After too many months of putting up with brutal winter weather, spring has finally sprung, and anticipating the return of everybody’s favorite weed — no, not that kind — I bought an ale brewed with dandelions.

Like all of the brewing company’s labels, Magic Hat’s Pistil ale comes branded with a colorful label boasting an attention-grabbing design. I’ve admitted that I’m a sucker for marketing and good design, and I definitely think I’m partial to Magic Hat beers simply because I feel so cool holding their bottles.

Afraid to lose the “cool factor” of drinking from a Magic Hat bottle with the label on open display, I chose not to pour the dandelion ale into a glass and instead drank it proudly from the bottle.

The first thing I noticed was the beer’s aroma. While it certainly wasn’t as strong as a real dandelion, I was surprised to pick up on a definite floral scent with hints of what smelled like dandelion. The Pistil also had hints of citrus and was a very fragrant beer.

The beer also tasted floral and citrusy, but compared to the strength of its smell, the taste was somewhat mild. Pistil went down smooth and didn’t lose any of its pizazz as I kept drinking; it kept its medley of flavors until the last sip.

Magic Hat is one brewing company that seems to always push the boundaries and experiment with new flavors. Though I certainly enjoyed Pistil and would drink it again without second thought, I was a bit bummed that the beer wasn’t more exotic tasting.

It could have been the psychedelic label or the striking dandelion infusion that built my expectations so high for the beer, but either way, I was taken aback by how light and easy it was on my palette. I guess the lesson I learned is that I shouldn’t have jumped the gun on Pistil simply because its description seemed so novel.