The Fall beers are coming.
Let’s just imagine there are a bunch of colorful leaves behind that beer in the picture. As a matter of fact, why don’t you photoshop some pretty fall foliage in for me. I tried to do it myself, but I’m not that computer savvy. I know it’s only August and summer is still in full swing, but the fall beers are coming. Some of them are actually hitting the shelves right now. Fall beers. In August. For whatever reason, a lot of breweries like to run their seasonal beers a couple of months ahead of schedule. Like when Walmart puts out the Halloween decorations before Labor Day.
I’d like to bitch about the breweries jumping the gun, but how can I complain about a fresh crop of new beers hitting the shelves? Sure, we’re still enjoying daylight savings, and I’m probably going to hit the river this weekend, but bring on the Oktoberfests and the Smoked Porters!
I picked up New Belgium’s newest beer, Tour de Fall, this week to honor the new crop of beers, and it’s actually the perfect way to dip your toe into fall. Because it’s not your typical fall beer at all. It’s a pale ale—the under appreciated backbone of the American craft brewing industry. Lighter in body, lower in alcohol content and easier to drink, pales are cornerstone beers, maybe a spring or summer seasonal, but not your standard fall fare. Personally, I think it’s refreshing to find a new pale on the shelves this time of year.
And Tour De Fall is definitely refreshing. It smells like a box of oranges, has a hearty malt backbone, and a zesty finish from the Cascade and Amarillo hops. And each bottle has a handy calendar that outlines New Belgium’s Clips Beer and Film Tour—a roving festival that combines fan films with some of New Belgium’s most ambitious beers. Heads up—it’s coming to the South in September. When summer actually transitions to fall.
