I hate to admit it, but that punk groundhog Punxatawney Phil was right. Winter is still here. But as I endure my first snowicane, I’ll take this second chance at reviewing a spring seasonal in hopes of beckoning the season to come early—if just a little early at this point.
Blue Point Spring Fling Ale
Long Island’s Blue Point Brewing Company has released its Spring Fling Ale, a beer in the neighborhood of Magic Hat’s spring seasonal called Vinyl Lager that I told you about a couple of weeks back. Unlike the weirdos up in Burlington, the folks at Blue Point have chosen to make it obvious that this is indeed a copper ale you will be drinking by labeling it as such.
Spring might mean budding flowers and warming temperatures elsewhere, but the seasonal beers brewed here in the Northeast make it seem like we can only take a half-step away from the fireplace. This beer, like the Vinyl Lager, is much heartier than typical spring ales. The Spring Fling is very bitter. I mean that as a full compliment since normally copper ales have an off-putting amber sweetness. Though the Spring Fling doesn’t quite match Blue Point’s Toasted Lager when it comes to long-term drinkability and originality, that shouldn’t be construed as put down. The Toasted Lager, after all, is one of BNY’s top five New York brews.
—RT
beer, new york 