No Zealot like a Convert

In between budget meetings here at work, I decided to make a quick check of the blog to see if Mark had recovered enough to post, only to find that he has insulted and misrepresented my taste in beer. I feel I must respond.

It is true that at one point in time I actually lectured Mark and many other people about how I felt fruit had no place in beer. I may have even invoked the Reinheitsgbot in defense of my position. To put it lightly, I was militant when it came to this issue. However, I have seen the error of my ways, I have repented, and I think the beer gods have forgiven me.

This is not to say that all fruit beers are good, Mark’s last post proved that pretty definitively (Note: I have always been against crunchberries in my Cap’n), and I’m still against any beer that requires the addition of fruit to make it drinkable. However, some of my absolute favorites are fruit based and I cannot imagine going back.

Here are a few fruit beers that get the Nick Seal of Approval:

Sam Adams Summer Ale - Mark and I share a love for this wheat ale brewed with lemon zest and the elusive grains of paradise. I can’t decide if this or Octoberfest is my favorite Sam offering.

Shipyard’s Pumpkinhead - My all time favorite beer, which along with the eponymous pumpkin, is spiced beautifully with cinnamon and nutmeg making it perfect for the fall weather.

Kriek Boon – I already linked to this above but it’s worth mentioning twice. It’s a cherry infused lambic that I can’t get enough of, and that’s coming from a guy who hates lambics.

All in all, I am a fruit beer proponent. Like I said before, there are a lot of bad fruit beers out there, but you can’t judge an entire group based on the performance of the a few individuals.