Belated Sunday Night Suds - Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Deconstructed - Vol IV

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at another of the Samuel Adams Latitude 48 varieties - the Ahtanum version.

[I apologize for the belated posting of this week's SNS. As Sunday was a fast day, we broke our fast on dairy and the Latitude 48 would not have been an appropriate beverage with dinner for far too many reasons. Instead I had a Dunkin Donuts Iced Apple Cider, but since it lacks alcohol and is not beer it will not be reviewed here].

As mentioned in my July 31, 2011 post which reviewed Samuel Adams Latitude 48 - Hallertau Mitterfreuh (found here - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/07/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-latitude.html), the August 14, 2011 post which reviewed Samuel Adams Latitude 48 - Simcoe (found here - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/08/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-latitude.html) and the September 11, 2011 post which reviewed Samuel Adams Latitude 48 - East Kent Goldings (found here - http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2011/09/sunday-night-suds-samuel-adams-latitude.html), one of the best new IPAs introduced during the last few years is the Samuel Adams Latitude 48. The name of the beer draws from the five types of hops used in the brew process which all grow along the 48th latitude within the "hop belt" of the Northern Hemisphere. Earlier this year, Samuel Adams introduced its limited edition Deconstructed Box which features beers brewed with just one of the five hop varieties used in the Latitude 48.

For this week's post I sampled the Ahtanum version of the Latitude 48. The back of the bottle indicates that the Ahtanum hops grow in the Yakima Valley in Washington State. The label further provides that the Ahtanum hops "contribute a balanced and typically "American" orange peel, piney and floral flavor and aroma to the brew, balanced by a slight sweetness and full body from the five different malts."

I tried the Latitude 48 Ahtanum on its own in a Samuel Adams tulip glass that I purchased at the Samuel Adams brewery a few years ago. I did not have this with dinner so the review is based solely as a stand alone brew.

The beer poured a rich copper with a fair amount of foam that stayed on top even twenty minutes after I poured the beer. The flavor starts off with malts, but the hops are present and accounted for and linger nicely after I have swallowed my sip. The aftertaste is piney and slightly citrus, although not over the top like the Uinta Wyld. Even though the beer is slightly on the high end of abv for an American Pale Ale (6%), the alcohol taste is relatively mild.

Having tried this beer on its own, I am wishing that they sold it in six packs as I am enjoying this beer and wish that I could pair it with foods to experiment with melding flavors.

The Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Ahtanum is under the Kosher Supervision of the Star-K. Like many other Samuel Adams brews, this bottle does not have the Star-K certification mark on the label.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about this version of Latitude 48, please follow this link - http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35/68399.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

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