Local Sour Beers for Your Next Party

BY NATALIE TORRES GALLAGHER

Summer barbecues mean coolers full of ice and drinks—and, too often, that one picky friend who isn’t interested in anything there. For them, consider tossing in a fruited sour.

Boulevard’s Smooth Collider brings together bold banana and strawberry for a smoothie ale bursting with so much pureed fruit you could have it for breakfast. Brunch continues at Strange Days Brewing, where the Maple Blueberry Smoothie delivers a  warm stack of pancakes in liquid form (don’t worry—there’s a lick of sour on the finish). 

Beach bums will rejoice at Brew Lab’s outlandish-sounding Sunny B, a wine barrel-aged, mixed-culture sour: They’ve added a tropical burst of coconut and orange to their blonde ale.
More island vibes—and a boatload full of mango and guava—are packed into Casual Animal’s Gazoontight. 

For the farthest out sour experience, try the Rainbow Soup at Pathlight Brewing. Brewers took a “more is more” approach to this beer, combining lactose, bright hops and a lush strawberry-mango mash for a truly magical fruited sour milkshake IPA.