Beer of the Week: Local Style

From the Beer Writer: Roughly half-a-decade ago, fruited beers were on top of the beer-style food chain. Most of the fruity fortification was applied to hoppy beers such as IPAs and pale ales. Fruited beers are still around, but citrus, berries, stone and tropical fruit find their way into milder beers (kettle sours, blonde ales, lagers), while the former darlings of the Carmen Miranda class are mostly left alone to shine based solely on their hop bills. But for some, like Santee’s Pacific Islander Beer Co., infusing fruit flavors to traditional styles has nothing to do with trendiness. It’s been their MO for some time. As a result they’ve dialed in their processes so that, as in the case of this week’s featured beer, Local Style Blood Orange Pale Ale, the added flavors are present and unmistakable, but not so heavy-handed that the base beer is no longer recognizable. The blood orange in Local Style comes across more pithy and bitter than juicy, dovetailing nicely with the hops in the beer while allowing toasty malts to join in the party. Speaking of parties, Pacific Islander is celebrating its seventh anniversary this weekend…

From the Brewer: “The idea for this flavored pale ale was to brew a strong San Diego-style pale with a little fruit nuance to go with our islander theme. The customers have enjoyed Local Style and we’re looking to create some more interesting flavored beers very soon that will be imbued with that right balance between standard drinkability and exotic, subtle character. We will be celebrating our seventh anniversary this Saturday, July 17, and all are welcome to join us and have a great time. We have tickets available that include a burger, two pints of beer, a limited-edition pint glass and more. They can be purchased directly at the brewery or online. Feel free to call us for more info and hopefully we’ll see you there! “—Frank Leon, Head Brewer, Pacific Islander Beer Co.