Mybeerbuzz .com Highlights Summit Brewing Block Party Variety Pack w/Triumphant Session IPA (Review)

I distinctly remember when I tasted my very first Summit Brewing beer.  It was early Aug and I was sitting on the beach, and to my surprise, a family member brought a beer from a brewery that I hadn’t even heard of at the time. The beer was Summit Pale Ale and I remember thinking how unique it was compared to many of the other pale ales on the market at the time. Of course I’ve tasted quite a few other Summit brewing beers in the meantime, but I still get excited when beer-mail arrives at the mybeerbuzz headquarters from Summit Brewing.

Today we’ll be sampling Summit Brewing’s new Block Party Variety Pack. This new 12-pack includes Summit Extra Pale Ale, Summit Dakota Soul Craft Lager and two new beers: Summit Triumphant Session IPA and Summit Cabin Crusher Kölsch-Style Ale with Lemon. This summer party pack is of course perfect for sharing, but of course we’ll all be sharing it within our shelter-at-home families.

I’m really familiar with Summit Extra Pale Ale & Dakota Soul and I just sampled a new lime variety of Cabin Crusher Kölsch-Style Ale, but of course Triumphant is new to me.

Summit Triumphant Session IPA is a new low-calorie IPA that fits well into the “healthy” beer category we’ve seen gaining popularity. The beer has just 95 calories and 3.5g carbs per 12oz serving as well as a perfect sessionable 4%-AbV. Triumphant is brewed with Cascade & UK Goldings hops and dry hopped with Cascade, Amarillo, Azacca and an experimental hop blend that punches up the hop presence.  As Summit puts it, “Summit Triumphant Session IPA has all of the flavor with less of the guilt” and I definitely agree. The Block Party box also includes Summit Cabin Crusher Kölsch-Style Ale with Lemon making it the perfect summer combination of beers (for the beach).

Of course I can’t wait to try it, so off we go…

Summit Brewing Triumphant Session IPA

ABV:  4%
Style:  Session IPA
Packaging:  12oz cans
Appearance:  Bright golden
Aroma:   Citrus, tangerine & biscuit malt
Mouthfeel:   Medium light
Taste:   Grapefruit, slightly sweet tangerine, light biscuit malt and prominent hop presence.
Overall:  Triumphant Session IPA really checks a lot of boxes for a really hop-forward but sessionable IPA.  The blend of hops as well as the low ABV makes for a really drinkable beer that just happens to be low-calorie and low-carb.

Summit Brewing Cabin Crusher Kölsch-Style Ale with Lemon

ABV:  4.8%
Style:  Kölsch
Packaging:  12oz cans
Appearance:  Light golden straw
Aroma:   Lemon & herbal
Mouthfeel:   Medium soft and fluffy
Taste:   Tart lemon presence with breadcrumb malt.
Overall:  Cabin Crusher Kölsch-Style Ale with Lemon has a really nice punch of tart Meyer lemon that balances out the bready and biscuit malts. Really drinkable and refreshing and another beer contender for my beach beer of 2020.

Summit Brewing Extra Pale Ale

ABV:  5.3%
Style:  English-style pale ale
Packaging:  12oz cans
Appearance:  Golden bronze/orange
Aroma:   Toffee & citrus
Mouthfeel:   Medium
Taste:   Malt forward with caramel and toffee with orange and floral hops.
Overall:  Extra Pale Ale is a really good example of a classic English pale ale with a prominent malt character and a drinkable balance of citrus and floral hops.

Summit Brewing Dakota Soul Craft Lager

ABV:  4.8%
Style:  Bohemian Pilsner
Packaging:  12oz cans
Appearance:  Deep golden color
Aroma:   Grains, grassy lemon & citrus
Mouthfeel:   Crisp, clean & carbonated
Taste:   A mix of biscuit grains, grassy hops and slightly sweet finish.
Overall:  Dakota Soul is a really refreshing and drinkable lager that manages to push the hops to the front of the flavor mix in a style that typically features a malty presence. The overall balance makes for a really enjoyable crisp and clean lager..

Summit Brewing’s Block Party Variety Pack is available now in 12oz canned 12-packs throughout Summit Brewing’s distribution footprint so get out there and try all four beers for yourself. And when you do try them, be sure to let us know what YOU think.