Workhorse Wheat
Grand Teton Brewing Co.

Workhorse WheatWorkhorse Wheat
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From:
Grand Teton Brewing Co.
 
Idaho, United States
Style:
American Pale Wheat Beer
ABV:
4%
Score:
79
Avg:
3.32 | pDev: 12.65%
Reviews:
22
Ratings:
26
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Oct 30, 2013
Added:
Aug 21, 2005
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
Workhorse Wheat is an American-style hefeweizen (literally, yeast-wheat) ale made with Idaho barley and wheat. It is pale in color and light in body, smooth and easy drinking with just a hint of tartness from the wheat. Because is it not filtered, our workhorse wheat is slightly hazy with yeast.

10.4 IBU
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.5 by Marshall_ofmcap from Colorado

Oct 30, 2013
 
Rated: 3 by IDABEERGUY from Idaho

Jun 28, 2013
 
Rated: 2.5 by zenwatts from Minnesota

Jan 17, 2012
 
Rated: 2.5 by rab53 from Washington

Dec 01, 2011
Photo of Bitterbill
Reviewed by Bitterbill from Wyoming

3.33/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
This pours a hazy light golden colour with a 2 finger head of foam.

The smell has some sweet notes, wheat, and a light bit of lemon citrus.

The taste is tasty...wheat, lemon, some bread, and they come together pretty well.

Light bodied with moderate carbonation, this is an easy drinking Pale Wheat Ale. I see they(Grand Teton) have retired it. Ok.
Oct 23, 2010
Photo of GRG1313
Reviewed by GRG1313 from California

3.57/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Pours orange amber with a very thick, big bubbled white head;

Assertive fruity and sweet fresh pear and banana nose; Medium full mouth with pleasant character and nice balance and carbonation;

Flavors are simple toast and pleasant yeast and biscuit. Nothing special but a very acceptable drink. Very drinkable, refreshing, inviting and would likely go with just about any food profile.

Finish is a pleasant one dimensional but nice yeasty white bread.

This is one of those beers that can easily fall through the cracks. Everyone would likely have no problem drinking it and likely enjoying it..but without any "wow" factor. This is a pleasant beer all around and for a "beer geek," the perfect thirst quencher. Not the kind of stuff you're going to take as your "admission" to the tasting you've wanted to go to!

The foregoing having been said, I like this one.
Aug 21, 2010
Photo of KarlHungus
Reviewed by KarlHungus from Minnesota

3.38/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
This beer pours a cloudy orange color. The head is half and inch in height, and recedes slowly into minimal lacing. The aroma has a faint tangy wheat thing going on. However, it is very generic, and boring. The taste is a lot like the aroma. Again, it is the generic taste you find in almost all American Pale Wheat Ales, but at least in this beer it is stronger than most. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with lively carbonation. Overall, this is a decent beer that I could drink again, but probably won't.
Sep 01, 2009
Photo of tempest
Reviewed by tempest from New York

3.16/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Picked up a single from Princeton Liquors in Maple Grove, MN. The label doesn't lie, this beer is smooth and easy-drinking. It's not however, incredibly delicious, and in the over-packed field of wheat beers, that's a real bad thing. There's a mild vanilla candy flavor and a little wheat cracker, clove, and biscuit cookie - but not all at once. Yes it's drinkable, but there's also almost no aroma or aftertaste.
Jul 15, 2009
Photo of beerbrains
Reviewed by beerbrains from Nebraska

3.56/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Received this bottle in mixed 6 pack of beers from the Yellowstone area.

I have to admit I sampled it under aweful conditions. My gf sprinkled some carpet cleaning crap as soon as I cracked open the bottle. The stuff ruined any chance of enjoying the subtle floral auromas I love in wheat beers.

The color is an opaque orange-amber, like an overripe peach. The yeast refuses to let light pass through it.
The head is bright white half inch layer of tight bubbles, very attractive. It disappates quickly leaving no lacing.
However, if left sitting still a steady stream of bubbles rises to the top and recreates a smallish head.

Nose, for me, nonexistant.

Taste very solid, not a lot of citrus or hops going on. Very balanced. I think I'm missing the subtlties due to the "chemical spill" in my living room.

A crisp clean scrubbing mouthfeel leaves my wanting more.

Very good beer even under less than desirable conditions, but that is something I would expext from a quality quaffer. If this were available in my area it would be in my regular rotation.
Jun 25, 2009
Photo of colts9016
Reviewed by colts9016 from Idaho

2.23/5  rDev -32.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
Pour into a Weizen glass at 50 degrees.

Appearance: A dark amber hue with orangish hues and a one finger head. The head has no retention to it and falls like a rock. There is a lot of effervescence in the beer. The clarity of the is fairly clear.

Nose: The wheat aroma in the beer is mild and there is notes of bread and orange with some floral esters.

Taste: A mild wheat flavor bland and uninteresting. There are hints of orange, corn, and floral ester.

Overall: A very unimpressive beer, I don't know what happened but the flavors are dull and unresponsive. The Appearance of the beer lack a whole lot. The mouth feel is carbonated and flat. The finish is slightly bitter and funky. Not at all what I would have expected.
Jan 30, 2009
Photo of shadow1961
Reviewed by shadow1961 from Minnesota

3/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Grand Teton Workhorse Wheat Ale pours a couple
fingers of stiff foam over an orangey brew. Carbonation
is extremely active, and the nose is wheat malt, ale yeast,
a bit of fruitiness. The flavor is pretty simple- soft wheat
malt, wheat hulls, and the tiniest burr of some kind of hop
off the back. Mouthfeel is light- pretty much what you would
expect. This is a pretty standard American Wheat Ale- the
kind every brewery cranks out. If you want one that's inoffensive
and easy drinking with your pizza- and this is in your area- go for
it.
Aug 11, 2008
Photo of pokesbeerdude
Reviewed by pokesbeerdude from Colorado

4.01/5  rDev +20.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
This one had been hanging out in the fridge for a while, figured I might review it.

A: First half of the beer poured crystal clear, the yeast really settled in this bottle. After swirling the beer, poured the rest out and that beautiful cloudyness appeared. Cloudy gold, a little dark, approaching a light amber color, small white head, didn't last long.

S: Very malty, bready, yeasty, not a whole lot going on.

T: Light lemon taste mingles well with the malt, underlying sweetness that is pretty refreshing. No hop flavors come through for me, and no bitterness.

M: Nice balance in the mouth, crisp and refreshing. The bite is more towards the back of my toungue, and I like that.

D: Very drinkable beer, especially in the summer, not the best for January but a sessionable beer. Low alcohol, good taste, and is really thirst quenching.
Jan 25, 2008
Photo of JohnGalt1
Reviewed by JohnGalt1 from Idaho

3.37/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
12oz from the Coop for about $1.40.. shared with Brenda, mine from my New Belgium snifter.

Short lasting head and minimal lacing atop a hazy golden brew.

Aroma is of course wheat and pale malts.. slight spicy hoppiness.

Good body for the style and sorta creamy carbonation. Wheat and husky pale malts with only a touch of spicy hop flavor.. the brew leans towards the malts.

I don't know what else to say; I don't even try to pretend to enjoy American wheats... just not my thing. It is good for its style and I like Workhorse more than Widmer Hefe, but that's not saying much... pretty Plain Jane. If it was 100 degrees out and I was working in the yard, it would probably be refreshing enough to make me want a Gatorade or an IPA.
Jan 11, 2008
Photo of rkuhnel
Reviewed by rkuhnel from California

3/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
12 oz bottle from BevMo in Sacramento this was $7.00 a six pack. Poured light amber with a small white head and almost no lacing. Nose was of light malt and some hops. Mouthfeel was light, and flavor contains citrus. Drinkable enough but pretty ordinary.
Nov 22, 2007
Photo of BuckeyeNation
Reviewed by BuckeyeNation from Iowa

3.45/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Faintly foggy amber with an orange peel blush. The final pour delivers so much yeast that light doesn't stand a chance. The cap is somewhere between beige and pale lemon, has a quality look about it and is no slouch when it comes to glass coverage. Even though nothing really stands out about the appearance, this is a pretty good looking wheat ale.

I always wonder whether 'wheat ale' means hefe weizen (banana and clove) or American pale wheat. Unfortunately, one can't always trust the style noted above. In this case, it's right on the money. The beer smells fresh and wheaty, with enough of a hop presence to put it into the 'above average' category with ease.

Workhorse Wheat Ale is pretty good beer that is... uh... workman-like. In other words, it's solid and dependable without being flashy in the least. I've always thought that beer of this style needs tons of hops (see Gumballhead) to be really good. This one sticks to the tried and true.

The maltiness is untoasted and provides at least as much sweetness as tartness. Too bad there isn't as much hoppinesss (Mt. Hood and Liberty) as is present in the nose. A hint of spicy bitterness keeps things from being too bland; always a danger in a pale wheat ale.

The mouthfeel is the only disappointing characteristic and it isn't all that bad. It's a fraction too light and, therefore, can't hold onto the smooth softness that is present when beer first hits tongue. More bubbles might have helped, it's hard to say.

I've been a fan of Grand Teton ever since trading for Bitch Creek ESB and Sweetwater IPA. Workhorse Wheat isn't in their league, but that probably has everything to do with my love of hoppy beer and my ambivalence about pale wheat ales. This is a pretty good all-rounder and would probably hit the spot on a hot day. However, there's really nothing here to get worked up about.
Sep 30, 2007
Photo of jwc215
Reviewed by jwc215 from Arizona

3.85/5  rDev +16%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Freshness date label on bottle, but no month notched:

Pours clouded deep orangish gold with a thin head that slowly descends to a lasting thin swirl.

The smell is of tangy wheat with fruity undertones.

The taste is of wheat, sweet bread, and light nectarine/orange fruitiness in the back. Finishes crisp with a wheat tang.

The body is appropriately light for the style, but not watery or thin. Smooth and crisp.

This is a nice summer thirst-quencher with more flavor than many others of the style.

Thanks to jcwattsrugger for bringing this back from his trip!
Jun 22, 2007
Photo of briman
Reviewed by briman from Texas

3.22/5  rDev -3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Served from bottle into standard pint glass.

Pours a hazy golden straw color. About a 1/4 inch off-white head, average retention, some lacing.

Aroma is wheat, with maybe a touch of lemon.

Flavor is bready wheat, fairly mild with maybe a hint of fruit but not much. Finishes a little grainy, with an ever so slight hop bitterness.

Medium body, somewhat low carbonation. Balance seems ok. Pretty average, certainly fine for a lighter beer on a hot day, but ultimately not terrible compelling.
Apr 15, 2007
Photo of JohnnyM2002
Reviewed by JohnnyM2002 from Maryland

3.26/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Sampled from a 12 oz bottle, poured into a chalice at 50 degrees. Picked up in a trade from JohnGalt1 - thanks!!!

A - Pours a hazy golden color with a small and quick-lasting head. No retention.

S - Not fond of the aroma eminating from the glass. Almost a stale smell with a grassy backdrop. Thankfully a weak aroma.

T - The displeasing aroma dissipates and a good wheat flavor comes through. A little bitterness with the crisp finish.

M - Medium-to-thin body with little carbonation Crisp finish, though.

D - Not a bad representation of an APWA. I can't say I'd run out to get another, though.
Dec 30, 2006
Photo of IntriqKen
Reviewed by IntriqKen from California

3.12/5  rDev -6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours a medium golden yellow with a white head that seems to melt a little too quickly for a wheat, however does retain a white ring of lacing.
Aroma is light fruit...pears....lemon and white bread.
Taste is light fruit giving way to grainy white pepper spiciness and finishing with a dry biscuit flavor.
Refreshing but a little heavier than I would expect for a summer cooler or lawnmower brew.
Oct 29, 2006
Photo of Mebuzzard
Reviewed by Mebuzzard from Colorado

3.65/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pours a 'glowing' yellow/amber color with a fluffy head. Some lacing, lingering.
Good smell of pear, lemon, biscuit and malt. Refreshing.
Taste started with lemon and pear, then the biscuit and wheat took over. Some sweetness and a bit of bite at the end. Not a bad brew, but a bit 'un-thin' for summer drinking.
Sep 07, 2006
Workhorse Wheat from Grand Teton Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 79 out of 100 with 26 ratings