7.6

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5

2006 bottle consumed on 8/11/06.
Mountains of bottle conditioned/unfiltered white head rise up, plenty of sediment left behind and a brilliant peach-golden body, still quite light despite the haziness. Massive lacing all down the glass and perfect retention until the end.
Strong hops in the nose, though probably at much higher levels than traditional, are still mostly to-style (a bit more lemon-orange due to the Magnum addition, but minimal due to the use as a bittering hop), and are very welcome in a style that sometimes I think needs relief from the heavy wheat and yeast. Herbal/grassy, with lemon tints and a fair amount of bubble gum softness, as it proceeds. Definitely can find the stronger, sweeter malts in there as well, as it’s got a nice rich, honey and almost caramel-like nose. Banana is almost absent as is clove, though wheat adds a fair sourness.
The flavor is definitely well-done, though the attenuation could possibly stand to be higher, as there is a good deal of sweet, sticky, nearly syrupy, honey malted flavor. The hops cut it nicely, but with the creamy-smooth wheat palate, it almost proves too much for what should be a crisp, drinkable style. Stlil, the finish is alive with fruit esters, hops and dry wheat. Certainly won’t find an ounce of wateriness/thinning here and the carbonation level is perfect and zesty. A successfully innovative take on the style.
I feel justified in constantly saying that Buzzards Bay beers are fantastic except for the usual heavy filtration. The lack of that here justifies my thoughts that these guys can brew, and brew well. Hope to see some more unfiltered stuff soon.