Boozin’ Blog

Summer is when lagers shine. They are generally more refreshing, have a higher level of carbonation and a more subtle flavor profile - all qualities that make a cold lager on a hot day a lovely thing indeed.

But don’t turn your back on ales during the dog days! There are some great ale varieties that are both refreshing and flavorful. Here are a few of my favorites:

Pale ale - the old classic is great during the summer. Featuring a fuller body and more flavor than a lager it might seem that pale ale would be too much to make a refreshing summer beverage. Au contraire! Many pale ales are great in the summer, especially American brewed pale ales. Americans use bright, citrusy hops - and more of them than some of the more classic British pale ales. This gives them a nice snappy flavor that’s perfect for the end of a hot summer day.

IPA - Pale ale’s hoppier cousin is a nice summertime treat. With generally more malt flavor, more alcohol and more hops this style will ask you to slow down a little and savor it but isn’t that what you’d want out of a beer?

American Wheat - This ale is a best seller during the summer months. It features a big, chewy body and a bit of spice and sweetness in the flavor. With typically lower alcohol it’s a great beer to enjoy one after another at a barbeque. It’s also great in a shandy.

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I seem to become more liberal all the time in my acceptance of what beer can be. There was a time when I wouldn’t have even considered mixing beer with anything else. Even the black and tan seemed a little wrong. I had this idea that what one found in the bottle or the keg was what the brewer intended and who where we to tinker with that?

But that was then and this is now. Now that the summer heat is upon us, I find myself digging on the shandy this year. It started when I grudgingly picked up a sixer of Leinenkugel’s Shandy at a local convenience store. I wanted a new beer but their selection was rather limited and I didn’t feel like driving across town to the good beer store. The shandy was the only one of the lot that I hadn’t tried.

So I took it home and quite enjoyed it. It turns out to be a great drink for hot summer weather – refreshing with a touch of zing from the lemon but still plenty of beery goodness.

Making your own is the best way to enjoy a shandy. Traditionally it’s any light beer (light as in color and flavor, not one those faux diet beers) mixed with equal parts lemonade. Wheat beer is particularly good for this combination. Cutting the beer in half drives down the alcohol so you can have more – a good thing on hot, summer days.

Shandies have been made with other drinks like ginger ale or lemony sodas but the classic lemonade shandy is really the best.

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