Two from Southern Tier . . .

One of the cool things about drinking a variety of beer is finding breweries to add to your list of "I will try anything they make.

Southern Tier Brewing Co., in Lakewood, NY, has rapidly reached that level. It's not just the brewery's usual offerings that do it, but their Black Water big-taste series in 22-ounce bombers produced one of my favorite beers of last year.

I tried the following two as part of writing an article on pumpkin beers and another on chocolate beers. I hate to say this, but the pumpkin beer is not available right now, but I would expect it to be back in the Fall.

Perhaps the most fascinating of all the pumpkins I tasted last Fall -- and it was 10 at least -- was Imperial Pumking, “ale brewed with pumpkins,” from Southern Tier. "This is the real thing; as one intrepid taster said. “It tastes like pumpkin, and it tastes like beer.” That’s it in this one, all pumpkin, no spices, and it’s the better for it. A caramel brown, this beer fills your mouth, without much of a metallic taste at all, and for a beer that is 9 percent alcohol, it doesn’t taste nearly as strong as the Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale. It is an excellent beer for a frosty autumn night.

Later, into the Winter, there was Southern Tier Imperial Choklat Stout, described as "a stout brewed with chocolate."

I have to admit, I had very high hopes here, because their Pumpking, also from the Black Water series, was the best of the many pumpkins I had – so good in fact that my wife, who does not like beer, asked me to get more so we could drink and cellar.

Well, it’s not quite as exceptional as the pumpkin, but still the best of the chocolates so far. Very dark, as you would expect, with a thin head. Drinks easily for an “Imperial Stout.” Not as heavy as many others. Chocolate taste is smooth and clear right from the top. Kind of a milk chocolate, although it’s made with bittersweet Belgian Chocolate.

This is high-end stuff, 11 percent alcohol by volume, but it does not taste too much of alcohol. There is a touch of bitterness in the aftertaste, but it goes away as you continue to drink it.

I have had just about everything they produce, and I would drink anything new they come out with.

Why are all the hops gone?

It looks as though the initial reports were right, and the hops shortage is going to be with us for a while, and is going to affect what we’re drinking. The combination of bad growing weather and brewers' shifts toward using more -- and specific -- hops have combined to cause the problem. Brwers who are locked into contracts are OK, but those who don't have contracts will either pay more or be unable to find what they need. This means fewer styles and more expensive pours.

I have run into it myself at the closest brew pub to my outpost here in New York’s North Country – Davidson Brothers in Glens Falls. The Scotch Ale has been out for a while, and the Stout was also out, along with one other beer. There was no “Brewer’s Special” for a bit, until they put up a nine-year-old Strong Ale, which the hardy patrons sucked down in about 10 days. Word is everything will be back up soon except, of course the Strong, which was a one-shot deal.

Many local newspapers here and elsewhere have reported on how the hops shortage is affecting local brewers. The Rutland (Vt.) Herald had an excellent report on the rising prices – and the changing beer choices – of local brewers.

For instance, Otter Creek will release a Kolsch-style beer – fewer hops – this Spring, instead of its usual Extra Special Bitter. Ray McNeill at McNeill’s in Brattleboro, Vt., was quoted as saying his Imperial Stout and Imperial India Pale Ale will not be available in bottles until next year.

As you most likely know, beer is generally made from four ingredients – water, barley, hops and yeast. There’s been a real reduction in the hops crop, and many brewers have either not made specific style or have changed recipes. The trouble for me is that high-end IPAs are one of my favorites as are Scotch Ales, both of which are affected. The light middle-of-the-road beers, such as lagers, pilseners and some ales – not my favorites – are not as affected.

A little more "business"

I don't review everything I drink, although I usually jot myself some notes just for comparison. I was struck by how different this beer was. That's not surprising because Dogfish Head is a particularly inventive brewery.

The new Festina Peche from Dogfish Head is likely to draw comments from your friends. It even draws comments from the folks behind the counter in the beer store.

“I ought to tell you, that’s kind of sour,” the beer guy told me, pointing at the four-pack of the peach-flavored wheat beer on the counter. I smiled and said this was my second go-round with the beer and that I liked it. “I just wanted to make sure,” he said, establishing the place -- EBI in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. -- as somewhere I will happily recommend.

The conversation continued, as beer conversations have a way of doing. “I have some non-beer geek friends who really liked this,” I told him. He responded by saying that one of his colleagues at the store – who doesn’t particularly care for beer – reacted the same way. (We won’t get into working at a beer store and not liking beer).

Anyway, to the beer.

The concept of fruit beers is one that’s always ripe for discussion. There are those who are drawn to them and others who say fruit is for pies and cobblers. In this particular case, the fruit is not the main focus of the taste. While my friend at the beer store called it sour, I found the high-end taste of the wheat used in the beer to be a wakeup call. It’s the first thing that hits you, and it’s followed by a subtle peach flavor that fills your mouth but doesn’t overwhelm at all.

Another interesting aspect is that it tastes like a high-alcohol beer, but at 4.5 ABV, it’s actually slightly less alcoholic than Budweiser. It’s basically the same color as Bud, but much more cloudy (as a result of the wheat). It does have a decent bite to it, and it's a beer to savor, not to bang down. Like many of the more expensive craft brews, it comes in a four-pack and usually runs $8 to $10, but it's worth it.

Let's get right down to "business"

Rather than worrying about all the introductory niceties , I'll kick things off with a review and commentary.

Call this "Best of the Year So Far." Should be interesting how that gets bounced around.

The beer in question is Long Trail Brewing's Belgian White, a beer so new that my local package stores do not have it yet.

Fortunately, I live 90 minutes from the Bridgewater Corners, Vt., brewery and its very spiffy brew pub, and I have been there twice in the last 10 days sampling it and bringing a couple of 12-packs home.

So I have had it on draft and in the bottle, and I am really enjoying it.

I am also fascinated that Long Trail has jumped in so late in the game. The brewery is listing this its summer seasonal, but like many brewers, it it's a hit, Long Trail will make it permanent, as it did with Blackbeary Wheat.

For the record, Belgian Whites -- or witbiers -- are wheat beers that are unfiltered and therefore cloudy. The look is different, but the taste is comfortable, and they are a good way to transition to craft beers.

Coors knew this years ago when it came out with one of the first mass-market Belgian Whites -- Blue Moon -- which has spawned a number of other Coors' specialty brews. Anheuser-Busch has recently jumped in with Shock Top, one of its craft-style beers. Allagash in Portland, Maine, has long been a craft leader in this style with its Allagash White. Many folks are also drinking Hoegaarden's Original White Ale, an actual Belgian of all things.

The Long Trail pours the requisite hazy yellow – but not too hazy or too yellow, and has a thin white head and a light nose. The taste takes longer than you’d expect to develop, but it’s extremely easy to drink, and the spice – coriander that’s ground freshly at the brewery – comes through clearly after several seconds. It also has some of the traditional fruit tastes associated with a wheat beer, including a light flavor of banana, but it clearly establishes its own place among American Belgian Whites against the three previously mentioned beers, as well as Sam Adams White Ale and Saranac Belgian White.

The taste is reminiscent of a custard topped with spices, although those not used to the style might catch it as a little sour. It’s clearly a session beer. You could knock down three or four of these on a summer afternoon, and not realize it. Yet, it’s the kind of beer you savor while you drink it.

It’s equally good on tap and from the bottle, although the coriander is even sharper on tap.