Rope Swing Summer Pilsner from Redhook to quench your thirst and kill the heat

Rope Swing Summer Pilsner

Very few things evoke summer goodness like that old rope swing down by the favorite swimming hole. Hot days are not killed easily, but flying through the air and making a huge cannonball as the last jumper tries to clear the area is about as refreshing as it can get. And summer thirsts are not always quenched easily, especially in a world of big craft beers. Redhook Brewing Company’s Rope Swing Summer Pilsner is definitely the exception, and I can’t think of a more aptly named beer for summer.

It pours up exceedingly golden and gorgeous in the glass. Sunlight is almost required when enjoying one of these beers for the simple fact that watching the light stream through this beautiful lager is part of the total enjoyment of it.

Rope Swing is, as good lagers should be, fresh and crisp, with a lot of grainy taste rather than the hollow tasting adjuncts used by most of the American light beer makers. It’s a difference you’ll notice right away when drinking a quality light beer. The Noble hops are prominent and earthy and spicy on the finish, with some herbal characteristics coming from the yeast, which I’m told is an authentic Czech strain.

At 5.3 percent ABV, it packs a little heat, but the hop profile tends to keep this beer very balanced and enjoyable. One thing to remember is that this is not a light or golden ale, it’s a full-blown Pilsner-style beer that carries those characteristics. It’s not going to have that sticky sweetness prominent in a lot of lagers. The notes of earthiness and spices are dominant and characteristic of this style.

While I wish this one was available in cans for some quality river time, having a six-pack in the fridge for right after you’ve mowed the lawn or as you’re watering the lawn in the late evening is a wonderful thing.

Rope Swing is available in six-pack bottles and on draught through July.

Prost,

GG