Hopewell Shaker Amber Ale

 

Hopewell Shaker Amber Ale...$10.99 / 4pk 16oz cans

Shaker—a ‘90s Brewpub-style Amber Ale—is here.

Tastes and trends don’t chart a predictable course. Too many variables at play. But as we saw the most recent craft beer boom (2009-2023ish?) come to a close, and the “rotation nation” onslaught of new beers along with it, a new normal has allowed us the space to slow down and interrogate widely held notions amongst industry vets. “No caramel malt in IPAs!” “Dark beers are dead!” “People don’t want bitterness!” The list goes on. And while the market at one time made these notions true to an extent, we see drinkers’ palates evolving and shifting. In one case it might be a seasoned drinker returning to an old favorite they discovered decades ago; another might be someone whose entry into craft beer was via fruity IPAs or decadent pastry stouts and are just beginning to explore outside those boundaries. Whatever the case, one thing is true: people are curious, and they want new (or new to them) flavors.

Enter Shaker, our ode to the American Amber Ale—and the “shaker” pint glass into which they were poured—that dominated so many brewpub tap lists in the boom of the 1990s. Let’s pay this foundational style its due.

Brewed with 2-row, crystal malts and a selection of pre-2000s hops (no Citra here!), Shaker presents a quintessential “old school” profile: candied orange, biscuit, pine resin, grass, even some toffee. Bitter yet balanced. A complete reorientation of standards. We love it.