The best wheat beer is a soft, easy-drinking beer with a hint of sweetness. And it was all the rage in the early 2000s. These days, it’s all about hazy IPAs and black lagers and non-alcoholic craft beers. But that doesn’t mean people don’t want wheat beers. Some of us don’t always want to lick pine tree. So, I tasted nine of the most popular wheat beers you can find in grocery stores and ranked the best six—for the wheat beer drinkers who are still out there, looking to get their wheat beer fix.
Before we dive in, let’s start by answering the question: What is a wheat beer? In short, it’s a beer brewed with a larger proportion of wheat as compared to the malted barley.
When wheat beers first started to catch on in the States, they were a gateway into the world of craft beers. Wheat beers don’t have aggressive hoppy flavors or super high alcohol levels. They calmly usher beer drinkers away from light beers and into a mystical realm where beer has flavor. For many Millennial beer drinkers (myself included), Blue Moon was the first beer they sipped and actually liked. Remember the simpler times, Millennials? Before breweries practically outnumbered Taco Bells and we all drank the same three beers?
Whether you are looking to recapture the magic of the good old days, are a dedicated wheat beer drinker, or are just looking to expand beyond imperial IPAs and try something new, here are the six best wheat beers you can easily find in most supermarkets.
- Sea Dog Blue Paw
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If you don’t like those individually packaged, always-a-little-bit-wet blueberry muffins you get at a gas station, then you can skip this one. But if you do, then you’ll think this is a pretty good wheat beer. It smells just like one of those blueberry muffins and it tastes like one, too. Personally, I really like this wheat beer. It’s extremely easy to drink and not too sweet at all—just that baked blueberry flavor mixed with some grounding wheat notes. It’s a great brunch beer.
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- Golden Road Mango Cart
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If you’re in the market for a mango wheat beer, this is the best wheat beer for you. It’s not sweet at all and it still tastes like beer, but there’s also a vibrant, tropical mango flavor. Drink this on a sunny day at the beach or with a platter of nachos or a cold noodle salad. And if you like your brews with a little heat, seek out the Spicy Mango Cart. It has just enough of a burn to keep you coming back for more.
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- Paulaner Hefe-Weizen
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Hefeweizens (a German-style wheat beer), are often characterized by their banana-y aroma and flavor. That’s thanks to a compound called Isoamyl acetate. If you want to know more about that, please go ask your cicerone friend, because that’s the end of my knowledge. Anyway, Paulaner’s take on the brew has a banana bread aroma. It’s toasty and warming and a little bit sweet. It tastes heavier on the malt than the other wheat beers on this list, so it’s the best wheat beer to pick if you don’t want to go all in on that wheat flavor. It’s perfect for a cozy fall day or to sip while listening to some traditional polka. It tastes like oom-pah-pah.
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- Blue Moon
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Revisiting Blue Moon, I was afraid I wouldn’t like it. I was afraid I would have to tell my younger self that I was wrong, that it wasn’t good. Thankfully, it’s still good. It’s definitely on the sweeter end of the wheat beer spectrum and it has that signature orange flavor. And that’s just as it should be. I still think this is one of the best wheat beers for beginner beer drinkers. It’s extremely refreshing and no 22-year-old would or should turn down a tall glass of this garnished with an orange wheel.
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- Weihenstephaner
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Here comes that Isoamyl acetate again, laying on the tangy banana flavor real thick. Weihenstephaner has a banana chip flavor instead of Paulaner’s banana bread undertones. It’s fruity and bright and zesty. The flavor is long lasting. It’s the best wheat beer for meaty sausages dipped in spicy mustard. If you want to try an Old World wheat beer, give this one a go.
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- Allagash White
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Allagash is downright gulpable. It has an apple-y aroma, almost like a very, very dry cider, and just a touch of banana upon first sip. It’s made with coriander and orange peel (like Blue Moon), so you get that tangy, citrusy note as well. It’s everything good about all of the other wheat beer brands on this list, funneled into one bottle. It’s the best wheat beer you can buy at the grocery store, so go ahead and give the IPAs a break. Try it.
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Best Blueberry Wheat
Best Mango Wheat
Best German Runner-Up
Best Orange-y
Best German
Best of the Best
Other wheat beers we tried: Hoegaarden, Blue Moon Light, Shock Top
