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Craft the Best Summer Beers with These Tropical Fruits

Summer fruit beer and sunglasses

 

There’s nothing better on a hot summer day than crushing a bright, refreshing tropical beer. Not only can you chill out while drinking a cold one on the deck, but the juicy flavors of a great summer fruit beer can throw you right back to picnics and playdates in the park as a kid. Discover the best summer fruits for brewing a bright beer here with Fierce Fruit.

Mango

Intense and luscious without overpowering the natural flavors of whatever style you want to brew, mango is one of the most versatile fruits for a tropical beer. Its sweetness is the perfect counterbalance for the natural bitter flavor of an IPA or complement for the mellow notes of a pale ale, while the crispness sparkles in a wheat beer.

If you want to make a summer fruit beer that you know your guests will love, you can’t go wrong by adding some mango.

Pineapple

A pile of fresh tropical pineapples

 

Complement your IPAs with some juicy-as-citrus pineapple! This is one of the best summer fruits for any tropical beer since it’s so bright and sweet, while still being just mellow enough to mix with other flavors.

Of course, pineapple works well in many other styles, too. No wheat ever went wrong with a tropical flavor like pineapple, and it’s great for brightening up a blonde. You can even turn it into a cider that meshes perfectly with a crisp summer night. No matter what you put it in, pineapple always screams “summer.”

Curuba

If you want to go truly exotic, give your guests one of the best summer fruits that they might not have even heard of before, like the curuba. Although it’s a cousin of the passion fruit, the flavor is more like peaches and bananas, so it’s great for bringing a chill vibe to a tropical beer.

If you like to brew cream ales, this fruit will make them pop. They’re also great in blondes, or even, on the opposite end of the spectrum, porters! Anything creamy or smooth will hold curuba well.

Passion Fruit

Cross-section of a ripe passion fruit

Floral and tart, the contradictory yet complementary flavors of passion fruit make for a great spin on IPAs, lagers, pale ales, and other tropical beers. They’re one of the most popular Central and South American produce, making them among the best summer fruits for brewing something customers love.

The best beer for passion fruit is one that naturally has a little sweetness, but won’t clash with the fruit’s acidity. That’s why lagers or blondes work particularly well — they help round out the flavor, enhancing it rather than just complementing it.

Papaya

Most tropical fruits are bold, juicy, and bright, so we don’t often recommend them for dark, caramel-flavored beers like dubbels, brown ales, or porters. That can change, however, with some papaya. Mellow and buttery, you can create an unexpected tropical beer that is flavorful and deep.

Dark beers tend to be most popular in the cooler seasons. But with some earthy, smooth papaya, even the darkest of stouts can be a fresh summer fruit beer, too.

Pink Guava

Pink guava displayed with flowers and wooden spoons

 

Pink guava is wonderful because it’s like all of the best summer fruits mixed into one. It has tasting notes of pear, grapefruit, and strawberry, so it goes with just about any style when you want to make a new and distinctly tropical beer.

The soft and sweet nature of this fruit blends well with cream ale for a light, drinkable dessert beer. But it’s also bright enough to complement a lager well, helping the whole brew sparkle without steamrolling the mellow taste of the beer.

Soursop

You might not have heard of soursop before, but in Central and South America, Asia, and Africa, it’s an old favorite. It’s milky and exotic, with hints of lychee, pineapple, regular apple, and a little banana.

Those flavors pair beautifully with styles you’d typically never consider for a tropical beer, like a hefeweizen or a stout. If you want to make a full line of summer fruit beer without leaving the smooth beer drinkers out, soursop is a must-have in your taproom.

Crushable brews and tropical fruits are almost synonymous with warmth and summer fun. Get your brewery in on the action by creating beers with these flavors. For more ideas to create bright, tropical beers, check out the full selection at Fierce Fruit today.

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