CraftBeer.com Quenches Summer Thirst with List of Craft Brewers’ Seasonals

Boulder, CO • May 24, 2016—As summer quickly approaches, a few things come to mind–beaches, cookouts, baseball games and enjoying the great outdoors with family and friends. None of those are complete without craft beer.  That’s why CraftBeer.com—the Brewers Association (BA) website for beer lovers— has released its list of summer seasonals produced by small and independent craft brewers throughout the country.

Summer seasonals are typically the second largest seasonal (behind fall), and seasonals are the second largest style category behind all India Pale Ale (IPA) styles combined.  Last year, during the 13 weeks leading up to September 6, summer seasonals accounted for 14% of volume in scan data from off-premise sales (source: IRI Group).

“Small and independent craft brewers continue to lead when it comes to releasing some truly rewarding summer seasonals,” said Julia Herz, publisher of CraftBeer.com. “These beers are as versatile to pair with good times outside as with what’s on the summer menu at your local restaurant and at home.

Most of the summer seasonals featured in this list are lighter in body and aim to be refreshing and more sessionable. Additionally, there is frequent use of fruit, especially citrus, in many of these selections. Not only is summer the peak season for a lot of fruits, the lighter beer styles associated with summer lend themselves nicely to highlighting fruit flavors, rather than overpowering their subtlety.

A selection of summer seasonals includes:

·         Brenner Brewing Co. | Butterfly Farts | citrus ale | Milwaukee, WI

·         Arcadia Brewing Co. | Cheap Date | session ale | Kalamazoo, MI

·         Perrin Brewing Co. | Grapefruit IPA | Comstock Park, MI

·         Public House Brewing Co. | Thorn & Heat Strawberry Wheat Ale | St. James, MO

·         Burnt City Brewing | Retrofit Lime Radler | Chicago, IL

·         Fiction Beer Co. | Do Not Touch the Flamingos | apricot saison | Denver, CO

·         Meadowlark Brewing | Teddy Roosevelt American Badass | oak-aged imperial wheat IPA | Sidney, MT

·         Kannah Creek Brewing Co. | Apricot Sour | Grand Junction, CO

·         Squatters Craft Beers | Bumper Crop Honey Lavender Ale | Salt Lake City, UT

·         Carver Brewing Co. | Garden Brau Hefeweizen | Durango, CO

·         Dogfish Head | Festina Peche | neo-Berliner Weisse | Milton, DE

·         Cricket Hill Brewing Co. | Jersey Summer Breakfast Ale | Belgian blond session | Fairfield, NJ

·         Spellbound Brewing | Peach IPA | Mount Holly, NJ

·         Coronado Brewing Co. | Berry the Hatchet | ale brewed with berries | Coronado, CA

·         High Water Brewing | Cucumber Kolsch | Pittsburg, CA

·         Tin Roof Brewing Co. | Not Too Sweet Watermelon Wheat | Baton Rouge, LA

·         SweetWater Brewing Co. | Goin’ Coastal IPA with Pineapple | Atlanta, GA

·         Avondale Brewing Co. | Strawberry Kolsch | Birmingham, AL

Refuel & Refresh with the Right Pairing

"As summer nears and the farmers markets begin to overflow with tomatoes, tender greens, fava beans, peas, peaches and more, our palates shift to wanting lighter, refreshing beverages,” said Adam Dulye, Brewers Association Executive Chef. “This summer you’ll see many lighter styles including pilsner, kolsch, gose and wheat beers to bring relief to your palate.”

To add to the bliss of the season, Chef Dulye has specially created this recipe that perfectly pairs with these summer beers.

Courtsey of Craftbeer.com & Brewers Association

Read CraftBeer.com’s 2016 Summer Seasonals for the leading list of seasonal selections and descriptions. To round out the experience consider seeking out seasonal craft beers at your local neighborhood brewery and taking a tour.

About the Brewers Association

The Brewers Association is the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers, their beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts. The Brewers Association (BA) represents more than 70 percent of the brewing industry, and its members make more than 99 percent of the beer brewed in the U.S. The BA organizes events including the World Beer Cup^SM, Great American Beer Festival^®, Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America^®, SAVOR℠: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience, AHA National Homebrewers Conference, National Homebrew Competition and American Craft Beer Week^®. The BA publishes The New Brewer magazine and its Brewers Publications division is the largest publisher of contemporary and relevant brewing literature for today’s craft brewers and homebrewers.

Beer lovers are invited to learn more about the dynamic world of craft beer at CraftBeer.com and about homebrewing via the BA’s American Homebrewers Association. Follow us on Twitter.