The first beer from this box I tried was the ‘Brewer’s Choice’, which happened to be their Summer Session Ale.  I’ve had many summer ales, and I must admit that I’d never tried Peak’s; I was in for a surprise.  The last few summer ales that I’ve reviewed focused less on the fruit and more on the malt and hop.  Summer Session has a crisp clean taste, and I picked up on a citrus flavor in there making it quite refreshing.

Moving over to the Pale Ale this was some standard fair, and I was pleased to find that it was not an overpowering flavor.  It was smooth at times and bitter at others.  I don’t always seem to grab this style of beer, but I will say that this is one of the better pale ales that I’ve had in a while.  You also have the older brother to the pale ale, Peak’s IPA which was a bitter punch that I enjoyed.  Who would have thought Fair Trade Certified ingredients would be so potent?  This IPA was a surprise.

The last beer was the Nut Brown Ale, but don’t let the name throw you for a loop.  Most nut browns are lighter in body than traditional brown ales making them a little less heavy for this time of year.  This one was no exception and proved to be great match with grill fare.

Until now, any other Peak Organic brew I’ve tried was a specialty or one-off and never gave their flagship ales a try.  I’m glad I did; if you are looking for something, different give this pack a chance.

All you have to do is look out a window and see the seasons change in New England.  That used to be how I would gauge the change in climate, I have a new method now.  When I see a box on my doorstep from the folks at Narragansett, it must be a new seasonal brew, and I should start wearing lighter clothing.  Truth be told, waiting for me the other day were a few cans of their new Summer Ale.  I welcomed them in and thought to put them to work right away.

After some chill time in the fridge I opened one and poured it out into my big glass.  You can’t always appreciate a beer if you drink it from a can, and any excuse to use my big glass is a good one.  I admired the golden color and let the foam come to a rest before I had some.  These boys just flew in from Rhode Island and the least I could do was let them relax for a few minutes.

The wait was killing me so I started to drink and noticed there was a dry hop flavor to the beer.  I’m used to summer beers filled with fruit flavor or some kind of zest, so this one caught me a little off guard.  While I was expecting something with some more zing, it went in the other direction and reminded me of a pale ale.  It has far more body than the traditional namesake lager making it a good surprise.

Time passed and there were some bitter notes that started to shine through as well.  It wasn’t overpowering but would catch you off guard if you didn’t know they were coming.  I was impressed to drink a summer beer that didn’t have the normal characteristics of a standard summer beer.  If you are looking for something a little different, pick up a few and give them a try.  Be on the look out for the Father’s Day Ties; I got a special one sent to me, and I may be sporting in pretty soon.

Beer isn’t your thing?  Fill a glass with ice, add a shot or two of Jameson, and fill the rest with iced green tea.  Make sure the tea is sweetened and you’re guaranteed to have a good evening.

Not all pale ales are created equal and there is proof in this bottle.  I have had many different pale ales: some good, some bad and each a little different than the last.  Which brings me to this week’s beer. Oh, it looks like a normal pale ale, but don’t be fooled, there is something different about the taste of this brew.

For starters, this had a good copper color in the glass after it had been sitting in the fridge for a while.  Before I took a drink, I noticed the aroma of the beer was kind of strange.  I thought for a while and couldn’t place it, so I had a drink and found that it was bitter like a regular pale ale but there was that aroma lingering around.  The beer had a good dry taste and smoothed out over time and then I finally figured out the smell of the beer: green olives.  I don’t know how I came up with that, and that is the only thing I could smell and taste while I drank this beer.

After a while the bitter kept up and that seemed to overpower the bizarre olive notion I had, however the beer still smelled like olives.  This was not at all what I had expected to taste or smell from a pale ale, but since it comes from Maine I’ll cut them some slack.  Maine is also the same place where I had lobster ice cream last summer, so you know they are doing something right, but when it comes to some of their beers never expect the run-of-the-mill.

Maybe I got a funny bottle, or maybe this is how it should taste.  Either way, if you are looking for a pale ale that is unique, then I suggest you give this one a try. Just hold the pimento.

Just when I thought that I had every kind of fruit beer – blueberry, apricot, watermelon, strawberry, raspberry, snozberry – I find a mango flavored ale.  The part that really caught my attention was the fact that this was a pale ale and not some kind of lighter beer.  Most fruit beers focus on the fruit flavor and the beer is comparable to a hefewiezen or some other light bodied brew.  When you turn a pale ale into a fruit beer, you get my attention and then I have to drink, and drink I did.

First and foremost, this beer had a very strong mango aroma as soon as I cracked the cap.  I kept it cold, poured it in a normal pint glass and noticed the golden color; all the normal characteristics of a fruit beer.  I took a swig and there it was: the bitter.  There was the deception of mango sweetness for a few seconds then the pale ale takes over and you have that solid bitter you forgot about.  This beer was a true ‘bait and switch’ and I liked it.  You could really taste the mango all over this beer and the bitter aspect flared up at the right time to make it exciting.

Normal fruit beers can be a little boring since they are often a tamer brew; however, if you add the fruit to a pale ale, or even an IPA, you have a more exciting brew.  This was a random find and I was skeptical at how the mango would play out but I was impressed.  The only reservation I have with most fruit ales, or maybe bottled beers, is the high amounts of carbonation.  I find myself swirling my glass a lot to cut the carbonation down and really enjoy the flavors.  Be careful if you have too many of these — you’ll be wearing a grass skirt in no time.

Here we are folks, the fruits of my labor, my very own beer.  To be honest I’ve already had a few bottles, I just wanted to make sure they tasted better than the first one I opened.  My problem was that I opened it too soon and should have given it another day or so.  I did find that if this sits in the fridge for a day or two it helps with the flavor.

This is your basic pale ale, refreshing with a very crisp taste.  I actually was impressed with the quality of product that was produced, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  I’ve taken the advice of the booklet and placed a bottle in a cold storage area where it will sit for a while to try ‘lagering’, I just hope the bottle doesn’t explode.

Part of my concern was the use of plastic bottles; I had a feeling that the beer would not taste as good had it been placed in glass.  That fear has been washed away, and I’m not worried about using plastic but I have found some glass bottles to use for the next time.

This beer has a light body and good color making it too easy to drink.  I found that letting it sit in the fridge for a bit helped reduce some of the carbonation.  If there is one thing I can’t stand, it is beer that is over-carbonated, it reminds me of soda and takes away from the beer.

I was happy with the results of my beer and am looking forward to making another one in the coming weeks, once I finish this off.  My only advice is this: make sure the beer you are going to embark on is one you won’t get sick of quickly, you’ll have plenty to drink.

Enough time has passed, and I thought it wise to review a Dogfish Head beer, since I enjoy most of their brews so much.  A while back I tried this pale ale, and I was surprised in the best way possible.  When it comes to pale ales, I find some of them can be hit or miss.  Overall many taste the same, though some stand out, but it is hard to strike that balance between too bitter and not bitter enough.  Enter Dogfish Head.

This pale was a 5% and had been in the fridge for a short amount of time before pouring.  At first sip I got a solid bitter bite, and I was almost fearful that this would be a lot more bitter than I had planned.  As it turned out this wasn’t so bad after all, and once the beer hit room temperature the flavor evened out.  Sometimes you’ll get a pale ale that only intensifies as it gets warmer, not here.

There was only a little bit left in my glass when I decided to give it the ice cream, and once again, it tasted delicious.  Vanilla ice cream and bitter beers are a must, all you need is a spoonful or two in a few ounces.  Stir it, let the sugars bubble, and voila, dessert.  I can’t take all the credit for coming up with ice cream and beer since I read it in another blog a few years ago, but you can give me some credit if you’d like.

Yet another Dogfish Head beer I have conquered, and you should, too.  I still have my 120 Minute IPA in the basement, but I should work my way up to that.  Until then, give this a shot if you want something less scary.