New Holland White Hatter Beer Review

Tonight I'm reviewing a new beer from the New Holland Brewing Co. out of Holland, MI. The White Hatter is part of a series of beers that New Holland has turned out of late that are all re-imaginings of their trusted standby Mad Hatter IPA. Unfortunately, I couldn't find much information about the brewery itself as the website wasn't very easy to navigate and seemed in need of an update. What I can tell you is that they're not newcomers and, while I've had many of their beers over the years, I've not been tremendously impressed with most of them. I did like their Beerhive Tripel pretty well and their Nighttripper imperial stout was solid. I think the problem that holds this brewery back from being a bigger regional player is that they have consistency issues; I can't inherently trust their beers. Moreover, I find that even their best beers have far superior counterparts being produced by other breweries. Consequently, I seldom buy their beer anymore. I picked up their White Hatter, though, because it is part of a miniature trend that I've seen lately.

While this beer could be loosely referred to as an IPA, it isn't going to resemble most IPAs out there. Its something of a hybrid style; a Belgian witbier (white, unfiltered beer made with wheat) that carries with it the more extreme hopping schedule that you would expect in an IPA. The beer also retains some of its witbier identity by using traditional spices including orange peel and coriander. Depending on who is making them, these hybrids range between 5.5% and 7% abv, which is about the range of witbier to IPA. The White Hatter is 5.5%. I think the goal was to create a beer as refreshing as a witbier but with more interest and pizzazz on the tongue. This little wave of white IPAs has also included Sam Adam's Whitewater IPA and a recent collaboration between Green Flash and Founders that they named Linchpin. Having had and enjoyed both of those, I wanted to check out more of the competition.

The beer is presented well in a 22oz bottle complete with foil over the cap and neck and eye-catching artwork on the label. A semi-cautious pour down the side of my pint glass (anticipating bountiful carbonation) reveals a disappointment. The beer has surprisingly little head, a quarter inch at best that I am powerless to agitate and that quickly recedes into a ring with no lacing or retention. A protein rich wheat beer with plenty of hops should yield a much healthier head with better retention and lacing. The beer itself is a shade or two darker than most witbiers (think Blue Moon or Hoegaarden) and is hazy to the point of being nearly opaque. Appearance: 10/15

The aroma smells of a pretty classic (read boring) hop profile. I detect some spiciness, both from the coriander and potentially from the hops. It straddles the line of the two styles poorly; it neither reeks of hoppy goodness enough to entice me nor does it present strongly with all the sweet esters and spices that I would want in my witbier. Overall, I'm left wanting more. Nose: 18/25

The palate is as uninspired as the nose. I might be overly critical here because I've had two beers that do this style better, but New Holland didn't quite hit the mark here for me. The flavors lean too heavily on the spices and this encumbers the hops. It comes across as a very hoppy witbier (not sure I'm interested in that) whereas the Linchpin from Green Flash/Founders, for example, was a super tasty witbier that still managed to have some definite IPA character by exhibiting prominent, bright, citrusy notes. Moreover, the flavors here are less distinct than in their counterparts and this muddling only serves to confuse the palate. Palate: 35/50

The mouthfeel is, like the rest of this beer, decent. Lacking in creativity to keep me interested or enough technical expertise to hit the nail on the head, it is simply there. I would hope that a beer like this that is supposed to be immensely drinkable would have a pitch perfect mouthfeel (would've been a saving grace here) but I am once again left hoping for more. Mouthfeel: 6/10

OVERALL: 69/100

I really didn't set out to trash this beer. These are my honest opinions about each segment of the beer. While it may be unfair to compare it to others like it, the fact that this style is so new means that you will invariably draw comparisons to those who have come before you. Were I to perform Hamlet, I would fully expect someone to tell me how I sucked in comparison to Laurence Olivier, John Barrymore, and Edwin Booth. This is the risk you take in forging a new path - occasionally you get lost in the woods. This isn't to say the beer was bad per se, simply that it frustrates me when I can see what a brewer was going for only to watch them fall so short. Please don't let this review deter you from trying New Holland's beers as they have a whole range of very serviceable beers that can challenge your palate without being too intense when you're first starting to break into craft beer. They're a great starter brewery in my book. Unfortunately, I've moved past them and now depend on the likes of Stone, Bell's, Founders, and Dogfish Head for my staples. Cheers!