what it is...a cheap version of a British classic. It's easy to drink and provides good relief from the warmer months. And it's cheap.

Serving type: bottle

07-20-2012 01:50:23 | More by RickS95

mdaschaf

Washington

2.7/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Had a can of this on July 4th.

A: Pours a hazy, light yellow with fizzy white head upon pouring that reduces very quickly.

S: Smells pretty much like lemonade with a slight sourness and some grainy malt.

T: Again, more lemonade, slightly sugary and a little bit of spice. Slightly tart.

M: Light to medium bodied with active carbonation.

O: Not as bad as I was expecting, and actually kind of refreshing, but overall it is pretty lacking.

Serving type: can

07-10-2012 21:08:15 | More by mdaschaf

tdm168

North Carolina

2.53/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

A - bright yellow with a thin, fizzy layer of white head that fizzles out quickly

S - grains and artificial lemonade

T - grainy at first with a strong, artificial lemonade finish

M - very crisp, heavily carbonated

I don't like shandy-style beers to begin with, but this is worst than most. It offers the graininess of a typical american lager with the artificial flavor of a powdered lemonade mix. I'll pass.

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2012 03:51:45 | More by tdm168

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

2.18/5  rDev -23%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

12oz Bottle from CJ's NY for 1.75$

Appearance - Hazy gold colour with an above average size fizzy white coloured head. There is an average amount of carbonation and there is some faint lacing. The head lasted for around 5 minutes.

Smell - Corn, bread, lemons

Taste & Mouth - There is an average amount of carbonation and I can taste bread/wheat mixed with a sugary sweet lemon taste. It actually reminds me a bit of a lemon cough drop. There is a light amount of tartness, but it's more on the sweet side. It ends with an artificial sugary sweet lemon aftertaste.

Overall - Not something I'd ever buy or drink again. It's way too artificial tasting and it was tough to get through my glass.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2012 00:07:15 | More by spinrsx

dalygnus

Maryland

4.05/5  rDev +43.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Great summer beer. Cloudy as to be expected from a wheat beer. The aroma was sweet and lemony. Taste was a fine mix of fruit and wheat. Very light and drinkable. Surprised by the criticism of this brew. I think it hits the target it aimed for. Not intended to complement an evening cigar but hits the spot while floating in the pool.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2012 17:46:34 | More by dalygnus

barnzy78

Illinois

2.15/5  rDev -24%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

12oz bottle, pours a cloudy yellow with a tall, bubbly, white head that holds decent retention, but leaves no lacing on the glass whatsoever. Aromas are lemonade, faint wheat and yeast. Tastes are very one dimensional: lemonade. There are some faint wheat and yeast notes, but the lemons dominate. Mouth-feel is thinner than it should be, considering there's wheat in it. Ample carbonation and goes down smoothly. Overall, it is refreshing for a hot day, but rather bland and more like lemonade than beer. I would not try this one again.

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2012 03:32:57 | More by barnzy78

tobelerone

New Jersey

2.58/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

A somewhat hazy, light yellow colored beer with a smallish white head that dissolves pretty rapidly. Patchy lacing. Very grainy wheat nose with prominent lemon and sweetness. Perhaps a hint of a tart note.

Taste is very much like the nose; a grainy, somewhat unappealing wheat flavor with lots of artificial lemonade flavor and sweetener, becoming particularly noticeable in the swallow and finish. Interestingly the overall effect is bland rather than excessively sweet or lemony tart. Just a generic macro-style beer mixed with watery lemonade.

The body is light and carbonation medium, feels insignificant and not as crisp as I’d like. Never had a shandy before, hope they’re not all this bad. Won’t be back.

Serving type: bottle

06-06-2012 03:48:39 | More by tobelerone