Walking On The Sun
Sun King Brewing Company

Calling all heat seekers, the search for spice doesn't end with food any longer. The strong capsaicin effects of Sun King Brewing Company's cream ale. The combination of habanero, jalapeño, ghost and cayenne aligns on the tongue with the strength that no amount of cream in this cream ale can contend.

Pale gold and slight of amber, the hazy beer releases a light and creamy swirl on top. Cereal, grain and vegetation tease the nose with the twinge of peppers that seem cumin and chili powder-like. Sweet on the early palate, hints of honey, cream, vanilla, cereal and fresh bread calm the senses ahead of the storm.

The middle palate has the ale releasing much of its bready sweetness just as the hops and chilies settle onto the tastebuds. Citrus, herb and pine give the ale a familiar balance to the malt and cereal grain, but the vegetative taste of pepper additions seem of the bell pepper, grassy and green bean ilk. Bitterness rises to a moderate level, but the story of the beer is the growing heat that soon overwhelms the hops and malt to provide a strong kick to the palate.

Medium bodied but seeming lighter on the finish from the spice, hops and fleeting malt textures, Elements of creamed corn continue to add a mild semblance of support for a grapefruit and tar-like spice deep into aftertaste with a stern simmer of capsaicin warmth that provides an uncomfortably long afterglow.

 

 

 

grabbed at the brewery 2 weeks ago, popping the growler tonight.

poured cold from the growler a slightly copper tinted sunlight gold to a sun king shaped pint glass with a nice 1/2 finger frothy short lasting white head with minimal retention.

subtle aroma of grain and sweet malt, nearly identical aroma as the sunlight cream ale.

spicy hot tang to the sides of the tongue, the roof of the mouth and all the way down the hatch. as advertised, its all about the hot peppers. very interesting.

smooth, creamy, spicy hot.

drinkable - hmm, yeah, but maybe a pint of two til the novelty wears off and your mouth is asking for a break from the heat.

Got to try this one thanks to Lukafer. Here is the back story and review for your pleasure:

So last Saturday I am sitting at this dive club in South Bend waiting to figure out where my band (this old school rock/rockabilly/psychobilly sound) is going to fit in with the other 9 bands playing that night for a "Punk vs. Metal" show. In comes Luke from out of town since his band is also playing. We played and well had a good showing while playing. Anyways, Luke informs me of this growler his fiance picked up the day before at Sun King. It wasn't what she was looking for and went home to find this out first hand. Luckly me Luke brought it up with him for me to try. Then I find out it's a beer brewed with peppers. Sweetness! Well I think at least. So Luke gives us a hand loading up our equipment. It's raining outside and just downright cold. We get stuck having to stand outside waiting to figure out where the keys were so we could lock up the car. He tells me he has the growler in the car and goes and gets it. I unscrew the cap and there is a loud hiss...well good thing there's carbonation to it! haha. I didn't get the apperance of the beer at all since it was drank out of the growler. So in all fairness I will just give it average. I took a sniff out of the growler and I was kind of surprised. Some light grainy smell with a nice big hint of peppers. There is some earthy grassy hop hints in the background. Not bad at all and kind of inviting. I lifted the growler to my lips and wondered how Luke and I went from drinking shitty 40's or PBR out in parking lots at punk shows to now be sneaking in Coffee Bender or now this growler. So I take a nice sized drink at first. Not bad..some light grainy tastes with a light bready malt. Some light grassy hops and as soon as the liquid hit the back of the mouth the peppers kicked in high gear. There was a nice big heat that burned in the throat and some light stale hops are added into the mix for good measure. After the inital first shock of this beer I took another drink before passing it off to Luke. The mouthfeel was light. Carbonation was a little on the light side than what I think it should have been which was understandable. Lots of light pale malts and peppers everywhere on the palate and aftertaste. The palate is lightly dried from the alcohol. The backend of the mouth and throat had some pepper burn to it in a good way. Flavors were pretty well balanced I thought overall and it tasted crisp and clean. Luke and I kept passing this growler to each other as the rain was pouring down and we were getting soaked. I had no problem drinking it and wish actually that I had more. I was pretty stoked that he brought this up for me to try. His band played later that night and I forgot how much I dig them. It's been awhile since they played so that was my excuse. Later that same night we were spotted outside in the rain drinking some Short's PB&J Stout. How punk rock is that?

This is a hot-pepper-infused version of the brewery's Sunlight Cream Ale. Sampled 12/11/2010 at the brewery.

Color is bright golden-straw, clear, with a frothy white head.

Quite mild on the nose, subtle grains, a slightly spicy vegetal hint. A little grassy. Eh.

On the palate it's another story. Bright and vegetal and spicy. A bit of a burn. I don't know that I can taste the cream ale underneath, but I also don't know that there's any need to. Very different than chile beers made with dried peppers. Apparently the cream ale is filtered through a container with a maceration of ghost, habanero, and one other hot pepper before being kegged; the flavor certainly shows the freshness of the peppers. Well worth a try.