Comments on: Stephanie's Summer Suds Shortlist

By: Stephanie

Stephanie — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 16:27:57 +0000

F — thanks! And thanks for the recs. I'll have to check those out, although I'm a little scared of Watermelon Wheat. I'm not a big fan of watermelon in general.

Kelly — I adored Bell's when I was at school in Ann Arbor. You guys have something special there.

James — I think what makes No. 9 so special is the apricot flavor (I'm pretty sure it's apricot and not peach, at least, according to their website?) is dusky and not sweet at all.

By: James Norton

James Norton — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 04:29:34 +0000

I survived five Boston summers on mint juleps, Murphy's red ale and Magic Hat #9. I miss Magic Hat #9. A lot. Hard to imagine a beer packing a hit of peach and not sucking, but there you go — it was pretty subtle and the whole package was so crisp and refreshing.

By: jen maiser

jen maiser — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 04:00:21 +0000

The Ultra flavors really had me befuddled the other day - enough so that I backed Tivo up twice to figure it out. At first I thought they were malt liquor type, Zima drinks. That's gross enough, but I think that flavoring beer is grosser.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 00:27:04 +0000

Oberon by Bell's Brewing out of Kalamazoo is one of my favorites. It's a little like Blue Moon, but lighter and not fruity, really. I think it has more alcohol in it too. Actually, I really like all of Bell's beers, but I don't know how available it is outside of the midwest. It's so popular in Michigan that two stores we went to were sold out on the 4th.

By: Fatemeh

Fatemeh — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 18:08:40 +0000

I love this post, Steph! From those of us who savor a cold one on a hot day just as much as we do a big, rich red with a rare ribeye, THANK YOU!

I do want to add two to your list — one local, and one recently discovered.

21 Amendment's Watermelon Wheat is a thing of beauty, even for those of us not typically partial to wheat beers. As of this month, you can find it in local BevMos.

The other is Mannekin Pis by Brasserie Lefebvre is another Witbier, essentially a Blanche de Bruxelles. HOWEVER, the best analogy I can offer is that drinking the Mannekin is like drinking an icy-cold Moscato d'Asti on a hot day. Lots of floral notes, easy-drinking, and a measly 4.5% ABV.