Trifecta

From scenic Vancouver, B.C. comes Trifecta, a hopfenweisse brewed by Parallel 49 Brewing Company. The beer is a 5% number that comes in 473mL cans that feature a lady wearing a hops hat. According to the copy, the beer gets its name because it’s brewed with a trio of hop varieties; however, the identity of the three in question isn’t revealed on the can (a little research on the Parallel 49 website shows that it was Huell Melon, Meridian, and Saphir). Hazy and dull orange-gold, Trifecta pours with a thick layer of lovely white head.

To my nose, the hoppy wheat beer had notes of tropical fruit, yeast, and some banana esters at the back end. The flavour has had more weissebier qualities than I was expecting, with lots of yeast and banana staking out a strong position in the front end. More to my expectations, the back end featured dank, hoppy notes, as well as some stone fruit.

In my limited experience, some hopfenweisses (hopfenweissi?) are closer to one side of the hybrid or the other; however this little ditty seems to straddle the line between a wheat beer and a pale ale with dexterity. It’s a refreshing summer beer, though a bit more booze would have been nice. 

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.