by Josh Helton
With spring arriving this month, breweries of all shapes and sizes are getting into the spirit and releasing a
plethora of beers in a variety of styles. These can range from the tail-end of winter types with some darker, heavier beers to keep you warm, all the way up to the light and crispy pale ales and pilsners for when the sun is out and the jackets are off. No matter your preference, spring is always an ideal time to try new beers.
One beer I came across recently on my travels is the Salty Scot from Parallel 49 Brewing. For all you non-geography nerds, the 49th parallel is for the most part the line that separates much of the United States from Canada. This brewery is actually located in British Columbia, but their beers are available in the states. The Salty Scot is a scotch ale with sea salt and caramel, which gives it a malty and sweet flavor, while the sea salt balances it out excellently. If you happen to have any sea salted caramel lying around, I’d urge you to sit down with the pair and have an experience.
New Belgium is one of the breweries that comes to mind as both easily available and having a great spring beer roster. Their Spring Blonde, a Belgian-style ale, is crisp and refreshing with a hint of citrus. Even though New Belgium is located in Colorado, I assume this beer is what spring in Europe is like. Another popular New Belgium beer is Citradelic. A tangerine IPA, its hoppy and fruity, giving you an excellent excuse to make plans outside somewhere and down a couple of these once the weather warms up.
Another great springtime brew also available at many stores in the area is Bell’s Oberon. It’s got smooth flavors of orange and wheat, and if you are a fan of Blue Moon but haven’t tried Oberon, head to the store, because as far as I’m concerned, it’s simply an upgrade into the craft scene. Maybe you love it and want to keep searching for other Belgian wheats; no worries, there are plenty out there. Avery White Rascal is another version of the same style but packs more punch and flavor than some of its Belgian white counterparts.
Dogfish Head is a brewery well known for their pale ales and sometimes they can get a bit ridiculous (they have an 18% abv beer with a caution sign on the bottle top), but that doesn’t mean they don’t produce some of the best pale ales around. Take, for example, their Romantic Chemistry. Take an IPA, add some apricots, mangos, and ginger, and you’ve got yourself a tantalizing and refreshing beer. You’ll be torn between wanting to drink it all immediately or save it for down the road when you have to make up an occasion to drink it because it’s been looking at you for so long, mocking you, calling you to it like a little, cold Siren in your refrigerator.
If you’re not interested in floating your way into spring beers with light IPAs or blonde wheats and would rather be shocked into spring all at once, check out the Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye IPA. It’s aggressive and has a great hoppy flavor that Sierra Nevada consistently provides in their beers. The addition of rye malts also gives it another layer of flavors not usually found in your usual India Pale Ale and the rye does dry it out a bit so the beer is more balanced than you’d expect from a beer named Ruthless.
No matter what you’re into or are thinking about trying, spring is always a great time to learn about new beers and styles of beer. I hope you all get out there and soak up some sun and casually enjoy the shifting of the seasons. Let’s just keep our fingers crossed that it does actually warm up soon, though.
