Solstice Ale
Zero Gravity Craft Brewery

On tap at the brewery

not sure how different this one is from the old summer gruit they used to make, im sure some similar herbs are in this, but also i think it doesnt show a whole lot of learning or process refinement as a brewery over the years, as that one was objectively better beer than this one, at least as i remember from many years ago. its another light, hopless, well balanced almost saison type, done with a bunch of cool medicinal herbs, and they give a sort of tea-like herbal character and earthy bitterness to this beer, but overall it remains a very delicate drink. not sure i can pick out anything specifically on the herb side, im not a botanist or anything, but i really like the sort of from the earth and salubrious vibe this casts. pale ale colored, with a little english crystal malt breadiness to the grain, keeping it plenty beery, and there is a definite fermentation profile on this, maybe a mellow french or belgian saison type yeast, not overly estery, but not invisible here either, nicely selected with the herbs for sure. there is a light peppery and woody thing here, some mild citric tang as well, and a dry finish. the beer really does need more carbonation, these flavors want to dance, but the somewhat dull carbonation seems to prevent the full potential of that from being realized. that said, its a cool beer, a style i really would love to see more of around the country, and something that sure works well with their pizza in a session context! if this is the same as its always been and just double listed here, there is some obvious and understandable batch variance from year to year, not uncommon in an herbal beer like this, and very much forgivable if one is different from the next. i dig it.