Beer Me: In my glass lately

I am WAY behind on my beer posts. I hope you're finding things to drink without my guidance. Some of these are super old but I still wanted to write about them. You can rest assured that any summer wheat is my jam these days. Summer beers are so refreshing and easy drinking. Not much beats a cold one after a sweaty session of yard work or while grilling out on the patio. I promise to do a summer post soon.

Leinenkugel pretty much has the market cornered on Summer Shandy (although the orange one is disgustingly medicinal). Here is one from Hoppin' Frog that I think is worth trying though. Turbo Shandy Citrus Ale is a mix between beer and almost a limoncello quality. The lemon is not subtle here but I think that's what sets it apart. It only retails in the larger 22 oz. bottles for about $7.

From the site: "Born from European tradition, our shandy is a refreshing combination of lemon and light malt flavors.  Unlike traditional shandy’s, Turbo Shandy revs it up a couple notches with a high test, full flavored approach as only Hoppin’ Frog can do!"

Only 7 IBU's here, guys. My kind of bitterness level.

P.S. Hoppin' Frog is located in Akron, just on the other side of the state from me. We are gearing up to try a couple new local Ohio breweries. Maybe this one gets added to the tour.....

I'm throwing this one in because it was interesting. This is Tweason'ale from Dogfish Head and it's a gluten free beer. I would be the saddest girl in the world if I ever had to go gluten free but at least you could still have a beer, right? The main flavor here is strawberry. Yes, you read that right.

From the site: "For our first new 12-ounce 4-packs in nearly half a decade, we replaced the classic barley foundation of beer with a mild sorghum base. The hints of molasses and pit-fruit are balanced by vibrant strawberry notes and a unique complexity that comes with the addition of a malty buckwheat honey.

Now, I liked it but I also like fruity beers. The others around me at the tasting were not so fond of its flavor or lack of gluten. It's pricey, like all Dogfish Head, at about $12/four-pack. But, if you found it on a menu or in a single bottle, you should give it a try.

Last but not least, the other night at our beer shop they were tasting all the available releases from New Holland Brewing Co. located in Michigan. I'm not sure why we even went to this tasting because they were all IPA's of some sort. We must have needed something from Sam's Club and it happens to be right across the street.

From left to right below (and my apologies for the small picture):

Oak Aged Hatter: This is their Mad Hatter IPA aged in Kentucky oak barrels. Sweet and smooth

Michigan Hatter: This was my least favorite in the bunch due to its citrusy hops.

Farmhouse Hatter: Belgian-style pale ale with flavors including green apple, pepper and (supposedly) hay

Black Hatter: Another IPA but a black one this time. Just barely drinkable with roasted malt flavors.

Rye Hatter: The addition of rye made this one more tolerable with a new spicy flavor.

So, can you guess which one was my favorite?

The oak-aged of course! It was the sweetest one with just the right amount of flavor imparted  from the oak aging. I'll drink pretty much anything aged in an oak barrel. Yes, even an oaky chardonnay which most people eschew. These all retail at $6.99/bottle.

After this tasting, John declared that he was maybe jumping on the IPA bandwagon. I almost divorced him right then and there. He said some of them are tolerable but most are still nasty. If I come home to an IPA in the fridge it is OVER.

Happy Beering, y'all!