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Tasting Summit Patio Perfection Like a Craft Brewer

In the world of craft beer, IPAs are king. While true that these beers can be very complex, due to the sheer number of hops packed into them, there are several other styles that are just as exciting in their subtly.

One of these is gose.

This also happens to be the style of our latest beer, Summit Patio Perfection. So, you guessed it, our next “Taste Like a Craft Brewer” will be all about this brand new brew.

Patio Perfection is one of two exclusives found inside our Summit Mixed Pack Dockside Edition. The pack is made up of four citrus-forward brews, and Patio Perfection brings the zesty flavors of salt and key lime.

To break down this beachy beauty, we turn to Head Brewer Mike Lundell, the mastermind behind the recipe. Read on for tips on how to taste specific notes in this gose-style and what additional flavors can be found in each sip.

Summit Mixed Pack Dockside Edition with Summit Cabin Crusher Kölsch-Style Ale with Lemon, Summit Slugfest Juicy IPA, Summit Triumphant Session IPA and Summit Patio Perfection.
(credit: Summit Brewing Co.)

For those who aren’t familiar with the style, how would you describe goses?

Goses are a light, unfiltered ale that have a low-to-medium body. They tend to have fruit added to them to give a tart flavor, so often you’ll see lime or lemon in these beers. What’s unique to this style is their refreshing saltiness.

Patio Perfection uses a new hop variety, Adeena. What does this hop add in terms of aromas and flavor?

This new strain is similar to noble European varietals, such as Fuggle, in that is has an herbal aroma. It can almost be spicy, think coriander. Goses are not a hop forward beer at all so we wanted to use hops that offered subtle aromas versus strong bitter flavors. Plus, we thought it would be fun to explore a new variety!

In your description of goses, you mention them being known for their saltiness. For some the idea of a salty beer may be off-putting. How would you describe the flavor of the salt in this beer?

Historically, goses are salty because of the high salinity in the brewing water of Goslar (where these beers are from). Nowadays, salt is added. However, it’s a very light flavor. Think a light salted margarita rim versus ocean water! The slight salt finish adds some fullness to the overall flavor.

Where should people expect to taste the salt in each sip?

Salt and sour flavors are generally tasted on the sides of the tongue, so this beer should hit there.

In additional to a new hop, Patio Perfection also utilizes two new souring agents to help amplify the tartness of the beer. Can you speak a bit about what these and how they came to be added to the recipe?

The souring agent was developed by Hawkins, a local company, who sampled many different sour beers. Using gas chromatography, they were able to isolate and identify certain acids present. They then used those acids to create blends to recreate the styles. We combined two of the blends in Patio Perfection.

With the souring agents, why use fruit to flavor the beer as well? Specifically, why use key lime instead of lemon or lime?

Lime, or citrus in general, accentuates the acidity of the beer. That’s why goses are generally made with a citrus fruit. We used key lime as a way to add a different flavor profile from some of our other beers on draught. Plus, it adds a bit of a tropical feeling that relates to the idea of escaping.

Are there any other notes that folks should be tasting outside of citrus, sour and salt?

The main notes folks are going to taste are the tart key lime and light saltness. Otherwise, a very slight sweetness from the malt backbone would be present at the very end.

Summit Mixed Pack Dockside Edition with Summit Patio Perfection Can on Pallet
(credit: Summit Brewing Co.)
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