Baltika #8 Wheat - Baltika Breweries

puboflyons

New Hampshire

3.38/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

From the 25 fl. oz. bottle marked 07.0812-07:24/07.0813-5W. Sampled on March 31, 2013.

The color is a slightly cloudy yellow with a decent white head that eventually settles down.

The aroma is quite distinct with wheat along with an apple kind of ester. Even someone who is not a regular craft beer drinker would pick this up.

The body is light to about medium with a creamy texture.

Like the aroma the taste has a good dose of wheat malts and apple along with a thin twist of lemon to give it a summery sensation. The hops do not linger much but they offset the other qualities. Not a high quality wheat beer but far ahead of what Baltika normally has to offer.

Serving type: bottle

03-31-2013 20:37:26 | More by puboflyons

Pegasus

Texas

3.54/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Slightly hazy medium golden in color, with a large, and dense white head, which retains quite well. The lacing is thick and coats the glass walls.

Aroma: Lots of wheat bread, cloves, and bananas. In my opinion, it could easily be mistaken for a German-brewed Hefeweizen.

Taste:Opens with slightly sweet, white bread flavors, soon followed by classic ripe bananas and cloves. These flavors carry ell throughout the taste, with the bread notes more prominent towards the end of the taste. Finishes with a mild, lingering sweetness, and banana esters.

Mouth feel: A touch thin, with slightly spritzy carbonation, a bit of fullness would be most welcome.

Drinkability/notes: Quite nice, and a bargain at $2.19 for a half-liter bottle.

Presentation: Packaged in a 16.9 ounce brown glas bottle with a pry-off crown, served in a New Belgium Brewing chalice.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2013 02:08:32 | More by Pegasus

UCLABrewN84

California

3.58/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottled 2/29/12. Best before 2/28/12.

Pours a murky light yellow-orange with a super foamy off-white head that settles to a thick cap on top of the beer. Small patches of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, wheat, spices, yeast, and banana. Taste is much the same with a slight tartness in the flavor. There is a mild spice bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good beer and definitely the best of the Baltika "#" beers I have had so far.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2012 02:10:38 | More by UCLABrewN84

JMad

Texas

3.58/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Looks Great, pours a ver cloudy, dark straw color with a tall foamy white head. Smells a little tangy with grass and lemon and hints of banana and clove. The taste is smooth and balanced, wheat flavor, slightly tangy with a hint of lemon and again hints of banana and clove, not as much banana and clove as it's German and Belgian counterparts. Light with moderate carbonation, very smooth, could have had more carbonation. This is a solid wheat beer, it's nothing super special but it is satisfying.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2012 22:22:29 | More by JMad

rangerred

Tennessee

2.58/5  rDev -28.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

500ml bottle into a weizen glass.

Pours a hazy brownish-orange with a thick foamy head. Head retention is ok but there is absolutely no lacing at all.

Aroma is fairly straight forward for a hefeweizen. Plenty of banana and cloves along with a pleasant yeasty-ness.

The flavor is where things go a bit awry. It all starts out good with the typical hefe flavors you would expect: banana, clove, and yeast. However these flavors tend to be pretty weak and do not last. The mouthfeel is very watery and not at all full and smooth like I expect a wheat beer to be. The finish is pretty sticky which is kind of odd for a beer lacking mouthfeel.

Overall, a decent attempt but it just doesn't quite come together.

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 22:28:14 | More by rangerred

TheSixthRing

California

3.93/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance - Pours a hazy straw yellow tih a thick, white 3 finger head, below average retention, and a resulting lace that's sparse clinging mostly to the sides.

Smell - Mostly banana with hints of diacetyl hitting the nose. Faint spice.

Taste - All the flavors of a great hefe are here - banana, wheat, bubblegum and clove spice, and they all come through with great balance from start to finish. Hints of buttery diacetyl near the finish.

Mouthfeel - Light to medium body, with a soft carbonation. Goes down with a buttery smoothness.

Overall - This is a really good hefe. Great all-around balance. One I'm sure I'll have to revisit at some point in time.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2012 04:05:24 | More by TheSixthRing

Zodijackyl

Connecticut

4.15/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours a thick, cloudy, dull gold with a rich white head. Smells like bananas and wheat.

It has a very smooth wheat taste, sweetened a bit by something that tastes a bit like honey. The yeast adds to the creamy feel and taste. There's some banana flavor from the yeast, and with a touch of dark spices, it's almost like light banana bread. Drinks very smoothly. Overall, a solid, very drinkable beer.

Serving type: bottle

07-15-2012 00:21:39 | More by Zodijackyl

chinchill

South Carolina

2.88/5  rDev -19.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

30 ml bottle apparently dated Feb. 2011. Most sediment added.

Pours with a small whitish head that quickly disappears and leaves no lacing. rather clear amber-copper tone.

Has a very sweet and fruity aroma with a clear suggestion of banana and clove. Beyond these it is also yeasty. These aromas also appear in the taste, including the rather high sweetness, along with allspice, apple juice and wheat.

Light body; crisp with medium carbonation; semi-dry.

O: Clearly appropriate for style but I find this style mostly unappealing. Nonetheless, I did find this to be moderately refreshing and drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2012 02:02:17 | More by chinchill

thecheapies

Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Baltika #8 in a Penn Weizen glass. Orange-yellow with a good bit of swampy haze. A flat, but dense off-white capper crowns the beer. Gotta love the way ANY hefe looks in one o’these weizen glasses. 3.5

Rather clean aroma with lemon, crusty bread, light hops, and slight banana character. Not a big spice character thus far, but there’s something there in the line of clove. 3.5

Tangy wheat flavor with some barely ripe banana, a little orange, and some menthol/minty hops. A little attenuated, but a nice spice character in the flavor. Some peppercorn and grains of paradise. That banana shows up in the finish with a touch of noble hops and a minerally spring water character. I must say that this is a refreshing brew. 4.0

A little thin-bodied, and it could be a little smoother, but a nice carbonation evens the keel. Very comparable with the German hefes. 3.5

Can I just say that this is an absolute WINNER for $2.29 a bottle? An inexpensive hefeweizen that delivers. The best Russian hefe, for sure. It’s in your budget, so pick one up. 3.5

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2012 01:51:39 | More by thecheapies

beerme343

Idaho

2.93/5  rDev -18.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Sampled the Baltika Wheat out of a 16.9 oz. bottle poured into a standard pint glass.

Fine white bubbles formed a medium sized head that did not last very long. The beer is a hazy golden color.

There is the prominent banana smell to this beer typical of most European Hefeweizen but not much else stands out.

Banana comes through on the palate and there is a little tropical fruit - possibly papaya evident also. A touch of spice comes through as well.

The finish is smooth but a little watered down for a hefeweizen. Not overly impressed with the #8.

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2012 08:09:45 | More by beerme343

GONZALOYANNA

Spain

3.13/5  rDev -12.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

500ml bottle. Weizen glass.Enjoyed on mar´12.Pale gold in color.Chill haze.Off white crown.Fairly well retention leaving some spots & rings.Floral & fruity to the nose.Bread crust,hints of honey & orange hues complete the aromatic profile.Fruity upfront,citric notes.Mildy malty flavor. Sparkling, slightly spicy mouthfeel.Medium body,soft carbonation.Watery in the middle.Orange zest & subtle hoppy bitter finish.Refreshing.Easy drinkability.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2012 13:14:22 | More by GONZALOYANNA

dbrauneis

New Jersey

3.38/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Production Date: 08-08-11
Best By: 080-08-12

A: Pours a hazy dark golden yellow in color with a two finger tall foamy white head. The head reduces to about a quarter finger tall head covering the entire beer over time but is retained throughout. Moderate lacing is observed.

S: Not as pleasant an aroma as I usually associate with the style, it is a little harsh but there are notes of grains, banana, and clove.

T: Slightly sweeter than I expected, this beer had notes of banana, clove, fruitiness, and a grassy hop aftertaste.

M: Light to medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation.

O: My first review of a Russian beer and it was enjoyable. I personally feel that Hefeweizen is a very easy to drink beer and this example is no different than the many others. While not the strongest Hefeweizen offering I have sampled, still good. I'll be interested to try some other offerings from this brewery.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2012 22:02:24 | More by dbrauneis

mrfrancis

Kentucky

2.98/5  rDev -17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A: Pours a hazy gold with a pillowy white head that gradually recedes into a thin, creamy mousse.

S: Harsh aromas of grain and minerals initially dominate the nose, but after a couple of seconds, aromas of yeast, spices, and banana become noticeable.

T: A sweet, mellow entry presents notes of cream, vanilla, bubblegum, minerals, overripe banana, wheat toast, butter, and clove. There is also a fine, grassy hop backtaste present that is most noticeable around mid-palate. The finish is clipped and mellow with notes of bubblegum and banana.

M: On the lighter side of medium in body and quite smooth. Unfortunately, the carbonation is a bit weak after the entry, rendering this beer thinner and more watery than it should be.

O: As is, this is a mediocre hefeweizen, but it clearly has the potential to be more than that. All of the components are there, but the final product is just a bit too muddled and bland to really be a winner.

Serving type: bottle

02-16-2012 13:27:17 | More by mrfrancis

gtermi

Texas

3.45/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a cloudy gold body with three finger thick head. The head slowly fades and leaves a bit of lace on the glass. Tons of carbonation in this beer.

S: Lots of sweet fruit and I assume it is Belgian Yeast.

T: Lots of Belgian Yeast, fruity flavors and some nice malt. Its not bad, but nothing special.

M: Lots of carbonation and crispness. Burns on the back of the throat and tongue.

O: Nothing too special, but not bad either. The flavors and smell are nice, but the mouthfeel just takes it down a bit.

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2012 05:02:44 | More by gtermi

RonaldTheriot

Louisiana

3.88/5  rDev +8.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Baltika no. 8 Wheat Ale has a very thick, fluffy, egg-shell-colored head and a cloudy golden appearance, with minimal lacing. The aroma is grain husk with the head, but once this goes away, more of the banana and spice is detected. The flavor is subtle, but banana, coriander, white wheat bread, sugar, and spices are present. Mouthfeel is heavy, yet Baltika no. 8 Wheat Ale finishes pretty crisp, refreshing, and easy drinking. This is a pretty good beer. It improved as it warmed and I drank it down.

RJT

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 16:46:24 | More by RonaldTheriot

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

3.38/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

This will be (at least one of) my entry/entries for New Beer Sunday (Week 360) and I am kind of excited to tick it off. I have an affinity for Russian beers ever since I got on the Kvass Kick, Kamarade, and while I drank a LOT of #9 with Stosh, the owner of the Bloomfield Bridge Tavern, during his lifetime, I kind of glossed over all of the other numbers. It's kind of a shame, since #1 seems to be retired and I cannot find #2 for looking.

OK, I'll cop to not being on top of my game from the outset with this one. The label reads "Wheat Ale" and this website identifies it as a Hefeweizen, so what does CAPT Clever do? He (I) pops the cap and begins to pour. Gee, it looks more like a Kristalweizen so maybe I should agitate what remains in the bottle ... Beer fountain time, baby! Beer all over the counter, a panic pour, jeez-o man, what hath I wrought?

Well, for one thing, there was no longer any doubt that it was a Hefe. The kitchen smelled like I was baking banana bread. I had a dense cap of a finger of bone-white head with excellent retention. The color was a muddy orange-yellow, like fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice. Nose, as previously alluded to, was VERY banana. Mouthfeel was a little thin for the style, but the taste managed to balance the banana with some clove, which I like. Just as many clamor for "More Cowbell", I say "More clove esters, please!" Finish was tasty enough and it was not cloyingly sweet like some hefes that I have drank in the past. Once more, you cannot really beat the Baltika lineup at its price point. Call it worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 16:05:44 | More by woodychandler

BierStein711

Illinois

2.88/5  rDev -19.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Bottle poured into weizen glass

Three finger head: looks like a weissbier

Smells of cloves, ripe fruit, especially bananas

T: Just alcohol

M: Watery and weak

Overall: I'm glad I tried one of Russia's beers, but frankly I don't ever see myself offering this to anyone for something refreshing. This beer is definitely one that would be better if the taste was more complex and if it felt like an ale not a water.

I'll probably not have this again.

Serving type: bottle

12-21-2011 17:24:16 | More by BierStein711

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

2.55/5  rDev -29%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

Review from BeerAdvocate Magazine Issue #54 (July 2011):

Muddled light amber beige color, with a decent lacing on top. Strong overripe fruit, yeast, wet bread and very faint cheap wine ... not sure where this beer is going, but the nose is way out there. Smooth and creamy with a medium- size body. Some breadiness but the fruitiness takes over; vinous with nearly rotten fruit and an odd warming alcohol. A chore to drink, this beer needs to be cleaned up, as the potential is there.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2011 02:23:09 | More by BeerAdvocate

falloutsnow

Illinois

3.63/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle purchased from Hyvee in West Omaha, NE
Produced on 6/11/2011, best by 6/12/2012(?).
Poured into a Schell's weizen glass.

Beer has, as expected, a huge off-white head made up of small and medium-sized bubbles. Declines over a minute or two to a ring around the glass. Leaves very minimal lacing on glass sides. Body is a dark gld in color when away from the light; close to a point source, it's a cloudy yellow. Murky, as expected, from the yeast. Carbonation noticeable, despite the haze, and quite active.

Aroma of wheat and barley malts fairly dominant, along with less noticeable banana, apple, and slight yeast. It was necessary to dig for the less obvious components of this beer; not particularly robust.

Taste opens with wheat and barley malt flavors and sweetness, quickly moving to extra sweet bubblegum, banana esters, coriander, and clove. Closes with characteristic tartness and applesauce flavors. Lingering aftertaste of cider or sweet, tart, white wine. Good taste: a little too sweet, a little lacking on the non-estery components, but generally quite tasty.

Medium-bodied, but carbonation makes this slightly prickly on the initial sip; by mid-taste, carbonation has lessened, giving this a smoother mouthfeel overall. Finish is semi-dry.

This comes across as a solid middle-tier hefeweizen. Less complex than Weihenstephaner, Ayinger, etc., but with plenty of traditional German wheat beer flavors, this is one that's worthy of partaking of.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2011 06:39:11 | More by falloutsnow

Nerudamann

Arizona

3.4/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bottle into a stein glass since I don't have a Weizen glass.

Look - very pale golden color, a little murky, with decent carbonation and about two fingers' worth of frothy white foam that dissipates somewhat slowly.

Smell - somewhat typical wheat smell, but it seems a little watered down maybe.

Taste - the taste reflects a lot more of a wheat taste than the smell does. That almost pungeant taste hits right before the middle of the tasting, almost right away, with a fade off to a very minimal aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - pretty well balanced, but leans just a touch on the side of wateriness.

Overall - Not terribly interesting to taste, but not at all bad either.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2011 02:03:36 | More by Nerudamann

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

4.15/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 16.9oz bottle into a US tumbler glass.

A: The beer is a bright gold color, with a large white head that fades slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains wheat, light caramelized malts, bananas, some citrus and a touch of hops.

T: The taste starts out bready flavors of wheat and a hearty but not too heavy malt character. Then there are some mildly sweet flavors of bananas, citrus and a little bit spice. The hops presence is mild but complementary and creates a good balance. The after-taste is slightly bready and slightly sweet.

M: Crisp and very smooth, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is clean.

D: Very tasty, goes down very easily, not too filling, mild kick, very good representation of style, this is a nice flavorful and inexpensive beer to pound down for a while if you’re in the mood for the style.

Serving type: bottle

11-05-2011 22:43:14 | More by TheManiacalOne

Bookseeb

Washington

3.15/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Appearance has a natural wheat color thats cloudy having a thick head thats slow to dissipate leaving a shreaded curtain of lace. Smell of wheat, yeast, light spice with background malt all thats been hanging around in storage. taste again of the aroma, but not having the clove and banana as in other Euro hefe's. Mouthfeel is light with good carbonation. Not a bad wheat beer, just not complex as others.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2011 23:00:13 | More by Bookseeb

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

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

This beer poured out as a hazy golden yellow color with a fluffy white head on top. So far this brew looks much like a traditional Hefeweizen. The smell of the beer was of sweet grains and wheat. The taste of the beer was smooth and grainy also. The mouthfeel was lightly carbonated with a light body to it. Overall this brew wasn't too bad.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2011 20:55:02 | More by Knapp85

cbutova

Massachusetts

3.35/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Yet another one from the numbered Baltika series, see how this goes.

A- Hazy pale yellow body into a Weizen glass with an extremely large white head, silky and creamy texture. Retention is pretty much infinite. Somehow lacks a significant amount of lace.

S- Yeast and citrus. Mostly a German yeast aroma with banana, clove, spice and bread. Also citrus zest and floral.

T- Follows the nose. A good clove, banana and German yeast influence. It does not dominate but is flavorful. Also wheat, bread, citrus and floral hops. Somewhat buttery sweet aspect.

MF- Light body with somewhat lower carbonation than I am used to in the style. Finishes sweet and somewhat bitter.

Something about the sweetness and buttery feel sort of throws me off. It almost isn't as crisp as most good Hefeweizens. Still a decent brew.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2011 01:12:34 | More by cbutova

Sorcerer

United Kingdom (England)

3.6/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

0.5 litre bottle poured into same size hefe glass.

Foamy head forced an even slower pour, and a pause to prevent overflow. Swilled the bottle while waiting for the head to subside. Final pour yielded a generous sediment to the hazy faded school-bus yellow brew.

Looks right. Head dissipated quickly and left no lace.

Smells okay, almost good. It would be interesting to make a side by side comparison with some baseline hefe. Can a hefe smell good? Of course it can.

Tastes good. My mouth did not reject it anyway. There's a lot going on in there. Crackers, orange peel, coriander, some banana and bubble gum, hidden alcohol...but

Mouthfeel is a tad watery. Not that that is a bad thing mind you, if it was a very hot day and this was very cold beer, it would be excellent. It drinks easily. Moderate to low carbonation (after the head-pour settled down) allows the flavors to come forward in the mouth. Good to drink fast or slow!

Overall I find myself quite surprised with this one! I was expecting to be disappointed in flavor. Favourable result indicates future refreshment is necessary. A test against some baseline hefeweisen will occur in the near future I am absolutely certain.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2011 00:09:01 | More by Sorcerer