Review: Little Brown Jug 2020 Summer Lager

It's been over a year since I've most recently reviewed a beer by Winnipeg's Little Brown Jug. I can't believe it's been that long, especially since they've certainly released a few new products in that time. I remember when 1919 was their only beer and it was something at the time you just didn't really see in Manitoba as Belgian-style beers just weren't common in Manitoba, aside from Unibroue. 2020 Summer Lager just popped up in my neck of the woods a week or two ago and since craft lagers are slowly becoming common (if you are playing a drinking game waiting for me to say this - drink!), it's no surprise that more breweries are accepting lagers more than ever, especially since they can taste great.

From 2020 label: Tasting notes: Floral, lemon and berry hop aroma. Light gold in colour. Subdued maltiness, delicate, clean and crisp. IBU: 20, 5% ABV

Appearance: Before you go "clean your glass!" It is a clean glass but the water on the farm is harsh on everything. Clear golden straw lager with a lot of carbonation, even more carbonated than some of the Molbatts beers I recall of my childhood younger years. The head is very attractive with a good amount of snow white thickness to it, which diminishes rather gradually to leave behind a light amount of lacing on the glass.

Aroma: Very crisp lager with barley being the predominant aroma to it, giving off a bit of a grainery aroma to it, slight bitterness from the grain. There's a light amount of lemon for citrusness and mild grassy hop presence to it. Definitely smells like it will be a crushable lager as the kids say now days.

Taste: The first thing I get from the beer is a light lemon presence, which definitely gives off a summery vibe to the beer. There's a moderate graininess from the beer that gives off a light toasted barley presence, fairly light and approachable. There's a good deal of hops coming out of this beer - mostly grassy but it has a light floral and bitter presence as well to keep you on your toes.

Overall Thoughts: I'm a big fan of 1919.. but at this time of year I feel like this is a much more approachable. It's a very easy drinking lager with a nice citrus profile to it, grassy and floral hops, it's definitely got that Crushability that you want in a lager. I never know what to expect from lagers, but this one really surprised me, I will probably pick up another can after work tomorrow if it happens to be yet another 30C+ afternoon, this in a bucket of ice will help beat the heat (to an extent). Should I do a blind tasting with a group of friends and post what we feel is the best Manitoban craft lager? I think there's almost enough craft lagers out there to do such a thing!

https://littlebrownjug.ca/beer/summer-lager/