Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Days of the Beer, July 2

The beer for today is Harpoon UFO Hefeweizen.

On July 2, 1947, an object that the Army Air force later said was a weather balloon crashed near Roswell, New Mexico. Eyewitness accounts gave rise to speculation it might have been an alien spacecraft. The Air Force started recovery of the material on July 7. On July 8, the Roswell Army Air field issued a press release stating that they had recovered a "flying disc" from a ranch. Later that day, the commanding general stated that they had recovered a weather balloon.

The whole incident was mostly ignored for about 30 years, until Stanton Friedman interviews a guy who was involved in the recovery, who claimed there was a coverup.

As for the beer, according to the brewery,

UFO Hefeweizen is an American unfiltered wheat beer. Perhaps UFO’s initial sensory perception is also its most prominent: a cloudy golden color and a dense, frothy head. The yeast, which has not been filtered out, accounts for the cloudiness of UFO. Wheat malt tends to create a larger head than barley malt, the cereal grain most often used in brewing. When served in a traditional wheat beer glass with a lemon, UFO presents an appealing and distinctive visual image.

The aroma has a faint but clear citrus-like character. This is produced by the special yeast and accounts for the Bavarian tradition of serving hefeweizens with a lemon. The lemon accentuates the yeast’s fruity, tart fragrance. UFO has a soft mouthfeel and a refreshing, light body. The wheat malts and subtle hopping give the beer a mild, delicate flavor. UFO has a clean finish. Unlike some imported hefeweizens, UFO does not have the spicy, tropical flavors typical of European-brewed style.

The overall character is a cloudy appearance with a citrus-like aroma, light body, and clean finish. Serve with a lemon.

Harpoon is out of Boston. I had their UFO Raspberry Hefeweizen on Oct. 4, 2007.

So bust out your conspiracy theories, clean off your governmental coverup stories, and toss back a Harpoon UFO Hefeweizen.

(not my picture)

No comments: