EVENTS AT GLBC

ALL EVENTS | BREWPUB EVENTS | HOP COLLEGE

events menu

Three horizontal white bars arranged vertically on a light gray background, resembling a simple menu or hamburger icon.
ALL EVENTS BREWPUB EVENTS HOP COLLEGE
A six-pack box and can of Great Lakes Orange & Honey Wheat beer are displayed next to a sliced orange, all set against an orange background, hinting at how Great Lakes Brewing Company brewed Orange & Honey Wheat beer with honeycomb patterns and bold text.

Behind the Brew: Orange & Honey Wheat

There’s a new wheat beer in town, and it’s bringing refreshment year-round. Orange & Honey Wheat debuts this Spring in 6-Packs and draft, and in our new Sunshine Party Pack. Unlike limited seasonals Cran Orange Wheat and Strawberry Pineapple Wheat, Orange & Honey Wheat is crafted to stand the seasonal test of time, with refreshing balance and satisfying flavor that invites sip after sip in any occasion.

So how did we craft such a perfect brew? Great Lakes Brewing Co. Sensory Specialist Jacob Eaton shares some insights into his process, from employing special tools to ace that perfect orange and honey blend, to hosting a co-worker “kegger” for the ultimate taste test. Read on to learn about our new Orange & Honey Wheat and how it came to be.

Tell us a little bit about your role at GLBC. How were you involved in developing Orange & Honey Wheat?
My role is the somewhat ambiguous (although cool) title of Sensory Specialist. I help with day-to-day quality checks and everything that has to do with sensory panel, and I also help develop the recipes for our flavored beverages. I was involved in the creation of Orange & Honey Wheat before we even knew it would include orange or honey! After we came up with the concept, I created small tasting batches to tweak the recipe (more than 50 of them!) and presented them to staff to decide on changes we might want to make to get it to be the balanced, refreshing beer that it is.

A black tray holds six glasses of dark beer, each covered with a plastic lid labeled BEER BOTTOM. One uncovered glass of reddish beer stands to the side, inviting curiosity—how did Great Lakes Brewing Company brew Orange & Honey Wheat beer?.
A “triangle test” on GLBC’s sensory panel, where employees taste a beer they cannot see and provide feedback on aroma, flavor, and mouthfeel to the development team.

Why Orange & Honey Wheat? How is it different than our other fruited wheat beers?
We use quite a bit of honey at Great Lakes, because it’s a key component of our Christmas Ale, boosting ABV and adding subtle honey notes to complement the beer’s warming spices. We wanted to take our experience with honey and pair it with a flavor that’s both refreshing in warmer weather and appropriate in winter as well–hence the addition of orange. This makes for a delicious year-round wheat beer in any weather.

This honey is the key differentiator between this beer and our other fruited wheats. We add the honey right before packaging in order to preserve as much of the ingredient’s aromatics as possible, which is a relatively unique use of honey in beer.

A can and box of Great Lakes Orange & Honey Wheat beer are displayed with a glass honey jar and dipper, alongside fresh orange slices, set against a warm background—showcasing how Great Lakes Brewing Company brewed their refreshing creation.

What was your goal in developing the flavor profile for Orange & Honey Wheat, and how did you accomplish that?
It is very much a cliché to say this in reference to the development of beers, or really any food or beverage product, but I was really concerned about the balance of all aspects. When I added orange juice, I would boost the aroma a little but I would also add tartness and some pith-like bitterness. If I added honey, I would increase those aromatics, but also increase the sweetness.

One way to help put this into proper balance was using a tool that allows me to control variables. When I added orange extract, I could increase the aroma of the fruit, but without the increase in tartness or bitterness.

After tasting multiple juices and finding extracts that would allow me to adjust the aroma profile, I got to work creating samples and sharing them with my coworkers to dial in the recipe.

Tell us about the kegger in the lab! What inspired that staff tasting and why did you take this approach with this particular beer?

Developing this beer was a delicate balancing act, and it’s very easy for those of us involved to get a bit of palate fatigue or just be so close to the project that we forget to take a step back and think about the big picture with a new brew. It can also be difficult to make a truly refreshing beverage that includes something as sweet as honey.

Once we felt we had the recipe dialed in, I mixed up a keg around happy hour time and told everyone at Great Lakes, “come to the lab for a full beer, at the cost of just telling me if you want another one.” Soon enough, our lab was packed! This was a great way to get more tasters involved, really test the drinkability of the beer, and see if the product scaled up into a larger batch in a predictable way. While it wasn’t the only tasting centered around this product, it was a fun one and something that we intend to do in the future as well.

A person in a blue shirt pours Orange & Honey Wheat beer from a can into a clear plastic cup, perhaps wondering how Great Lakes Brewing Company brewed this refreshing blend. Another can labeled Cold Rush sits on the table in front of them.

How has feedback been so far for this beer?
From what I hear, people are enjoying it! People have mentioned that the honey is obvious but not cloying and does not take away from the refreshing qualities of the orange. I personally was surprised by how much I like it–despite my involvement in making lots of beers with fruit and other flavor additions, I tend to order IPA’s and craft lagers. When we did the Drinkability Test (or “kegger” as we called it), I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was for me to drink a few. So even if this isn’t the type of beer you usually reach for, I recommend giving it a shot.

A can of Great Lakes Brewing Co. Orange & Honey Wheat beer, expertly brewed by blending zesty orange and sweet honey, sits on a wooden table outdoors, sunlight casting shadows across a colorful, blurred backdrop.

Where and when are you personally most likely to crack open an Orange & Honey Wheat?
I’ve got a toddler, so I can see myself enjoying Orange & Honey Wheat at home during our family gatherings this summer. I also am happy to have it as a lighter drinking option during the fall and winter with the orange keeping it seasonally appropriate then as well.

Anything else you’d like to add?
This beer took the most testing to get right out of any beer I have made so far, including my first few when I was still just learning which tools I had to make the changes I wanted. I had to force my colleagues in the lab to be tasters far more frequently than we anticipated and had to host several special tastings with other staff as well. And I just handled the recipe! Marketing, sales, operations, even engineering had to find and purchase a new heat exchanger to be able to handle thick and sticky honey… it took a lot of people’s time and energy to put out this great new beer. Enjoy it!

Thanks to Jacob for his expertise and commitment to crafting the perfect go-to, all-weather wheat beer. Have you taste-tested our Orange & Honey Wheat yet? What are you waiting for? Find Orange & Honey Wheat now everywhere Great Lakes beer is sold in 6-Packs and draft, and in the new Sunshine Party Pack. Share your thoughts with us by tagging us on Instagram, X, and Facebook.

Words by Jacob Eaton and Marissa DeSantis
Images by Marissa DeSantis and Lily O’Brien

Great Lakes Brewing Co.
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.