Leinenkugel's BeerGarten Tart Review

Name: Leinenkugel's Beergarten Tart
Style: Berliner Weiss
ABV: 4.8%
IBUs: N/A

I'm really not quite what to say here, but Leinenkugel's has made a sour beer.....Ok, more specifically a Berliner Weiss and I'm not going to lie, this wasn't one of the styles of beer that I would expect from the brewery. Then again, they've been releasing a more diverse range of beer styles over the past year or two, so this was probably a long time coming.

Anyways, what we have is BeerGarten Tart, which as you already know, is a Berliner Weiss. This is a style that I'm honestly not terribly familiar with, having only had maybe two from Bell's and New Glarus respectively.

Appearance - Mildly hazy and very pale yellow color with a high amount of carbonation. The head is pretty thin for the most past but has some good retention and the lacing isn't half bad either.

Aroma - Malted wheat and mild sour notes with some barley and some lemongrass. Also getting some mild floral hoppiness and pilsner malts in here as well.

Taste - Moderate lemon tartness with some malted wheat towards the middle and back, while I'm getting some pilsner and pale maltiness towards the middle and back while the floral hoppiness and barley notes in the back make up most of the back end of the palate. The aftertaste is pretty dry, save for some light barley notes.

Like I said before, Berliner Weiss beers are not a style that I'm familiar with, so I'm taking a stab in the dark when I say: I liked this. It's well balanced and not terribly sour while providing just enough sour zing without being overpowering. If you're looking for a good beer to test the "sour beer" waters with, this is definitely at the top of the list.

Leinenkugel's BeerGarten Tart - 8/10