Hitachino Nest White Ale…worth the hefty price-tag?
I grabbed a bottle of Hitachino Nest White Ale from Wegmans, not really knowing what to expect. Well, shit, I expected it to taste like a white ale. However, white ales are not typically on my radar and I’m not usually in the mood for them. Also, with a price-tag of $4.99 a bottle, I’d normally rather spend two bucks more and get a deuce-deuce of Southern Tier or 3 Heads. It was time to try something a little bit different. I can honestly only remember trying two white ales in my drinking career- Hoegaarden and Sam Adams. Obviously, those are pretty standard representations of the style. I guess I’m about to re-pop my white ale cherry. Here’s what I thought:
The beer pours a very pale and clear straw color. The thin white head dissipates rather quickly. On the nose, I get strong notes of clove, coriander and Belgian yeast. My tongue is greeted much in the same way…with the addition of a slight citrus flavor. The spiciness definitely shines through, but does not overpower the overall flavor of the beer. It does leave a bit of a strong aftertaste, though. Other than that small complaint, this beer tastes extremely fresh and is definitely sessionable. (Although, with its hefty price-tag, I won’t be session-ing it any time soon). Mouthfeel and carbonation are very light, as you might expect.
I’m going to keep this review short and sweet: this beer is pricey, but worth trying. It has to be one of the better offerings of this style on the market. It won’t be a regular in my beer fridge due to the price, but I’m glad I splurged on it.
I love this beer. It is delicately tasty, and great on its own. My girlfriends dub it the Marc Jacobs of beer because of the attractive but somewhat soulless labeling, heh.
It was definitely a good beer… I’ll be buying another bottle and stashing in the back of the beer fridge for a rainy day.