Cooler Bar: Beers Of Summer
Your new favorite summer craft beer is right here
Country-wide, the best beer makers have released bracing brews that help beat the heat. With lower alcohol contents and refreshing ingredients like pineapple and exotic hops, these beers, ciders and meads slake summer thirst and can be sipped all day long.
Here, you'll find seven of the best new seasonal brews-plus pick up tips on how best to showcase them in appropriate glassware, courtesy of Crate and Barrel.
Warning: reading on may make you thirsty.
Founders Brewing Co. Mosaic Promise
A rich, golden beer with a clean finish, Mosaic Promise showcases Mosaic hops and Golden Promise malt, and its 5.5% ABV doesn't hit too hard. Show off the brew's lovely color by serving it in a tall, slender craft beer glass.
How to Serve: Craft Beer Glass, $4.95
Tallgrass Brewing Co. Half-Pipe Tart Pale Ale
Sour beers are a classic summer pick: Their tart, citrusy notes cut right through the richness of grill favorites like burgers and ribs. Tallgrass's Half-Pipe is a perfect example of the genre. Soured with lactobacillus and dry-hopped, it's a bright and drinkable sour with a moderate 5% ABV. Serve the generous 16-ounce can in a handsome Bruges beer glass for the ideal pour.
How to Serve: Bruges Beer Glass, $6.95
Toppling Goliath Watershed Wheat
Made with American wheat in Decorah, Iowa, Toppling Goliath's excellent witbier packs a forceful 5.8% ABV but drinks clean and crisp. For glassware, there's only one choice: a tall, shapely and classic wheat beer glass.
How to Serve: Wheat Beer Glass, $9.95
Uinta Brewing Sum'r Summer Ale
A fresh, fruity organic ale made with Japanese Sorachi hops, this Salt Lake City-brewed draft is worth tracking down. An ideal match for grilled and spicy foods—and eminently drinkable at only 4% ABV—Sum'r is best shown off in a 12-ounce glass for a perfect fit that also exposes the ale's rich aromas.
How to Serve: Half Pint Glass Tumbler with Crown, $2.95
Elysian Brewing Hawaiian Sunburn
Fruit and spice aren't always welcome in a beer, but when it works, the combination can really work. That's the case with this off-the-rails sour from Seattle's Elysian Brewing, which gets a sprinkle of habanero powder pre-fermentation and dose of pineapple concentrate post. The tart, fruity and fiery brew comes in a 22-ounce bottle: Choose an extra-large glass that will accommodate this unique ale.
How to Serve: Portland 22 oz. Beer Glass, $4.95
Terrapin Beer Co. Maggie's Farmhouse Ale
Speaking of fruity, seekers of produce-packed summer ales should look for this peachy ale from Athens, Georgia, brewery Terrapin. For each hundred-barrel batch of the frothy brew, Terrapin adds 1,000 pounds of its home state's treasured sweet orbs. The resulting farmhouse-style ale isn't too sweet: Well-balanced with American hops and four types of malt, it's a medium-ABV ale that's perfect for late-afternoon sipping. A 12-ounce can glass is perfectly proportioned to hold a can of this golden elixir.
How to Serve: Can Glass, $3.95
Abita Seersucker Summer Pils
A traditional pilsner that ably balances full-bodied maltiness with hoppy bitterness, NOLA brewery Abita's crisp summer selection goes down easy on a hot afternoon. With a gentle 4.8% ABV, the light golden pilsner is a good choice for daylong sipping. Pour this refreshing beer into a traditional pilsner glass to enjoy it to the fullest.
How to Serve: Direction 17 oz. Pilsner Beer Glass, $9.95
Crate and Barrel provided the products featured here and sponsored this post.