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From fruity German hefeweizens to citrusy Belgian witbiers and refreshingly tart Berliner weisse, here’s how to tell the world’s most popular wheat beers apart, and the best bottles to try this season.
While barley is the most common base grain for beer, it’s not the only one. Wheat is also a popular choice. A broad term, “wheat beer” comprises selections typically top-fermented with ale yeast and made with 30–70% malted or unmalted wheat.
Wheat, which lacks barley’s outer husk, is harder to filter out during the brewing process. That, combined with the grain’s higher protein content, has historically led wheat beers to be hazier and rounder than other pours.
Despite today’s filtration techniques, wheat beers have mostly kept this unfiltered character, which offers a richness and aromatic yeastiness not often found in other styles.
Wheat beers can be brewed strong. Canada’s Don de Dieu imperial wheat ale, made by Unibroue, is 9% alcohol-by-volume (ABV), for example. But most contain low to moderate alcohol levels.
Fragrant hefeweizen, botanical witbier, and tart Berliner weisse are perfect for summer sipping. Here’s a rundown of these three classic wheat beer styles, with some standouts to sample this season.
Hefeweizen
Southern Germany is home to many wonderful wheat beer styles. There’s Rote Weisse, or red wheat, made with Franconia’s famous red malt by Hausbrauerei Altstadthof in Nuremberg; dark and smooth Schwarze Weisse, or dark wheat, from Munich’s Hofbräu; and Vitus, a robust wheat bock from the world’s oldest operating brewery, Weihenstephaner.
But hefeweizen, driven as much by its expressive yeast in suspension as by its high proportion of wheat, is Germany’s most popular wheat beer. The hazy, mild yet aromatic icon is especially beloved at breakfast in Bavaria, when it’s served traditionally alongside boiled white sausage and a fresh-baked soft pretzel.
Three hefeweizens to try
Ayinger Bräuweisse (Germany)
Ayinger Privatbrauerei has been family-run for more than 140 years in the charming village of Aying, itself worth a day trip or overnight stay in the Brauereigasthof Hotel Aying, though the company also has a pub in nearby Munich. The brewery’s top-fermented wheat beer is a terrific example of the delicately spicy and effervescent style. It earned the Superior Taste award from the International Taste Institute in Brussels, and the gold medal from the European Beer Star.
Karl Strauss Windansea Wheat (California)
German-inspired Karl Strauss Brewing Company, San Diego’s first brewery, offers a great example of the Bavarian style. Winner of a gold medal at the 2026 World Beer Cup, Windansea Wheat is named for an iconic beach in nearby La Jolla. The unfiltered beer has pleasing aromas of banana and clove, as well as hints of bubble gum and vanilla from the esters and phenols provided by hefeweizen yeast.
Grimm Weisse (New York)
Brooklyn-based Grimm Ales has won multiple gold medals at the New York State Craft Beer Competition with its double-decocted Bavarian-style Grimm Weisse. The beer is can-conditioned to four volumes of carbonation for a classic, spritzy quaff. Expect plush notes of citrus, banana, and clove.
Related: Why Summer Is Hefeweizen and Witbier Season
Witbier
Mainly brewed in Belgium and the Netherlands, witbier is often seasoned with hops, but also adjuncts like coriander and orange peel. It’s sometimes garnished with a wedge of orange or lemon. A widely available example of the Belgian witbier style is Blue Moon, from Canadian American giant Molson Coors.
Three witbiers to try
Hoegaarden White (Belgium)
First brewed in 1445 by monks in Hoegaarden’s namesake village using foreign ingredients like orange peel and coriander, this unfiltered 4.9% ABV wheat beer now belongs to the Belgian American conglomerate AB InBev.
Allagash White (Maine)
When Allagash Brewing Company founder Rob Tod began to peddle Allagash White in 1995, buyers were skeptical of the cloudy beer. But the luminous, zesty Belgian-style wheat beer, brewed with an aromatic blend of spices that include coriander and Curaçao orange peel, quickly won over palates. Its popularity was aided by how well it pairs with Maine seafood. Today, the company’s flagship beer has a loyal following and a hefty collection of gold medals from competitions that include the World Beer Cup, Great American Beer Festival, and European Beer Star.
Breakside White (Oregon)
A gold medalist at the North American Beer Awards and the Australian International Beer Awards, Breakside Brewery’s Breakside White is gently spiced with coriander, bitter orange, and sweet tangerine. These flavors complement spicy hop and peppery yeast notes.
Berliner Weisse
This is a relatively low-alcohol, lightly hopped beer style with tart fruity notes and sometimes a gentle funk from a mixed fermentation of yeast and lactic acid-producing bacteria. Berliner weisse dates to the 16th century, and it was particularly popular in Berlin during the early 1900s. A century later, it gained fans across the U.S., where it has become a sour standby.
Related: Berliner Weisse 101: The Funky, Fruity Beer Every Sour Lover Should Know
Three Berliner weisse to try
Berliner Kindl Weisse (Germany)
This is one of the few examples of Berliner weisse still produced in its namesake city. The tart stalwart is sweetened in the glass traditionally with a squirt of fruity or herby syrup, especially raspberry or woodruff flavors. Berliner Kindl, like many modern Berliner weisse producers, builds these flavors directly into its Himbeere and Waldmeister variations. However, some bars will still doctor up “Das Original” to order.
Lock 15 Twenty-Hour Berliner Wiesse (Ohio)
Soured with lacto-bacteria for 20 hours, the Twenty-Hour Berliner Wiesse from Ohio’s Lock 15 Brewing Company comes in two classic flavors, Woodruff and Raspberry, for sweet-tart balance.
Aslan Disco Lemonade (Washington)
Aslan Brewing’s organic Disco Lemonade is tangy and bright, earning accolades from the World Beer Cup, Great American Beer Festival, and Washington Beer Awards. Available seasonally April through September, it’s great on its own or with a splash of rotating housemade syrups at Aslan locations in Seattle and Bellingham, Washington.
Read the original article on Food & Wine
