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Summer's almost here. This years Beer Trends......
Beer Trends
Hop Monsters
Hops help preserve beer, but they also impart key floral, citrus and bitter notes. In search of flavor intensity, craft brewers are pushing hop levels to unheard-of heights.
Stoudt's Double IPA IPAs, or India pale ales, are refreshingly bitter: English brewers traditionally added extra hops to help preserve the beers on the long voyage to India. Stoudt's rich, grapefruit-scented ale has even more hops, intensifying the IPA style.
Dogfish Head 90-Minute Imperial IPA This IPA combines dark, malty, caramelized flavors with powerful citrus notes (the name refers to how long the hops are added to the kettle during brewing). Though quite bitter, it's also impeccably balanced.
Stone Ruination IPA Ruination—so named for the supposed effect of its high hop levels on the tongue—is strictly for hop lovers. But those who enjoy bracing, intense, slap-you-awake, pine-citrus flavors will love this potent ale.
Spiced Ales
Taking a cue from the Belgians, American brewers have been experimenting with spices, not just for dark wintry brews, but for vibrant summer ales, too.
Avery Brewing White Rascal Avery, in Boulder, Colorado, produces one of the best U.S. versions of a traditional Belgian white ale. Made from wheat and spiced with coriander and Curaçao orange peel, it's light, fragrant and refreshing.
Samuel Adams Summer Ale Brewer Jim Koch flavors this unfiltered wheat ale, full of sunny citrus notes, with lemon zest and grains of paradise, a West African spice that evokes coriander, ginger and black pepper.
Victory Golden Monkey The scent of this formidable, extremely potent ale reveals coriander and citrus, while the flavor recalls cloves and sweet corn, thanks to brewmaster Bill Covaleski's use of imported Belgian yeasts.
Saison Ales
Traditionally brewed at the end of winter, these crisp Belgian ales are meant for summer drinking. In all saisons, the yeast bits in the bottle are there intentionally.
Saison Dupont Vieille Provision This zesty, spicy, herbal ale from the famed Brasserie Dupont in Wallonia, Belgium (which also produces breads and cheeses), is full of tart orange and grassy, fresh hay flavors.
Brasserie de Blaugies Darbyste Named after the 19th-century preacher John Darby (who promoted temperance!), this ale is fermented with fig juice, yet its flavor is appealingly dry and zippy, with tart lemon notes.
Fantôme Saison Brasserie Fantôme, founded in 1988, has become widely known for its robust, spicy ales. This pale-gold saison has deep fruit flavors suggesting papaya and apple, lifted by a peppery citrus edge.
Hop Monsters
Hops help preserve beer, but they also impart key floral, citrus and bitter notes. In search of flavor intensity, craft brewers are pushing hop levels to unheard-of heights.
Stoudt's Double IPA IPAs, or India pale ales, are refreshingly bitter: English brewers traditionally added extra hops to help preserve the beers on the long voyage to India. Stoudt's rich, grapefruit-scented ale has even more hops, intensifying the IPA style.
Dogfish Head 90-Minute Imperial IPA This IPA combines dark, malty, caramelized flavors with powerful citrus notes (the name refers to how long the hops are added to the kettle during brewing). Though quite bitter, it's also impeccably balanced.
Stone Ruination IPA Ruination—so named for the supposed effect of its high hop levels on the tongue—is strictly for hop lovers. But those who enjoy bracing, intense, slap-you-awake, pine-citrus flavors will love this potent ale.
Spiced Ales
Taking a cue from the Belgians, American brewers have been experimenting with spices, not just for dark wintry brews, but for vibrant summer ales, too.
Avery Brewing White Rascal Avery, in Boulder, Colorado, produces one of the best U.S. versions of a traditional Belgian white ale. Made from wheat and spiced with coriander and Curaçao orange peel, it's light, fragrant and refreshing.
Samuel Adams Summer Ale Brewer Jim Koch flavors this unfiltered wheat ale, full of sunny citrus notes, with lemon zest and grains of paradise, a West African spice that evokes coriander, ginger and black pepper.
Victory Golden Monkey The scent of this formidable, extremely potent ale reveals coriander and citrus, while the flavor recalls cloves and sweet corn, thanks to brewmaster Bill Covaleski's use of imported Belgian yeasts.
Saison Ales
Traditionally brewed at the end of winter, these crisp Belgian ales are meant for summer drinking. In all saisons, the yeast bits in the bottle are there intentionally.
Saison Dupont Vieille Provision This zesty, spicy, herbal ale from the famed Brasserie Dupont in Wallonia, Belgium (which also produces breads and cheeses), is full of tart orange and grassy, fresh hay flavors.
Brasserie de Blaugies Darbyste Named after the 19th-century preacher John Darby (who promoted temperance!), this ale is fermented with fig juice, yet its flavor is appealingly dry and zippy, with tart lemon notes.
Fantôme Saison Brasserie Fantôme, founded in 1988, has become widely known for its robust, spicy ales. This pale-gold saison has deep fruit flavors suggesting papaya and apple, lifted by a peppery citrus edge.
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