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Summer Sips – Allagash White

August 3rd, 2009

Dear Readers,

You may or may not have noticed that I seem to be doing a lot of sipping and very little cooking lately.  Here in Maine, we have had a woefully rainy summer with bits and spurts of hot, humid sunshine.  With three children underfoot, my kitchen has not been a very exciting place.

We had a few weeks of recipe testing holiday teacher gifts but other than that I have been relying on old standards.  We have not grilled nearly enough, farm strawberries were pretty but not jam worthy and I am still enjoying farmer’s market sugar snap peas in August!

Why so many seasonal beverages you might ask?  I guess I am trying to fool myself into summer by sipping summery drinks.  After all, nothing tastes like summer like a ice cold gin and tonic.  I digress, let us move onto  Allagash White, a fantastic, Belgian-style wheat beer brewed right here in Portland, Maine.

I first tasted wheat beer back at Cornell.  It was a German wheat beer and yes, I was taking a beer class.  Hotel school is tough work, but someone has to run the hospitality industry.  Allagash White is one of my all-time faves; it screams of summer.  Great as an apératif, Allagash White also works well with summer salads, lobster and chicken or pork on the grill.

Savvy flavoristas should know that wheat beer is sometimes garnished with a slice of lemon or orange.  I can assure you that limes also work well.  A fruit garnish is not necessary, but it is a tasty, pretty accent to a great glass of beer.

So sit back, sip away and enjoy what is left of summer!

Entry Filed under: In Season,Libations