Leinenkugel's Watermelon Shandy

This Watermelon Shandy is actually better than I imagined it would be. The watermelon flavor is natural and appealing. During our stay at Harrah's in Joliet, Illinois, we had this and a couple other drinks at a bar with excellent scotch and ordinary beer.

Leinenkugel's Bavarian Dunkel

I am happy to see Leinenkugel bringing out this homage to the great cultural heritage of Bavaria. It is a very good beer, but I found the strong ashy flavor out of place for this style.

Grapefruit Shandy

This sweet beer comes with a bonus of a new drawer in our kitchen cabinets. While we were away today, friends Roger and Julie came by, repaired a broken drawer, and left beer behind. Good deal!

The grapefruit flavor in this is real and fresh, making it a great refreshment on a warm Friday afternoon.

Leinenkugel's Big Butt Doppelbock

I like this beer and I cannot lie. Tasty and refreshing, I wouldn't have been surprised if they packaged this as a dunkel, or dark beer. It has the taste and feel of having been mass produced, lacking in the character and freshness one finds in most dopplebocks.

Leinenkugel's Hoppin' Helles

While visiting with Pastor Bishop he gave me a tasty Hoppin’ Helles. There’s some nice European hoppiness in this little beer.

Leunenkugel's Big Eddy Russian Imperial Stout

Wonderful flavors in this Leinie brewed exclusively for Old Chicago. I've had gravies that were not this viscous.

Leinenkugel's Orange Shandy

Leinenkugel's Orange Shandy is very refreshing, kinda like orange pop. It is good stuff for anyone who wouldn't want a strong beer. But as Dan Castellaneta has said, “There is no strong beer, just weak men”.

Leinenkugel's Lemon Berry Shandy

Sweet to sip on while in the water on Lake of the Ozarks

Canoe Paddler

“Once widely mocked, US beer is now popular globally with hipsters and connoisseurs alike.” So says Jon Kelly in a BBC article, “US craft beer: How it inspired British brewers”. We Americans, still, are showing ingenuity and the ability to stay in the forefront of technology.

Kelly cites these statistics: “While overall beer sales in the US fell by 1.3% in 2011, the craft brewing industry grew 13% by volume and 15% by sales in the same period, according to the Brewers' Association.”

Mammoth American brewer MillerCoors must have saw this coming when they bought up Leinenkugel’s and other small successful breweries, keeping their big foot in the little door.

Canoe Paddler is a German styled Kölsch beer, with a name that cleverly captures the uniquely American experience of life here in the upper mid-west. I particularly liked the little hint of rye in this very refreshing drip of our homeland.

Leinenkugel's Snowdrift Vanilla Porter

In my humble opinion, there are days when it is just way too cold to eat ice cream. This Snowdrift Vanilla Porter is a dessert that reminds me of ice cream, only better.

Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat

As the sun sets on this busy Sunday, I sit back on the deck with a beer and a bowl of popcorn.  I accomplished quite a bit today.  The last project is now done: My youngest child and I erected a  dog kennel, almost visible in the background.

 I enjoy Leinie’s take on the Belgian style wheat beer.  Some of the popular, mass-produced  attempts at this style (and here is where I clear my throat in such a way that it sounds like “cough, cough, Shocktop”) are so heavily flavored with orange and spices, you can’t appreciate the beer flavor. 

Leinenkugel’s SunsetWheat has citrus hints that rest on a foundation of pleasing grain flavors and an impressive hop finish.

Leinenkugel's Berry Weiss

From TheGazette.com: “Black bear spotted again in northeast Iowa:   The Chickasaw County Sheriff’s Office said Monday that a black bear was seen near Plum Creek Golf Course in Fredericksburg.”


When I heard about this bear, I immediately thought of beer.
And since bears eat berries, I chose to drink a berry weiss, of course.

I don't always drink pink beer, but when I do, I prefer Leinies.

Leinenkugel's Honey Weiss

After a long day today, Ash Wednesday, I came home with a slightly sore throat, dry and raw, you know, like when you’ve talked too much or too long at one time without stopping.  In the refrigerator I found an excellent remedy.

This wheat beer brewed with real Wisconsin honey was smooth, sweet and soothing. My throat feels like singing.

Leinenkugel's Classic Amber

This lager went great with the sirloins tonight.  The blend of Hallertau, Cluster, Cascade and Mt. Hood varieties of hops make a clean finish to every swallow, leaving the mouth ready and salivating for the next bite of beef.  There are few things in life that will stimulate a hearty appetite more than fermented malt and specialty hops.



I hope that information like this is helpful both to those who want to increase their appreciation of beer and to those who want to build and maintain a substantial beer gut.

Leinenkugel's Fireside Nut Brown

Today my brother Gene gave me a 6 pack of this beer which I gladly accepted, only to later learn the rest of the story: Gene doesn't like it. It had started out as a 12 pack but Gene could only choke down the first 6 and then he saved the remainder in his garage figuring he could give it to me the next time I came by. I am not bothered by that a bit and frankly I am enjoying these beers.  I even gave one to an uncle of ours whom I bumped into this evening. He happens to be, like me, an expert on free beer, and he enjoyed it too.

The flavor of this Fireside Nut Brown ale starts with a definite nutty sensation and then moves to nice roasted (or as Gene would say "burnt") malted barley fullness.  These complex flavors and aromas are especially magnified and enhanced if you can enjoy them for free.