Beer Me: Dogfish Head’s new summer brews
Originally posted on May 13, 2019 at 0:01 am
SuperEIGHT: Super Gose
ABV: 5.3
The concept of a beer that can develop film is a bit off-putting, the way junior high science fair projects of Coca Cola eating away at baby teeth and tarnished jewelry alike made me suddenly notice how soft my teeth felt after a can of cold soda on a hot day. But apparently, a beer’s ability to develop a role of Kodak Super 8 film relies on its low pH, which doesn’t sound nearly as gross.
Turns out, it tastes pretty damn good too. This fruity, light beer is great for a hot spring day when the sun is out and the work is done sooner than expected. It doesn’t taste like a cider; it’s distinctly an ale. Still, the light effervescence and red color give it a juicy feel. Made from what Dogfish Head calls “heroic” ingredients — prickly pear, mango, boysenberry, blackberry, raspberry, elderberry, kiwi, toasted quinoa and red Hawaiian sea salt — that late-in-the-school-year juice box feel makes it a perfect recess treat.
Will this beer make you a hero? That’s hard to tell. But heroism comes in many forms. Maybe it’s fresh fruit and toasted quinoa, maybe it’s standing up to the capitalist gears trying to grind our beautiful sunny days to a halt. the SuperEIGHT has a low enough APV that you won’t find yourself committing heroic acts beyond your means after just one or two, but I’ll say the two they sent me to sample had me looking at which building I’d have to belay to find another can.
Slightly Mighty Lo-Cal IPA
ABV: 4.0
Any of us old enough to remotely care about low-calorie beer will remember those cycling-heavy commercials for the original purposefully-marketed low-cal beer: Lance Armstrong enjoying the Great Outdoors with friends, then hanging out under some string lights or something, drinking low-calorie beer because they play hard, but not *that* hard.
But it’s, what, 100 years later at this point, and low-calorie beers have come a long way. What do I know, to be honest. I don’t drink beer because I am watching my girlish figure; I drink because it turns down the volume on the howler monkeys who have built nests in my brain, I drink because it is habitually symbolic of a day’s end, and most importantly I drink because it tastes good.
This diet beer, surprisingly, tastes good! It tastes like a low-APV IPA, which is exactly what it is. And, as this spring has been setting us up to have a hot summer, I think a lower-APV, more refreshing beer really hits the spot. And, let’s face it, cutting down on liquid calories is always a pretty good idea.
