Beers with Chuck: Grass Monkey Hoppy Wheat Ale from Sweet Water Brewing Co.

by Chuck P

I know that technically summer won’t officially begin until June 20th, but here in Louisiana it pretty much feels that way 10 months out of the year. Luckily for us we can enjoy the latest seasonal release from Sweet Water Brewing Company to help us transition from “spring” to “summer”. I present to you the Grass Monkey Hoppy Wheat Ale.

Sweet Water Brewery started out of Atlanta, Georgia in 1997 and made their way here to the Pelican State back in 2013. Their brews have been a staple in many craft beer fan’s fridges way before they entered our state and even more so after launching here, especially their popular 420 Pale Ale.

Recently I had the chance to try their seasonal Grass Monkey Wheat Ale and discovered what might be my new favorite summer beer.I’ve never been a big fan of wheat beers. They’re not bad beers, I just don’t crave them the way I crave other beer styles. Sometimes for research purposes, I have to try things I don’t normally drink and can be pleasantly surprised.

The first thing I noticed after pouring the beer were the lemon and citrus notes I got on the nose, obviously from the lemongrass that Sweet Water added. The look of the beer is a hazy orange kind of color with a head that quickly diminishes. 

The flavor is light and refreshing with the lemon and a bit of orange coming through thanks to the Lemondrop Hops they introduced in the kettle and dry hop processes. The wheat element definitely shines through with a light sweetness that I thought had a tinge of grapefruit.

This beer seems like the perfect companion when lounging on the patio, by the pool or after some yard work on a hot summer day. Make sure to add this crisp wheat ale to your Sweet Water collection. 

To hear more about the Grass Monkey check out the On Tap segment below sponsored by Mockler Beverage Company from our latest episode of the Bite & Booze Radio Show.

Get Your Slurp On: Soupspiration in Baton Rouge

by Sydney Blanchard

Baton Rougeans: what have we done to deserve this? Who have we displeased? 

Because I am 1000% done with this weather.

I want to run errands without worrying about my car turning into a boat. I'd like to leave my house without getting soaked to the bone. Ideally, it would be cool if people could stop getting into wrecks.

Really, I've only come to one conclusion here. We all need to just stay in and sleep. Skip work, play hooky from school, and binge watch the newest season of Hemlock Grove.

We're not going to judge you.

Here's some local soupspiration to either fantasize about, try to recreate at home, or heck, have GoButler deliver it straight to your door.

Lemongrass Soup at Thai Kitchen

This soup is guaranteed to get your sinuses right. Trust me.

Pho at Dang's

By now, you should be aware of our obsession with Dang's. They're even using this blog post as their listed website on Facebook.

Black Bean Soup at MJ's Cafe

Since we all just found out that red meat is "carcinogenic" to human, I figured I'd include a vegetarian option for those of us affected by the new Red Scare.

Duck and Andouille Gumbo at The Chimes

No one makes gumbo as well as my grandma, but The Chimes is a pretty close second. 

Curried Pumpkin Bisque at Latil's Landing

This curry, pumpkin, and crawfish blend is both seasonal and life-affirming.

Rama Thai Cuisine

Sometimes, well, a lot of the time, I'm in the mood to find authentic hole-in-the-wall restaurants that make Baton Rouge such a great food town.  The Red Stick doesn't get enough credit in the culinary world due to all of the national chain signs that you see while driving down the interstate and New Orleans being only another 60 miles down the road.  However, if you hop off the freeway and hit a side street, you'll find some locally owned eateries with some exceptional flare.  One of these quaint places is Rama Thai Cuisine.  The Perkins Road Overpass area Thai restaurant is one of the forgotten gems in Baton Rouge, and it is time I give it some respect on Bite and Booze.  Eusebio and I dined at Rama a little while back, and we couldn't have left more satisfied!

Rama Thai Cuisine on the Inside and Out

It only felt natural to begin my meal with some Thai beer, so I ordered a Singha and started to get my taste buds ready for some Asian flavor.  Singha is a fairly standard lager with that Asian bite that you'll recognize from other Japanese beers like Kirin Ichiban.  It is pretty tasty, but I'd rather get to the food.

Singha Lager Beer

To wet our appetites a little more, we ordered a couple of appealing appetizers.  First up were the fried wontons.  These were nothing too special but they were fried to a nice crisp and had pretty decent flavor.  We had the shrimp chips for second app.  The chips were light and delicate with a great shrimp taste.  They came served with a delicious peanut sauce to dip the chips in.

Fried Wontons and Shrimp Chips with Peanut Sauce

The next dish to leave the kitchen and make its way in front of me was the lemongrass soup.  This fantastic soup was sweet and spicy with a citrus flavor.  It came loaded with shrimp and mushrooms, and I ate every bite.  I love a good, simple soup like this!

Lemongrass Soup

For an entree I called on the Rama Duck.  This delightful half of a duck was seasoned with Thai herbs and spices, then roasted until fork tender.  Each bite of duck put a smile on my face as the flavors filled my mouth and tickled my tongue.  The duck still tasted like duck meat should, and was only complemented by the sweet and savory Thai seasonings.  Steamed vegetables were served with the duck, and they tasted alright, but the duck certainly highlighted the plate. 

Rama Duck with Steamed Vegetables

For dessert, Eusebio and I couldn't decide between the fried apples with ice cream or the fried bananas with ice cream.  So, we did what any good person should do: we got both!  These fried-fruit desserts each came with three scoops of homemade ice cream.  Rama offered a selection of ice cream flavors, of which we ordered all of them: vanilla, coconut, and durian.  Yes, that's right, that durian! 

Durian Fruit as eaten by Andrew Zimmern in Bizarre Foods on the Travel Channel

Eusebio and I were a little nervous to try it as an ice cream flavor, but it was actually quite good.  The vanilla and coconut icecreams tasted pretty standard.  They were not very rich, but still had a smooth texture and the right amount of flavor to provide a condiment to the fried fruit and something sweet to end the meal with.  The durian icecream certainly had a unique flavor but it was nothing offensive.  I actually think I liked it more than the other two, even if it was just for originality alone.  I wouldn't hesitate to order it again next time I go to Rama, that's for sure!

Fried Apples and Banana Topped with Ice Cream, Durian Ice Cream on a Fried Banana

You can also check out the Cuisine Rouge post about Rama to see what they have to say about this little Thai Restaurant!