Victory Summer Love Ale

With the onset of summer around the corner (or 2 days ago for Austin), sweet, lightly hopped brews from all over the country are starting to surface.  The pale ale is generally the king of BBQ season, and we've got a pretty good one from Pennsylvania's Victory Brewing Company.  The Summer Love Ale uses German and European hops with some pale malts to create a light, crisp, and casually hoppy beer.  It's an easy transition from the basic lagers that accompany most Barbecues and has just enough bitter hop flavor to grab the IPA fan that wants something a little smoother.  Remember, it's already 90 degrees outside, and damn it, we need something refreshing.  At any rate, the Summer Love Ale is a pretty good way to relax and forget about how much you're sweating.  Ahh.

Visit the brewer.

Rogue Mocha Porter

Hailing from Oregon's Rogue Ales Brewery, the Mocha Porter is a great, dark porter to finish a meal with.  Like a lot of the brews we drink around here, it's a dessert beer.  The hints of chocolate and coffee in the mix add a flavorful kick to the usual malts and hops, but to me, the coffee taste outweighed the chocolate.  That's not a bad thing, but if you're expecting a big chocolate kick, you won't get it.  When all is said and done though, this is a great beer to end the night with, post meal, at the pub or at home on the sofa.

Visit the brewer.

LIve Oak Schwarzbier

Live Oak Brewery's Schwarzbier.  This is as central Texas a beer as you're likely to find anywhere.  By that, i mean there's just something about the brew that screams Bar-B-Q and Germany.  In fact, my first feeling was that there was just something super German about this delicious beer-on-tap.  It's a dark lager that has hints of ruby red color in the light, a crisp, carbonated feel, and enough roasted malts and slightly bitter hops to go with any meal (and/or a movie for that matter).  At times you can taste subtle hints of different spices that then subside under the more traditional malt and hop flavors.  I could drink this everyday.  You win again Live Oak.  You win again.

Visit the brewer.

Single Wide IPA

Hailing from Boulevard Brewing Co. in Kansas City, Missouri, the Single Wide IPA is a fairly traditional take on the India Pale Ale that originated in Great Britain in the 18th century.  It's a pretty smooth beer (for an IPA) and has all the aromas and flavors you would come to expect from a beer of its ilk.  Hints of citrus and caramel and bitter hops swirl together to make a great companion for a spicy meal.  Like any good IPA, the first sip is usually super bitter, but each progressive gulp goes down better and better until you've suddenly had two or three beers.  So, if you don't think you're a fan of India Pale Ale, or you don't know if you are (sometimes the hops can be too much for some palettes), the Single Wide is a pretty good jumping on point to test the waters as it were.

Visit the brewer.

Bootlegger Brown Ale

Okay.  I've been a little out of pocket lately, what with SXSW, a trip to New Orleans, and a slew of weddings to attend, so i haven't really had a chance to taste some new beers.  So, let's take a gander at an old standby.  Austin's Independence Brewery is one of my faves, and their Bootlegger Brown Ale is delicious.  It's a fairly traditional brown ale, malty and sweet, and the chocolate flavors are abundant.  That's a good thing though.  This is the perfect kind of beer to fill a bucket of ice with and sit down and watch some B-movies or a ballgame to.  And that's as good of an endorsement as i can deliver.

Visit the brewery.