The Year in Beer

Name: Whitewater IPA

Brewer: Samuel Adams (Boston Beer Co.), Boston, Mass.

By the numbers: 197 calories per 12 oz.; 5.8 percent alcohol by volume

Notes: This is the last of the new beers from the Brewer’s Choice box. (Side note: I was thrilled to find Brewer’s Choice cases at Sam’s Club and promptly picked up three of them. Now it’s Black Lagers that I have in abundance. Seriously, if they put Noble Pils and Boston Ale in this box instead of Black Lager and Irish Red, this would be a perfect case of beer). Anyway, this is a really interesting beer from Samuel Adams. A year ago, before they came out with Latitude IPA, they didn’t have any India Pale Ale in their lineup. Now they have two. And this one is a unique cross between a wheat beer and an IPA. It has the light malt flavor of a white ale and the hoppy bite of an IPA, with all of that flavor balanced out by the addition of apricots. It pours with a big piny aroma. The taste is bitter on the front and has a light sweetness from the apricots on the finish. It’s good. This one was the pick of Samuel Adams brewer Dean Giancostas.

Try it with: A Super Bowl party. I know that was last week, but the Brewer’s Choice collection was a hit at our party and we’ve got plenty left. Samuel Adams really outdid themselves with the inclusion of three new beers for spring. I can’t wait to see what comes next.

    — Posted by Mike Freimann