Labatt Blue Citra

When I first saw Labatt Blue Citra on the shelf, I knew it was only a matter of time until I tried it. Normally, Labatt is a brand I tend to shy away from. My reason for this has little to do with how it tastes, but more because of the memories associated with it. It was the beer from my early days of drinking that I not only lost some battles to, I lost the war.

To this day, I can’t look at Labatt Blue, Jack Daniels or Absolut Citron without feeling my stomach turn. Perhaps, one day that will change, but I have been thinking that for well over a decade and nothing has changed. However, when I first saw Labatt Blue Citra, a light, hoppy session lager, I surprisingly did not feel my stomach turn. I thought it had potential to be a nice, sessionable, reasonably priced summer beer. So for the first time in a very long time, I purchased a beer with the Labatt name on it.

The Citra & Mosaic hops featured in Labatt Blue Citra are light and most noticeable in the aroma. Zesty grapefruit, along with tropical fruit(particularly pineapple) come through along with bread dough, floral notes, herbal spice and grass. Once it hit my palate, the unfortunate memories of drinking Labatt Blue came flooding back. The familiar bready, grain malt sweetness comes through, and combined with the grassy, spicy finish should have made me nauseous. What was different though were the subtle notes of grapefruit & tropical fruit. They were a welcome addition to this familiar beer and I found myself enjoying them. I want to reinforce that the hops here are light but I do not feel like I needed more from a beer that was clearly brewed for a broader audience. The hops were just enough to make a familiar beer just different enough.

Labatt Blue Citra is not going to blow your mind. It is just a simple, easy drinking lager with a touch of hops. If you are a fan of Labatt Blue, I think you will like this beer. From the point of view of someone who typically avoids Labatt products at all costs, I found it to be a surprisingly enjoyable beer I would not mind drinking again when the weather gets warmer. I found that to be a pleasant surprise.


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Jack’s Abby Citra Brau Lager

I am always looking for a great value and Jack’s Abby always seems to deliver just that. Over the years, the Framingham, Massachusetts Brewery has become a personal favorite of mine. The main reasons for that are they consistently push the boundaries of creativity with their lagers and they are always priced reasonably. I honestly can’t recall a single beer from them I have not enjoyed. Granted, there are some of their beers I prefer more than others, but that is how I feel about every brewery. Jack’s Abby consistently makes solid beer at a great price and their latest offering, Citra Brau, reinforces that.

I keep mentioning that Jack’s Abby beer is always a great value, but Citra Brau is the first beer from them that actually gave me “sticker shock”. “Sticker shock" is something that happens to every beer enthusiast at one time or another. It usually occurs when you find yourself paying a bit more for a beer than you expected to. For Citra Brau, a dry-hopped citra lager, I had the complete opposite reaction. A 6-pack of 16 oz. cans is priced around 10 dollars. Once I tried it, I felt like I had found one of the best values currently on the market. 

Citra Brau certainly showcases the citra hop but Jack's Abby balances it beautifully with a fantastic lager backbone. The aroma is super dank, floral, grassy, grainy and very fruity.  The taste matches the nose and as I mentioned earlier it is beautifully balanced. Orange, lemon, peach, melon, resinous pine and grass hit initially before the slightly sweet, grainy, crackery malt profile comes into play. The finish is dry, peppery, crisp & clean. Nothing here is going to blow you away, but this is a really nice, easy drinking lager with just the right amount of hop flavor.

Clocking in at 5.5%, Citra Brau is sessionable and a beer I hope to see year-round from Jack's Abby, especially for the summer. Citra Brau has "lawnmower beer" written all over it. In the meantime, its very reasonable price point could make it a staple in my refrigerator for the foreseeable future. Once again, Jack's Abby delivers another solid beer.


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Thanks for reading. Sláinte!