A couple months ago we began noticing an interesting trend. People who used to bring light beer to a party were now bringing Blue Moon, a witbier made by Coors. For us this is both good and bad. It's good because people are looking beyond a typical light beer, but we felt like people were missing out on so much. The selection of witbiers made by craft breweries is quite vast and we wanted to help showcase some of the other options out there. In our minds there were much better offerings than Blue Moon, but we wanted to see what other people thought.

Above: One of ourt tasters takes notes

Hi all,

Some exciting news from DCB, we'll be hosting our first tasting May 30th at Bauer Wine and Spirits. Nick, the beer manager has been kind enough to allow us to use his store to let us share some great beers with you.

DCB's May Tasting will feature a Spring theme and include the following beers for your enjoyment:

Southampton Double White 7%abv

Appearance:Pours with about 1 1/2" of pillowy head, translucent hazy light straw
Smell: Smells like spring and that's why we like it; hints of fresh hay and orange zest (that's a good thing to us).

Taste: Very light and effervescent on the tongue with a mild but not overwhelming sweetness and hints of banana. This is slightly sweeter than your average Belgian Wit, but given that it’s a Double Wit that’s to be expected.

Special Note: Drink this cold, it doesn’t taste nearly as good if it warms up.

Why We Like It:

1. Very refreshing on a warm day

2. At $10 a 6 pack this is actually a bargain given its 7% alcohol

3. It’s a double wit in a 6 pack…enough said.

Dupont Organic Foret Saison 7.5%abv

Appearance: Pours with about 2” of bone white fluffy head, Opaque orange
Smell: Smells pleasantly earthy…with a hint of spice

Taste: Tastes crisp and a little spicy with a slightly funky aftertaste found in most of our favorite saisons.

For those not familiar with Saisons, they were historically brewed in Belgium during the spring for farm workers to quench their thirst. Because they were brewed before refrigeration this meant they were fermented at higher temperatures, causing a slight funk in the beer. Hell, if it was good enough to quench farm workers' thirst back in the day, it’s good enough to quench ours!

Why We Like It:

1. A very accessible classic saison

2. Crisp and refreshing; those farmers knew what they were talking about

3. A great beer if you want to impress or just share with some friends

Oskar Blue’s Dale’s Pale Ale 6.5%abv

Appearance: Pours a clear dark amber.
Smell: Lots of hops...mmmm hops

Taste: Make no mistake this is a hoppy pale ale. In fact if we’re being honest its really closer to an IPA. The hops are balanced by a nice bready malt undertone which makes this beer crisp and delicious.

Spring for us just isn’t right without a great pale ale, and what’s better than a great pale ale that’s also in a can. This beer just screams bbq and beach days.

1. It’s a great crisp pale ale the walks the fine line between pale ale and IPA. Oh, and it comes in a can.

2. This beer actually still tastes good if it warms up a little so bring this one to the beach. Cans are great on the beach too.

3. Did we mention it comes in a can?

New England Brewing Company Atlantic Amber 5%abv

Appearance: Pours dark amber with a reddish hue and an inch of off-white head.
Smell: Very mild, very slight hint of hops, light malt

Taste: Slightly sweet malt. Very easy drinking. Barely there hops to balance the sweet. This is just a very smooth, easy drinking beer. Grab a sixer for yourself, and then another to share with friends.

Why We Like It:

1. Simple easy drinking beer.

2. A nice departure from hoppier beers, but not bland like light beer.

3. Did we mention we like beer in cans?

Click here to check for more info and updates. 

When: Wed May 30th 5-7pm

Where:
Bauer Wine & Spirits
330 Newbury Street
Boston, MA 02115

We hope to see you there!

Cheers!  

In conjunction with our article, "A Battle Of Wits: Craft Beer Takes On Blue Moon", we're featuring 3 witbiers for your enjoyment. Summer is winding down, but it's not over. With a holiday weekend approaching we wanted to give you sampling of great summer beers that go down easy.

This month's tasting will be held on August 30th at Bauer Wine and Spirits on Newbury St from 5-7pm.

So, without further ado, we present you with our August selections!

Avery White Rascal
Appearance: White cloudy fluffy head; it's like Bob Ross in a pint glass...happy little clouds. Hazy very light straw color.
Smell: Light banana, wheaty

Taste: This beer is nice and light with smooth earthy tones. It's falvorful without being heaving in any way and is just plain refreshing. There is a nice wheat balance in this beer that makes it smooth. In short, this beer rocks, despite the creepy dude (rascal?) on the label.

Why we like it:
1. It's wonderfully refreshing... it's 93 degrees on the porch and this hits the spot
2. Lots of flavor for a light colored beer
3. It won the taste test












Allagash White
Appearance: Golden Hazy
Smell: Lots of wheat and a slight hint of banana

Taste: More body than many wits we've tasted. Quite dry, hint of lemon. Strong wheat finish. You'd be hard pressed to find someone who doesn't enjoy this beer.

Why we like it:
1. Another nice wit, simply put
2. Very easy drinking... We could certainly have a few
3. It's still really hot out and this helps















Otter Creek White Sail
Appearance: Very light very clear for style, white fluffy head
Smell: Sweet, lightly citrusy, wheat

Taste: Nice light orange flavor. Its the flavor we wish the whittier white had pulled off. And just by chance, we also happened drink this on another 90 deree day and it went down VERY easy. This may not have been in our blind taste test, but that doesn't mean it isn't every bit as good as the ones that were.

Why we like it:
1. Breaks a bit from style, not too hazy, and tastes a bit more like a regular ale with bit of wheat rather than a "wheat beer"
2. Nice citrus flavor without being overwhelming.
3. It tastes different and after trying a bunch of witbiers, that's nice