Back in 2022, the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company released a “Lodge Pack” consisting of four fruit-forward and summer-suited beers. At the time, I figured my dear mother was far better qualified than I was to evaluate the quartet of new shandy varietals because—and no offense intended here—I think Summer Shandy is kind of a mom beer.
This past March, reps for Leinie’s came knocking again with a limited release Orange Shandy and an imperial “High Shore Shandy” varietal, which prompted me to throw up the Mom Signal™ once more to get the unfiltered, somehow muskie-related thoughts from a Shandy aficionado. Then I bugged her again this summer when a limited edition Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy Candle (also known as the “Summer Shandle”) briefly hit the market.
At this point, it’s safe to say my mom is on the radar of Leinie’s HQ. Recently, they proved as much when they sent a six-pack of the brewery’s new Non-Alcoholic Summer Shandy to my office along with a hand-written note specifically requesting her review-related services instead of mine.
No doubt flattered to have been asked to offer her thoughts, she gladly accepted the sixer from me, took it up north as the note instructed (well, as far north as the Fox Cities, at least) and sent me a voice memo of her thoughts during a recent Brewers game. Here’s what she had to say:
I’m looking at the can right now and it looks very similar to the regular Summer Shandy, except the parts that mention it’s non-alcoholic. Also, the container that it came in I really liked. I like it better than having plastic holders around the can. I never know what to do with them. Do you bring them back to the brewery or what the heck do you do with those?
Anyway, I’m pouring in a wine glass because everything tastes better in a wine glass. It has a pretty color! It looks lemony, smells lemony, and it tastes lemony, too. It tastes very similar to the actual Summer Shandy, so that’s really good. Yeah, I have zero complaints about this beer.
You know this is one of my favorite beers, right? Except for that time I feel off my bike when I drank the regular stuff. I guess if I drink this I maybe won’t fall off my bike. That would be good, right?
I think that’s about all I have to say, except wouldn’t it be good if the Leinenkugel’s people came out with a winter beer called Ice Shandy? You might want to mention that to them, too. Thanks for the free beer. I really, really like it.
Well, there you go. Thanks again, mom! You can get Leinkugel’s Non-Alcoholic Summer Shandy pretty much anywhere you buy N/A beers (check the brewery’s website for exact locations). And stay tuned for the possible release of “Ice Shandy Winter Weiss” in the future once the brewery and my mom figure out terms.
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