Coronado Brewing Co. -- Orange Avenue Wit

Coronado Brewing Co.'s Orange Avenue Wit is an ale, "brewed with wheat, coriander, California orange peel and local [CA] orange blossom honey."

5.2% ABV and 10ish IBU's

Review:

Appearance: This light ale pours a nice straw color with a pure white head. It is slightly hazy, but in amounts appropriate for a wheat based beer.

Aroma: Orange and wheat, orange peel, sweetness from honey or malts or both.

Taste: Slightly sour orange flavor. Orange peel with earthiness that is well balanced and has a tart finish. Hints of coriander spice at the very end. 

Mouthfeel: Soft and creamy, with citrus rind (not the pith) oiliness, and a slightly waxy feel on the palate. 

(Side Note: Other witbiers I've reviewed can be seen here, here, and here.)

Overall:

This is a pretty good fruit beer. If I was a fruit beer lover I'd buy this beer regularly. North Coast makes a Tangerine Wheat beer that is somewhat similar to this beer but sweeter, and it too is a good beer. However, I'm going to deduct a couple of points because the label says that this is a "Wit" and the flavors of spice should be more pronounced in a Wit. They should probably just call it a wheat beer. 

Grade: A-

Barrel Man says,

"SD beer w/o hop flavor?

What's next?!"

(Bottle Purchased at Liquor Collection.)

Coronado Brewing Co. -- Islander IPA

 

Coronado Brewing Co's Islander IPA, "sweeps the senses with its intense hop bitterness, complex flavors and aromas." 

7% ABV and a healthy dose of IBU's

Review: 

Appearance: Hazy copper color with a 3/4 inch head that quickly disappears. The haze may indicate a high level of dry hopping. 

Aroma: Citrus hop! Slight DMS smell.

Taste: Nice BIG hop attack. Sweet, lemon/grapefruit, and orange flavor hops are all present and accounted for. The hops are a little sour late in the taste.

Mouthfeel: Medium carbonation. Medium body.

Finish: Hoppy.

(Side note: Coronado also makes an 8.5% IPA that is called Idiot IPA.)

Overall:
In true San Diego style, this beer immediately hits you with big hop flavors... and then keeps coming with more and more hops. The hops were so intense that I could barely perceive any malt flavor at all -- it was as if they were just there for color and body. This is a hop lover's beer!

Grade: A

Barrel Man says: 
"Three cheers for
San Diego!"

(This bottle purchased at Liquor Collection)