It might be hard to imagine an ale and a lager meshed together in a single beer. Especially since beer is pretty divided into one of those two categories. As it turns out, a fusion of the two styles can be pretty amazing as we just learned with Sam Adams ’76.
The brewers at Boston Beer Company used two active fermentations, one for a lager and one for an ale to create Sam Adams ’76. The idea is to blend the “fruitiness” of an ale with the smoothness of a lager. Sound a little odd? We thought so too.
The year of experimenting (around 60 iterations according to the brewery) was well worth it. Sam Adams ’76 is one of the best session beers we’ve tried in a long time. ‘76 pours a light gold/straw flavor and looks almost creamy at first splash. Imagine something like a pale ale brewed with Cascade, Citra, Mosaic, and Simcoe hops blended with a crisp lager. Yeah, it’s hard to piece together that flavor. That’s why trying this beer is a must. This hybrid beer compliments a wide range of food, those days when you start day drinking early, or just a break from a hefty IPA or stout session with friends. Easy drinking, clean, refreshing, all those buzz words are applicable here.
In our minds, this beer is definitely a win.
Sam Adams ’76 is available in 12-ounce cans now, draft in April 2018.
Style: Light Lager (Hybrid Beer)
Hops: Simcoe, Citra, Mosaic, Cascade
Availability: 12oz Cans. Draft (April). Year-Round
Debut: January 2018
4.7% ABV
Image: Beer Street Journal
It sucks. I wouldn’t rate it above 2.5 out of 5. Certainly not anywhere as good as the original Sam Adams. Might as well buy Bud or Coors.
Grapefruit juice that’s it.