STEVENS POINT, Wis. – It’s not quite summer yet, but if you have a passion for summer beers, you’re in luck: Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat Ale, now brewed with passion fruit, is now available through the end of the summer wherever Point beers are sold.
Point Brewmaster Gabe Hopkins and his team of brewers have added passion fruit juice to Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat’s brewing process, which uses unmalted white wheat and malted red wheat as well as specialty barley malts, fresh Mount Hood hops from Washington State’s Yakima Valley and Point’s own ale yeast.
Passion fruit, a climbing vine with small, round fruits that thrives in the Caribbean and South America, is a true flavor point-of-difference for the Nude Beach Summer Wheat, according to Hopkins. “The passion fruit lends a crisp but very refreshing, tart character to the beer that is especially noticeable on the back end,” he said. “The fresh tartness of the passion fruit pairs well with the natural fruity tones of an unfiltered wheat beer.”
Golden-colored Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat is available in six-packs and 12-packs of 12-ounce NR bottles, 12-packs of 12-ounce cans and on draft wherever Point’s handcrafted beers are sold.
Award-winning wheat ale
With the new passion fruit accent, Point Brewery Manager Partner Joe Martino expects that Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat Ale will be more popular than ever this summer. Introduced just before summer 2008, Nude Beach Summer Wheat Ale was one of Point’s most successful new-product introductions.
As Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat Ale’s popularity grew so did its trophy case, which now includes eight medals. In 2013 it earned gold as the best beer in the American Wheat category in the annual United States Open Beer Championships. Nude Beach also won a gold medal in 2009 at the annual North American Beer Awards, sponsored by the North American Brewers Association, and silver medals in the 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012 World Beer Championships, sponsored by the Chicago-based Beverage Testing Institute.
“Discerning craft beer lovers can taste for themselves the difference that passion fruit brings to the beer’s refreshment experience. It’s a great reason for wheat beer fans to connect with Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat Ale,” Martino said.
The Stevens Point Brewery
Stevens Point Brewery, founded in 1857, uses only the highest-grade barley malts, specialty malts, grains and the choicest hops to brew its handcrafted beers, including flagship Point Special Lager, gold medal winner in the 2003 Great American Beer Festival’s American Premium Lager category.
In addition to Nude Beach Summer Wheat Ale, the brewery’s seasonal products include new spring seasonal Apricadabra Apricot Wheat Ale; summer refresher Point Coast Radler, a thirst-quenching mix of beer and natural citrus flavors back for a second summer; Point Oktoberfest, a Bavarian-style Märzen beer for the fall; and Point St. Benedict’s Winter Ale, a rich, dark beer available from November through February.
Stevens Point Brewery’s year-round lineup features Point Onyx Black Ale, a robust dark ale; Point Belgian White, a Belgian-style wheat ale; Point Drop Dead Blonde Ale, a 110 Calorie Ale; Point Cascade Pale Ale, an American-style pale ale; Point Amber Classic, an American-style amber lager; and Point Beyond the Pale IPA, a robust, hoppy India Pale Ale. Point also brews four year-round IPAs available only in the IPA variety 12-pack: Point Spruce Tip IPA, Point Peach Mango IPA, Point White IPA and Point One Shot IPA.
Year-round products also include the Whole Hog Limited Edition “big beers:” Whole Hog Espresso Stout, Whole Hog Six-Hop India Pale Ale and Whole Hog Scotch Ale. Seasonal brews include Whole Hog Russian Imperial Stout, Whole Hog Barley Wine Ale and Whole Hog Pumpkin Ale.
Point also brews three unique James Page specialty beers sold only in convenient 12-ounce cans: A Cappella Gluten-free Pale Ale, Casper White Stout, and Yhaba Dhaba Chai Tea Porter.
Point’s Ciderboys Cider Co. hard ciders blend unexpected fresh fruit flavors with apple cider. Ciderboys’ year-round products are First Press, a traditional hard cider and Strawberry Magic, a blend of fresh strawberries and apple cider. Ciderboys also produces seasonal ciders, Raspberry Smash, alive with the tartness of raspberries; Pineapple Hula, made with fresh Hawaiian pineapple; Peach County, which combines pure peach flavor with apple cider; fall seasonal Cranberry Road, a pairing of apple cider and cranberries; winter seasonal Mad Bark, made with natural cinnamon; and Grand Mimosa, a winter seasonal made with succulent California oranges.
Gourmet soft drinks from the Stevens Point Brewery include Point Premium Root Beer, Point Premium Diet Root Beer, Point Premium Orange Cream, Point Premium Vanilla Cream, Point Kitty Cocktail and Point Premium Black Cherry Cream Soda.
For more information about the Stevens Point Brewery, please visit www.pointbeer.com or call 1-800-369-4911. Tours of the brewery are available; schedules are listed on the website.