Sprecher Brewing Co.
Glendale, WI
Available: CA, NY, IL, OH, MN, MI, WI
Celebrating its 25th year, Sprecher Brewing Co. was Milwaukee’s first microbrewery since Prohibition. Sprecher makes over 20 beers, including two gluten-free African-style brews.
ABV: 6.52
ABW: 4.38
Color: 36
Bitterness: 19.3
Original gravity: 1066
For its Silver Anniversary, Sprecher has brewed a beer that truly shines. First, it's a looker: A clear, dark mahogany in color with a quickly receding, khaki-colored head. Dark fruit—cherries, figs and dates—dominate the initial aromas, dancing nimbly with a toffee sweetness and—dare I say it?—a touch of malted milk balls. The flavors follow suit, with pears and prunes joining in the minuet. The alcohol, although evident, is nicely cloaked. This velvety beer is more robust than most American-made Belgian-style dubbels. Make sure to put a few away for cellaring, as this promises to age quite well—and would make a wonderful contribution to your Thanksgiving table.
At 6.5% ABV and deep ruby in colour, this threatens to be a heavy, malty beer. But it’s not. Instead, it’s light, airy, crisp and fresh with a big taste of over-ripe bananas and toffee, supported by some dried vine fruits. The banana hits you straight from the pour and lingers right through to the dry, increasingly bitter finish, which means you could really have some fun pairing this with food. Banana fritters hardly need to be mentioned, but that fruity contrast could also work really well with curry. A fine, easy-to-drink beer.
Lisa Morrison, aka The Beer Goddess, writes about beer whenever she can and also gets to talk about it on a weekly radio show in her hometown of Portland, OR.
Author of the Good Bottled Beer Guide and The Book of Beer Knowledge, Jeff Evans is an eight-time editor of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide and one of Britain's best-known beer writers.
