Tags
Beer Review, Belgian-style beer, Sam Adams, Sam Adams White Latern, variety pack, Wheat ale, White Lantern
Being it a hot spring day, I felt the need to do my yearly ritual of picking up the Sam Adams summer variety pack. A few years ago, I feel like they changed the recipe for the summer ale. It used to be my favorite. Now it seems a little heavier and I replace it with Hoegaarden or Blue Moon. Dark beers just are not my thing and I am just not a fan of overly hoppy beers.
Sam Adams White Lantern is a beer featured in this variety pack.
The website says it is available all year round but I am sure it is a little harder to find. The bottle states:
Belgian-style white ales have a long history of unique ingredients as brewers experimented with spices discovered during the spice trade. For our hazy brew we found a refreshing combination of crisp wheat, tangy sweetness of tangerine & orange peel, and the subtle spiciness of coriander & Grains of Paradise. Cheers!
Interesting seems right down my alley.
Color – Hazy golden with hints of orange. A tad darker than Blue Moon
Taste – Crisp and you definitely get that orange peel and those Grains of Paradise I remember from their other summer beers. This is kind of the bridge between the old Spring release White Ale and the Summer Ale.
Body – A little heavier than a Blue Moon or a Hoegaarden but it is still pretty easy drinking.
Overall, really good beer by Sam Adams. If they made it a tad lighter it might have replaced one of my favorite Belgian-style beers. But since it isn’t quite there and it really isn’t as easy to get when the variety pack goes away, it will not.
Rating: A-
~Justin
It has come that time, once again, where we turn the corner to colder weather. I, for one, have never been a fan of colder weather. When I think of people saying, “I love having four distinct seasons.” I think that would be a good thing to tell an eskimo. Fall is great though. Cooler climates, wine festivals, turning leaves, and, another very important part of the season, Pumpkin beer. First, on the list, is Blue Moon’s Harvest Pumpkin Ale.
For some reason, I have been drinking a lot less beer lately. I don’t know if it is because I am more picky or if it is just I enjoy some of the wines and scotches better. Either way, I recently picked up a sample pack of the Sam Adam’s summer. I have noticed that Sam Adams has been putting out variety packs that have a couple types that you cannot buy by themselves.
This beer from a Vermont brewing company called Long Trail Brewing company puts out seasonal beers throughout the year. Personally, before picking up the random beers from Total Wine & More, I had never heard of them. Spring and Summer are my favorite times of the year for beer, as Sam Adam’s Summer Ale was one of my favorites.