Friday Cheer! Elder Betty by Magic Hat

Summer demands refreshment. Light golden beers, crisp and cool. Maybe a little fruit slipped in to remind you it's in season.

Meet Magic Hat's Elder Betty beer, a weiss beer brewed with elderflower berries and a light touch of Apollo hops.  The six pack box issues their clever phrase: A golden haze for a summer's daze.  Yes, please. That's exactly what I was wanted.

Weiss beers are German-style wheat beers, named after the use of both wheat and the more traditional barley malt during brewing.  The use of wheat produces a pale and hazy appearance.  Weiss beers typically have low hoppiness, a malty flavor, and high carbonation.  They can also be called witbiers (wit = white in Dutch), and weizens or hefeweizens, depending on techniques or ingredients used.

White beers are great in the summer. Light, refreshing, and often mildly fruity or citrusy. Magic Hat's offering, Elder Betty, meets all these criteria. The elderberry flavor is incredibly subtle.  Since I've only tasted elderberries once before (in a non-St. Germain liquor format!), I don't have a quality reference point for the flavor.  

Overall, Elder Betty is tasty and refreshing beer for summer, with only the very mildest hint of a dark berry flavor. Not enough to throw you, if you're not a berry or fruit beer person.

Happy Friday!