No June Gloom so far this month, so let’s dip our toes into some super light beers that also have left-of-center ingredients tossed in.
~LIGHT
Abita/ Watermelon Lemon Shandy3.50% ABV
Inspired by the taste and aromas of summertime, this crisp, golden lager is brewed with pilsner and wheat malts and blended with refreshing watermelon and zesty lemon juices for a sweet, freshly squeezed flavor. All of our Harvest Series brews are made with the finest Louisiana-grown ingredients, keeping us Louisiana True.
~MEDIUM
Fritz Briem/ 13the Century Gruit4.60% ABV
Before the German Reinheitsgebot, in 1516, beer was not explicitly brewed with water, malt, hops & yeast through In fact the Reinheitsgebot was as much a ban against certain substances & adjuncts as it was a government instruction to brewing beer. Until then it was common practice to use a variety of different spices & plants instead of hops to flavor and prolong the shelf life of the beer. Some of the adjuncts that were used even had anesthetic & toxic effects. Gruit beer has roots in many cultures and each culture had its own “special ingredients”: Egyptians (Mandrake based), Native Americans (Corn based), Arabian Tribes, Gaulles, Germanic Tribes and the Vikings. Gruit beer became especially popular during the middle ages in Germany in the regions of Westphalia & Lower Saxony close to the borders of Belgium & Holland. During this time the ingredients for beer were very expensive, in particular hops. This interpretation of a traditional Grut Bier is spiced with Lorbeer (Bay Leaves), Ingwer (Ginger), Kummel (Caraway), Anis (Anise), Rosemarin (Rosemarie) & Enzian (Gentian). It is brewed with water, wheat & barley malt, “pollinated wild hops” and fermented using top fermenting yeast.
~BIG
SoLArc / Straw Beer5.60% ABV
Straw Beer is a refereshing tart wheat fruit brewed with Yerba Mate, Hibiscus Flowers, Local Strawberries, and Foraged Prickly Pear Cactus. It pours hazy with a hint of pink as the wheat and oats in this unfiltered brew add a juicy mouthfeel The Prickly pear was picked young to add a bitterness that balances nicely with the tart flavors of Hibiscus and Strawberry. The level of Yerba Mate are not enough to keep you up all night, but just enough to invigorate the soul.
All of these beers can be found at Sunset Beer Co. (unless they got bought up real quick)
