Murphy's North - Victory Brewing Co.'s Summer Love Ale

Truth be told, I’ve been going here for years.  I’ve lived in North Boulder off and on for awhile, but even now that I’ve moved 20 miles away, I still pop in when I can.  It’s one of the few places able to nail down excellent service, a high quality menu with great variety, an EXCELLENT happy hour and a craft beer selection carefully put together by GM and all-around-cool-guy Adam Perkins.  Best yet, is that it maintains a “neighborly” feel without the pretentiousness of most Boulder, Co. establishments.   Oh, and a sweet patio in the summer.  And if you prefer liquor, you can’t beat their $5 house margarita (fresh Lime, simple sugar, etc.) during Happy Hour.

Murphy's

The GM Adam is always there, and seems like he pretty much takes care of everything.  Alternately throughout the day, he’ll be doing office work, helping behind the bar, helping servers get food out, chatting it up with customers and jumping on the line if that’s what needs to happen – and often it does.  Sometimes he sits down I think, but maybe not.  This first photo is how customers see Adam:

Ok, Adam's younger, but you get the point.

This second is more how Adam must feel sometimes:

Hehe.  Anyway, craft beer.  With not too many handles to work with, they do a magnificent job of keeping things fresh by constantly rotating things in and out, so there is usually something new to try.  This time around it was hot enough outside to keep most people in a constant state of inelegance (paraphrased from Jane Austin, I think), so I wanted something light.  Of course they had exactly what I wanted on tap – Victory Brewing Co.’s Summer Love Ale, a really delightful brew for scorching hot days.

Victory Brewing Co’s Summer Love Ale:

I think it’s classified as a Blonde Ale, but has similar qualities to a Golden or even a Pilsner.  Poured into a standard pint glass, this beer had an incredibly clear, straw color to it.  Intense effervescence.  In terms of smell, very strong in the hops department, with some hints of grain and a light fruitiness.

Taste-wise, the hops are the first thing I noticed, with floral and grapefruity notes, but not overpowering by any stretch of the imagination.  A very light malt core is present, and the more you drink, the more complex it gets, with nice light grainy taste in the background as well.  It finishes up very clean and dry – as it should.  Extremely refreshing with a high level of carbonation, this beer really is a perfect beer for hot days.

Would definitely recommend it again and again.

So to everyone at Murphy’s North, and Victory Brewing – Cheers!