Summertime Seedless
DuClaw Brewing Co.

 

 

DuClaw Brewing Co. "Summertime Seedless"
12 fl. oz. can coded "SUMM-22-022621 CANNED ON03/26/21"
$2.79 @ Total Wine & More, Cherry Hill, NJ

Notes via stream of consciousness: A rough pour has brought up an inch and a quarter or so of white foam atop a very hazy golden body. The aroma is sweetish, fruity, and hoppy. It's really quite interesting because it's not at all what you'd think of from a sour watermelon beer. Firstly, I don't get watermelon. Secondly, it doesn't have the ususal suggestion of acidity and mineral character that so many sour beers do. There's something there, yes, but it doesn't really let you know that it's going to be sour, and honestly, I don't even know that it is because I haven't tasted it yet. Thirdly, there's more going on in the nose than you'd expect unless of course it's made with Brettanomyces. I get a little touch of that metallic twang that you sometimes find, and it's surprisingly vinous. Ahh, I just got a whiff of the watermelon combined with some citrus, and some earthiness and grassiness. I'm pretty excited to taste this and I hope it's not a letdown. First I should note that the head has dropped and all I have left is a thin collar around the glass, and there's no lacing left behind. That's to be expected of sour beers but let's find out just how sour it is... well it's not that sour although I would definitely call it tart. Mildly tart. The watermelon is clearly there, but again there's a whole lot of other notes in play as well. For one, although this is seedless I feel like I'm tasting some watermelon seed in it. It's got a definite kind of earthy, lightly vegetal note. That doesn't bother me though, and I think it actually helps as it lends contrast to the fruitiness of which there is plenty. The first things I'm finding are lychee, gooseberry, apple, blended citrus (lime, lemon, grapefruit), and kiwi. It's an odd but intriguing blend and I'm now wondering how they did it. It doesn't seem like Brettanomyces, nor does it seem like lactobacillus. There's a little bitterness to it and it finishes lightly tart, a hint sweet but mostly dry, and fruity. The fruit lingers shortly and then fades as some earthiness, grassiness, and mild mineral charcter rise and then fall away. It's a little astringent, and light-medium in body and gently crisp in the mouth. So this one can go one of two ways hedonistaically, you either appreciate its quirkiness or you dismiss it because it's not what's probably expected from a hoppy and sour watermelon beer. I personally think it's really awesome because it's so askew but I can see how most people would find it out of balance or disjointed.
Review #7,779

 

 

 

With all the flavor of summer but without having to pick the seeds out of it, DuClaw offers up a summery sour ale, hoppy and fueled with watermelon flavor for that quintessential seasonal flavor when beer is better suited than picnics.

With a deep golden and slight mauve pour, Summertime Seedless floats a short lived off-white foam while teasing the nose with a tangy, juicy and fruity medley that shares elements of citrus, wine and cider. An easy sweetness greets the early palate with sourdough, agave and taffy in a mild malty display.

Scrubbing the malts effectively from the tongue, the beer's acidity releases the sweetness and has the middle palate trending in the direction of green apple, gooseberry, lime and lemon. All that coming from the natural souring of the ale, the additions of watermelon provides a juicy overlay that quickly becomes the beer's centerpiece in taste. A late turn to bitterness, the hop bite and citrus flavor has impressions of grapefruit nearly rivaling that of the added red melon.

Medium bodied for sour ale, the seedless ale finishes both bitter and tart with a short extension of muddled fruit in a "fruit punch" kind of way. Hoppy sour ales usually have that distinctive grapefruit character, but that bitter and sour interplay on a watermelon flavor simply seems misplaced.