Uinta's Alpenweizen and Bewilder's Lucky's Red Tractor Reserve 

Uinta - Alpenweizen (Mountain Berry Rush): This new beer from Uinta is a wheat beer at its base, with a medley of berry flavors surrounding it. It pours a crisp, frothy head of an off-white color over a pale amber body, with moderate haziness and lots of sediment in tow. Soft carbonation is visible; retention is below average, and there is no visible lacing. Strong aromas of sweet, vague berry extract emerge up front, with subtle notes of orange peel over a pale and soft wheat body with a moderate sweetness. Light raspberry tartness predicts a wider range of berry flavors, accompanied by a low hop profile and low bitterness.

The flavor starts and ends with lingering berry extracts, softly sweet but very potent in flavor. Chewy wheat malts and light pale syrups make for a sufficient malt profile, whereas hop flavors and bitterness are nowhere to be found. The little bit of balance that this beer has comes from a subtle inclusion of orange peel, which doesn't contribute much to the flavor and isn't quite enough to balance the berry syrup fruitiness. The fruit profile isn't as startling and over-the-top as fruit syrup beers—Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat and Wild Blue come to mind—but the lack of balance is still notable. The 5.0 percent AVB texture is slightly chewy, smooth and lightly dry. Carbonation is moderate, generating a medium frothiness and a moderately crisp finish. Body is medium+ for the style, shy of medium overall; balance is moderately sweet over bitter. Alcohol presence is low and there are no off characters.

Verdict: Berries are an endearing fruit, and can be one of the more challenging flavors for breweries to work with—which is why many, many breweries resort to berry extracts over the actual fruit. I won't knock this beer for its flavorings; it just comes across too much as Smarties candies and less like a fruited wheat.

Bewilder/Lucky13 – Lucky's Red Tractor Reserve: This collaboration with SLC's beloved pub Lucky13 is actually a blend of Bewilder's Double ESB and Barrel-Aged Mole Porter. The result comes across very much like it is described on the label: "Barrel-aged Imperial ESB."

It pours a nice, deep brown color with amber highlights, with a good quarter-inch thick head at first which falls fast due to the barrel-aging. Whiskey and wood are most prominent in the aroma. The can suggested that a caramel sweetness should be registering, but other than a slight citrus tone with a massive amount of malt, nothing was noticeable.

This 6.7 percent beer sits medium-light on the tongue at first sip, and the sweet dry hops immediately give way to the promised caramel sweetness, with a pleasant pineapple/orange overtone. It's much sweeter than I expected; after a moment, the malts really hit you. Some chocolate and light whiskey backs it all up. Even if you aren't fond of barrel-aged beers, you might enjoy this; someone with a more refined palate that likes things malty/fruity should love it. The taste after a moment or two is very wooden/hoppy, but outside of that, I enjoyed it quite a bit. The candied accent is a nice touch, which greets you warmly before the hops smack you in the face. There's a very long aftertaste to the beer.

Verdict: The crew over at Bewilder blended a very strong offering which was true to the description: a bitter Red Ale-style beer that has just the right amount of kick to get you squealing, but sweet enough to have you going back for more. I was glad that I tried this, and would gladly have some again.

You will only find Lucky's Red Tractor Reserve at Bewilder and Lucky 13 in 16-ounce cans. Alpenweizen will be a major offering this spring and summer, and is about to be everywhere that sells beer. As always, cheers!