Kick Back and Relax – Deschutes Twilight Summer Ale
Posted on July 2, 2010 by mike
After a disappointing US loss in the 2010 World Cup I did what all good soccer fans do. Drink! I was meandering through the beer aisle at a store across the river, where I get Surly for my wife, and just so happened to notice a selection of beer that is not available at my regular store. One name stood out, Deschutes. I’ve had the Mirror Pond before and loved it so I decided to give their “Summer Ale” a go. In doing research on the net the Deschutes Twilight won as a “Bitter” but is categorized by some as an “American Pale Ale”. The BJCP guidelines confuse me at this point, but I won’t get into that. I personally believe this leans more towards the American Pale Ale based on the hop selection and citrus.
Enough beer lessons, let’s drink this puppy up!
Review of Deschutes Twilight
Packaging
Having a graphic arts background can sometimes make it difficult to please me when it comes to labels. However, I don’t think it is that hard to impress me either. Deschutes Twilight Ale packaging is just that, pleasing. The imagery on the front is relaxing as you gaze into the bend in the river between the forest and the rock as the “twilight” appears above and around the rest of the label. Very relaxing. The bottle doesn’t have much more information other than the 5% ABV, a “heady dose” of Amarillo hops and that it is a seasonal ale.
Appearance
A pale gold, I almost want to say light orange with a very fluffy head adorning the glass.
Smell
Very citrusy, which I imagine is from the Amarillo’s, though I have never worked with them. I get a little zest as well, seems like orange zest to me with a slight caramel sniff.
Taste
Yummy. This beer won some medals as in the Bitter category, which is much like a Pale Ale, but without the citrus. It is sweet, malty and has a nice hop after taste. I still get some citrus zest in my mouthfuls. The first drink I had I thought it was mixed with a shot of orange juice.
Mouthfeel
It has a little bit of a zip on the tongue along with some nice, carbonation that excites as it goes down. It is lighter than I would have expected it giving it a really smooth finish.
Drinkability
Up there! It is a tasty brew from Deschutes, especially for the summer. I would say this could pair with pretty much anything you are grilling this summer and fall. It could definitely refresh on a hot day and not leave you thirsty with a dry finish. Deschutes does it again!
Brewing Note
The Amarillo hop adds a nice, light citrus character to this beer. I am reminded of oranges.
Have you tried it? If not, I highly recommend it for your 4th of July weekend! Be safe!
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