I’ve been on something of a beer-buying binge this May and June and have enjoyed more than my fair share of new releases and old favorites. I know this because my recycle bin has been filling up faster than usual – that’s always a sure-fire way to measure.
Between mowing the lawn and grilling out – or any ordinary sunny day – there’s no shortage of excuses to pop a cold one while working or cooking. And my fence-mounted bottle opener makes this all too easy. The best part: the magnet just below catches those pesky caps. It works so well, my wife insists on opening my bottles for me just to watch the magnet snatch the caps out of mid-air. (Now that’s service!)
As the temperatures rise and summer settles in – the first day of summer has officially arrived! – here are a few late springtime/early summer favorites for 2014.
– Newcastle Bombshell English Pale Ale. The famous British brown ale brewery brings back their spring seasonal, with moderately successful results (the original is still better).
– New Belgium’s Summer Helles Lager. Helles-style (light colored) lager is the Big New Thing for American microbreweries. Think Spaten or, my favorite, Weihenstephaner Original.
– Old Bust Head Brewing Company’s Bust Head English Pale Ale. A decidedly American take on the English pale ale that’s brewed in nearby Fauquier County, VA.
– Great Lakes Brewing Company Eliot Ness Amber Lager. I’m a sucker for Great Lakes Brewing’s mellow, full bodied lager (as well as its Burning River Pale Ale). It’s a great brew from my home state of Ohio (yet it’s from Cleveland, so, some pluses and minuses).
The Hip Flask 