Beach Blanket Beers

Drinking these beers in succession was like a day at the beach. Let’s begin with Orange Wheat. 

Pouring this beer reminds me of an early summer morning at the beach (any beach anywhere use your imagination Preferably a sandy one, minimal rocks). The color likens to yellow straw, rich with haze like a sleepy beach sunrise. Any trace of head dissipates quickly, like clouds as the sun shoos them away to lighten up for beachgoers.

If you are anything like me, your beach bag is half sunblock and half food. I absolutely love a good beach snack-clementines, trail mix, dried apricots and cranberries (I’m an old soul ok), and obviously chips and crackers.

Pouring this beer, the delightful aromas instantly transported me to a beach towel, the scents of mixed citrus sunblock, and toasted buns from a BBQ across the beach.

Let me tell you, the first sip of this beer tickled my tongue, quite literally. Champagne lovers (like me) will appreciate the light mouthfeel and sparkling carbonation. You can actually feel the bubbles prancing on your tongue, like a toddler taking their first tip-toeing steps into the sea. The lightness is perfect for sipping, as you lounge on the beach blanket watching babes. And at 5.5%, this beer will leave you feeling good, but not wiped out when paired with the sun.

Generally, my beach experience is me, covered in 100 SPF sunblock while snacking on dried apricots, Triscuits (fuck you Wheat Thins), and surreptitiously sipping a mimosa I mixed in a Nalgene bottle.  Sipping this beer is like tasting my beach day: lightly toasted wheat, sweet and floral apricots, and juicy orange will tantalize your tastebuds. Already I can tell the name of the beer speaks truth. I only wish I had more beer once I finished the glass. Delicious and satisfying, just like the beach.

Let us transition now from hazy orange to relaxing sunset.  The amber ale is best poured slowly, deliberately. This opaque burnt sienna hued ale is a true ocular feast, as calming and beautiful as the scarlet hues of a seaside sunset.  The offwhite head fizzes then fades as quickly as the tips of the salty white Pacific waves. Waft that scent right into your relaxed twilight summer nostrils. Beachy metaphors aside, this beer just smells, well…clean.  A real traditional ale smell that makes you think ya this is beer. It’s not hoppy. Not super toasty. But one or two additional sniffs invokes a light scent of burnt caramel and sugar. Just like the candles used to keep away bad bugs from your nighttime beach get together.

The amber ale has a more medium mouthfeel, and lighter carbonation than the orange wheat, just like a heavy humid coastal summer evening.  The most interesting thing about this beer (and similar to the beach) is the warmer the liquid became, the more I enjoyed the experience! Even with the best of beers, I find myself trying to quaff down the malty liquid before it warms, but like a nice Caribbean sea, warmer is preferable. The heightened temperature brings out the toasted biscuit flavors from the red malt and accentuates the yeastiness (my god that word is gross to write out) of the beer.

Towards the end, I detected notes of grapefruit zest, more resiny pink than sweet ruby, just like the bug spray that comes out of everyone’s beach bags as the darkness descends. This beer finishes on a bitter note, just like I feel when I inevitably have to leave the beach. I actually found this beer more bitter than usual for an amber, so while it was delicious midway, I have to say I liked it less as the bitter taste increased.

Beach House Amber Ale 3/6 Beach Pizzas

Harvest Ball Orange Wheat 4/6 Beach Blanket Babes