With the arrival of yet another summer just around the
corner, it was only a matter of time before the large brewers started to
roll out their warm-weather brews. A new offering this year from
Molson-Coors Brewing is Blue Moon Honey Moon Summer Ale, a refreshing
wheat beer spiced with honey and orange peel.
Like the rest of the Blue Moon line, Honey Moon is a decent beer that, while
nothing worth mortgaging the farm over, is still enjoyable and reasonably
priced. I got a six-pack for $6.49, though how long that price point will
last is anyone’s guess.
Oddly enough, many reports indicate that a somewhat odd and rather
unexpected side effect of America’s interminable love affair with
fuel-inefficient, monstrously sized cars and SUVs may well be-higher beer
prices. That’s because land that was formerly used to grow barley and wheat
to make beer may now be turned to a more profitable use: growing corn to
make fuel-grade alcohol. Hence, barley and wheat may become more dear, and
thus beer prices could rise by extension.
As if that weren’t enough of a problem, another ingredient of Honey Moon,
honey, could become more expensive as well. That’s because a mysterious
die-off has been ravaging bee colonies throughout America, which not only
threatens the production of honey, but also the cross pollination of many
fruit and vegetable crops.
So, best to enjoy your beer now at a decent price, while you still can. So
without further ado, let’s dive into a glass of beer, shall we?
Blue Moon Honey Moon Summer Ale pours to a light yellowish blonde,
almost white color (from the wheat) with a thick foamy head and a tart,
spicy sweet nose. The first sip lets you know this is an easy drinking brew
indeed, light in body (though not too light) with a bit of biscuity malt and
even more crackery wheat flavor.
The spicy citric flavor of orange peel and the touch of sweet honey liven
Honey Moon up just enough to make it a fairly interesting summer refresher.
In the finish, the citric character intensifies and along with the tart
wheat makes this dangerously quaffable indeed.
In reality, Blue Moon Honey Moon is a not so distant relative of
Blue Moon’s Belgian Style White Ale . Both are wheat beers, and both are
spiced with orange peel. The difference, of course, is that the White also
features coriander rather than honey.
And like Blue Moon White, Honey Moon Summer Ale is a very approachable beer
that many will enjoy. You don’t have to be a beer geek to appreciate it. I
do think the flavors could be a bit more assertive, but still, I can enjoy
Honey Moon for what it is.
That said, why not pick up a six-pack today?
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft