#14 Harpoon 100 Barrel Series #41 Catamount Maple Wheat

Ugh.

This was a beer I toyed with the idea of purchasing for a little while. The name alone was enough to whet my appetite and get me excited. But then I hit the Internet to see what it thought, and it told me to stay away. Specifically, Kate over at beer411. But I’m a stubborn jack-ass, so when I saw it for $5, I just HAD to pick it up. And then I put it in the fridge and every week I would tell myself “drink it, c’mon drink it. You know you want to.”

Seductive, isn't it?

But I kind of didn’t. I mean, as excited as I was, I had a hard time getting past all the (more or less) negative reviews. I mean, how does one willing put oneself in harm’s way? But I did, almost a month after buying it. I sat down, started the grill, cooked dinner and opened this beer…

Fire. Every picture should now have fire. It's sexy and exciting!

It poured a very pretty toffee/woodsy brown, with a small, fizzy, one finger  head. Not too sticky either. Next comes my favorite part of most beers, stuffing my nose all up in it. I had already had prepared myself for Sunday morning breakfast. Yeasty, pancake, mapley goodness. While it was sweet… sugary, saccharine sweet…where the hell is my maple? Where are my pancakes? I’m a New Englander, I know my maple syrup! WHY DO I NOT HAVE A WARM AND FUZZY FEELING?! Ugh. Such a letdown. At this point, I had no real expectations of taste. And I was right not to as it was just like a regular ol' wheat. Crisp, good, but just NOT what I wanted, not what I was expecting, and not what the name would lead you to believe. I mean, it was a little darker than most wheat beers, I was getting a lot of roasted malt and caramel...But WTF? I mean, what does your mind conjure up when you read “Maple Wheat?”

Let’s say it all together...”Pancakes!”

So while the usually impressive Harpoon 100 Barrel series has let me down this time, I won’t let it spoil them for me. They can’t all be winners. And I can say one positive thing about this beer, It photographs beautifully. Lets look at a couple more...

I figured it out: This is the beer equivalent of The Crying Game.

Dead sexy

Harpoon 100 Barrel Series #41 Catamount Maple Wheat 

Smell: 2/5

Appearance: 4/5

Taste: 2.5/5

Feel: 3/5

Overall: 2.875/5

This beer pairs well with KMFDM - WTF?!

I'm going to do a blog giveaway! Here's the details:

As of  now, I have 71 Facebook likes, 9 Google Friend Connect followers and 87 followers on Twitter.

All of my blog-following/liking links are located on the right side of my page so get to clicking! For this contest though, my Untappd profile is excluded. Once I reach 100 followers or likes I'll post the Rafflecopter for the giveaway and you can all fight like rabid animals. The prize has yet to be determined, but It will probably be something totally bitchin'.

Tell your friends! Help me hit 100!