What to Drink This Weekend: A Beer That Will Trick You Into Thinking It’s Summer
A few months ago, I wrote about Lagunitas Brewing’s Daytime IPA, an extremely light, crisp beer that seemed tailor-made for those long summer days spent sitting on rooftops or in backyards, when you open your first beer around 2pm and don’t open your last one until much, much later. It was weird, though, that it was a limited release that was only available in October, just as we’d shifted our focus to the heartier beers of fall and the coming winter.
More appropriately timed, then, is the arrival of the similarly named All Day IPA from Founders Brewing, a 4.7% beer whose M.O. is pretty much the same: low alcohol and lots of flavor—a session beer for people who generally favor the more aggressive American IPA over more agreeable fare like pilsners and lagers.
Due to a hop shortage when the beer was first produced last February, its initial distribution was limited to just Michigan, Chicago, North Carolina and Ohio, so this is the first time its ever made its way to New York. In fact, Brooklyn’s very first keg of it was tapped at The Gate last night at midnight.
All Day pours a nice orangey gold, with a rather small head of sudsy foam that dissipates fairly quickly. It’s totally clear, with tons of carbonation streaming off the bottom of the glass. The aroma is immediately inviting, a sudden blast of citrusy grapefruit and tropical notes. The taste is a bit more subdued and complex: that fruitiness still dominates, but there’s a good amount of bitterness and just enough sweetness present to take the edge off all the strong flavors. It’s the sweetness that, for me anyway, sets it apart from the Lagunitas version.
It’ll be available at better beer stores all over Brooklyn in 6-packs for around $15. We recommend American at 256 Court Street in Carroll Gardens.
