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Beer Tue Jul 23 2013
Summer Drinking Series: 5 Rabbit Paletas
I first caught sight of a 5 Rabbit six-pack in the cooler case at my local minimart last year and have been following their always inventive releases ever since. Despite some legal growing pains that culminated earlier this year in the departure of co-founder Isaac Showaki, the nation's first Latin-themed brewery has continued to crank out interesting brews with an Aztec inflection from their newly built Bedford Park headquarters.
This summer (May through September), they're offering a series of draft-only options called Paletas, name-checking the Mexican popsicles that have long been one of our city's favorite summer street foods. The low-alcohol wheat beers are to feature different fruit and spice pairings, though the only one I've been able to track down (thanks to the Bad Apple) was the guava with pink peppercorn and tarragon. With the cloudy, pinkish color of a melted popsicle, you would be forgiven for thinking this beer might be another questionable "with flavor added" shandy knock-off, but the brew is actually light and sour, much more bitter than sweet, despite a heady, tropical fruit nose. On a mild summer day, like the ones we've been having this week, it's quenching but not cloying. I'm curious to try other flavors, which might include watermelon and tamarind--which I guess means I'll just be hanging around the bar until they change the keg out. There are worse ways to spend a summer vacation.
BONUS: The 5 Rabbit Collective section of the website features a recipe for pairing the brewery's 5 Rabbit brew (a golden ale with no ties to popsicles, oh ye of little faith) with fish tacos from Chef Grayson "Jam Out With Your Clam Out" Schmitz! Final Score: +1,000 food nerd points.
