Try?
I really love my
beer. And every now and then, when the mood strikes me, I enjoy a glass of
hard cider, too. That being the case, it seems a natural that I enjoy the
occasional beer made with apples too, a fusion of beer and cider if you
will. Tonight, while making the beer shopping rounds, I picked up just such
a brew in the form of Leinenkugel’s Apple Spice.
Leinekugel is, of course, a subsidiary of Miller, but they manage to keep their regional brewing heritage alive in the diverse assortment of beers they still produce. Apple Spice is one of them, a fall seasonal available beginning in October until it sells out.
Leinekugel makes the beer with a lot of apples, 2000 pounds per batch as they say. The base beer is a wheat brew \made with wheat and pale barley malt. They use Cluster hops to balance the sweetness of the apple a bit, and the end beer is just under 5% alcohol by volume.
Leinenkugel Apple Spice pours to a pale straw color lightly tinged with gold. A soft spritzy head forms atop my glass, and an overwhelming cider-apple aroma is hard to miss in the nose. Fresh apples dominate the palate as well, with a crisp McIntosh-Red Delicious flavor that is pronounced either ice cold or as the beer warms. Served well chilled, this is one dangerously drinkable brew.
Best to allow the beer to warm, however, and you’ll better appreciate the gentle notes of cinnamon. They help to dry the beer a bit in the finish (you really don’t get much hops, as the brewer intended). Overall, there’s a very cidery flavor here as one might expect, accented nicely with spice.
I liked the beer cold and lightly warmed, but you can actually take this one a step further. Leinenkugel recommends trying their Apple Spice heated. And why not? I often enjoy a hot glass of Unibroue’s Quelque Chose on a cold winter night. Hot “mulled” cider is a holiday favorite with clove and a stick of cinnamon.
So, I zapped a half a glass in the microwave for thirty seconds. The results were very good, with the apple and spice flavors really coming out nicely. And that's the interesting thing about this beer-it could be enjoyed equally well ice cold on a hot summer day or heated on a cold winter's night.
Hey, I just love the fresh apple flavor here. Try it, cold or hot. It’s a pleasant, refreshing, and distinctive beer and something a little different for your fall drinking pleasure.
Leinekugel is, of course, a subsidiary of Miller, but they manage to keep their regional brewing heritage alive in the diverse assortment of beers they still produce. Apple Spice is one of them, a fall seasonal available beginning in October until it sells out.
Leinekugel makes the beer with a lot of apples, 2000 pounds per batch as they say. The base beer is a wheat brew \made with wheat and pale barley malt. They use Cluster hops to balance the sweetness of the apple a bit, and the end beer is just under 5% alcohol by volume.
Leinenkugel Apple Spice pours to a pale straw color lightly tinged with gold. A soft spritzy head forms atop my glass, and an overwhelming cider-apple aroma is hard to miss in the nose. Fresh apples dominate the palate as well, with a crisp McIntosh-Red Delicious flavor that is pronounced either ice cold or as the beer warms. Served well chilled, this is one dangerously drinkable brew.
Best to allow the beer to warm, however, and you’ll better appreciate the gentle notes of cinnamon. They help to dry the beer a bit in the finish (you really don’t get much hops, as the brewer intended). Overall, there’s a very cidery flavor here as one might expect, accented nicely with spice.
I liked the beer cold and lightly warmed, but you can actually take this one a step further. Leinenkugel recommends trying their Apple Spice heated. And why not? I often enjoy a hot glass of Unibroue’s Quelque Chose on a cold winter night. Hot “mulled” cider is a holiday favorite with clove and a stick of cinnamon.
So, I zapped a half a glass in the microwave for thirty seconds. The results were very good, with the apple and spice flavors really coming out nicely. And that's the interesting thing about this beer-it could be enjoyed equally well ice cold on a hot summer day or heated on a cold winter's night.
Hey, I just love the fresh apple flavor here. Try it, cold or hot. It’s a pleasant, refreshing, and distinctive beer and something a little different for your fall drinking pleasure.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft
