Sam Adams quenches thirst with four new summer beers

In the beer world, seasons are different than in the real world. So, with spring finally arriving, summer beers are beginning to pop up in liquor store coolers and shelves.

Every new season brings a host of new Samuel Adams beers, and this year is no different. The Boston-based Sam Adams has four new summer beers they’re introducing this year.

The best is the new Samuel Adams Hoppy Wheat Ale, a 5.5 percent alcohol by volume (ABV) hopped-up wheat ale (hence the name). It is brewed with Zeus, Centennial, Citra and Chinook hops.

If you read this column frequently or follow me on social media, you’ll know I’m generally a fan of Samuel Adams’ beers, except their wheat beers. Most fall flat.

Not the Hoppy Wheat Ale. The hops provide a lot of citrus and grapefruit flavors. It’s a crisp, easy drinking beer that is rather enjoyable. It’s the kind of beer you could drink several of.

The Hoppy Wheat Ale is available exclusively in the Samuel Adams Beers of Summer Can Variety pack, along with Sam ’76 and Porch Rocker.

The three other new summer beers are part of the Samuel Adams American Summer Variety 12-pack, which also features Boston Lager, Summer Ale and Hefeweizen.

The Samuel Adams Golden Ale is a 5 percent ABV ale brewed with Cascade hops. It’s a simple beer with some bread-like malt flavor and some floral hops. It’s a lighter beer, perfect for a hot day. There’s nothing wrong with the beer, but it is kind of on the boring side.

Also joining the American Summer Pack is the Samuel Adams Pale Ale, a 5.4 percent ABV pale ale brewed with Centennial and Cascade hops.

This is a throwback beer. So many modern tales are IPAs in all but name. And like many newer IPAs, they’re juicy and hazy.

The Samuel Adams Pale Ale is more of a classic take on the style – there’s bitterness along with piney and citrusy flavors. Overall, I enjoyed this.

The third new beer is the Samuel Adams Raspberry Lemon Gose. A gose is a style of German wheat beer that is brewed with coriander and salt and is typically sour or tart.

This version is brewed with raspberry, and it’s the only beer I haven’t tried yet. Samuel Adams said, “The real twist on this classic style comes from the addition of raspberry and lemon, which contribute a blast of bright, tart fruit and tanginess to this effervescent brew.”

All four beers are currently available.

In other news, City Tap House, 10 Boston Wharf Road, Boston, is hosting an event designed for sour beer lovers.

“April Sours Brings May Flowers” begins on Monday and will continue through May 6. The event will feature as many as 40 different sour beers being tapped throughout the week. Breweries included are Cascade Brewery of Washington, Upland Brewing Company of Indiana, and Crooked Stave Beer Project and Grimm Brothers Brewhouse, both of Colorado.

On the first night, there will be a complimentary sour candy bar to pair with your sour beer. Sour beer lovers rejoice!

Norman Miller is a staff writer for MetroWest Daily News, a sister paper of the T&G.  Check out the Beer Nut blog at http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/section/blogs01?taxid=646&start=2.