Beer ads permeating the media this season would have us believe that the only possible refreshing beer is one that's just above the freezing point. But if I'm so thirsty that all I want to do is "refreshingly" wet my whistle, a glass of ice water is preferable. If, on the other hand, I want to actually taste a refreshing beer, my choice would be one of the many craftbrewed seasonal beers offered by the hundreds of American micros or brewpubs.

The party line on what constitutes a summer beer is that such brew must be light, refreshing and easy to drink. No dark malts here, so the color is golden and the taste is free of toasty, roasty flavors. Hop additions are mild, so there's no big burst of flavor and bitterness from hops. Wheat malts are ever popular in summer beers, adding a light crispness to the overall taste.

Then there are the fruit beers. These may not be as prevalent this season as they were a few years ago, but pale ales and light lagers flavored with summer fruits are out there.

Wheat beers are the champs in the summer beer category. The 45 American breweries that produce over 10,000 barrels a year and bottle a summer seasonal will offer 26 wheat beers this year: 15 American style (three with fruit), two German-style weizens, two Belgian-style wits and seven German-style kolsch beers.

Pale ales (blonde or amber), fruit beers and lagers tie for second place in the summer beer survey, with six of each. Three of the fruit beers are based on American-style wheat beers, two on pilsner-style lagers and one on a pale ale. Summer lagers break down into two Munich style, two pilsners, one amber lager and one dark lager.

The list rounds out with four IPA summer specials, one brown ale and one Imperial stout.

Now, these last two entries interest me. Especially the Imperial stout. Dark beers as a summer special. Cool. Who says that a summer beer has to be "light?" It's not blistering hot 24 hours a day. On a cool summer evening an Imperial stout (or a barley wine or any other strong ale or strong lager) would be just the ticket.

How about that cold, windy day at the beach? A Belgian dubbel or maybe a German dopplebock sounds delicious. Your BBQ party is rained out and the thought of drinking a cold wheat beer suddenly isn't so appealing? Now might be the perfect time to open a porter or a stout.

In other words, any beer is a summer beer.

Here is our (inevitably incomplete) collection of summer seasonals. Enjoy the variety!

next: summer beer list

back to the top

Back to Features Home Page

This story originally appeared in All About Beer Magazine in July 2000.