Peak Organic Brewing Company - Fresh Cut

Pouring a golden straw color with a light haze and a cap of crisp white foam, Fresh Cut represents Peak Organic’s foray into the American trend of taking traditional lager styles and overhauling them by amping up the bitterness a bit while using American hops, and lots of them, for a distinctly different character in the aroma and flavor. There’s also another trend currently towards more “sessionable”, lower-ABV IPAs, and Fresh Cut shares some similarities with such beers, albeit as a lager. On the nose, look for softly floral notes of citrus blossoms, citrus zest, a touch of cut grass, lemongrass, and a wisp of incense-like spice. The malt flavors are clean and balanced with some pilsner-esque bready, crackery, and papery notes. We found the hops to be a delight; extensive dry-hopping allows them to deliver their lemony citrus and grassy character front and center – but not in an overpoweringly bitter way, and the beer remains dry straight through the finish. On the light side of medium bodied and with the crispness one expects from a lager, this pilsner has been thoroughly Americanized in a very contemporary way, culminating in a beer that’s fun, refreshing, and easy to drink. Try pairing with a Chinese chicken salad, fish sandwiches, or lobster. Cheers!

Given its small population, Maine is home to a surprising number of craft breweries, such as Allagash, Geary’s, and Shipyard, just to name a few. The state just knows good beer, and we’re very enthused to bring you another great producer, Peak Organic Brewing Company, which, as the name suggests, is one of a handful of breweries devoted to producing USDA Certified Organic beer. The brewery was founded by Baltimore native Jon Cadoux, whose homebrewing experience stretches back to his college years in the late ‘90s. It was during that time that he discovered the merits of both organic food and beer, and how much better they tasted to both himself and his homebrewing brother Mike and their friends. After graduating from Harvard with an MBA, and surrounded by supportive friends and family, Jon took the leap and founded Peak Organic Brewing Company in 2005.

Peak’s focus is not simply on organic beer (produced with organically grown grain and hops), they’re dedicated to sustainability and purchasing their malts, hops, and other ingredients from local farmers and producers who share their philosophy. They’ve collaborated on beers with Taza, a producer of hand-crafted bean-to-bar chocolate, as well as Coffee By Design, a local artisanal coffee roaster. In fact, their Espresso Amber Ale became the first Fair Trade Certified beer in the US. To highlight local production and to showcase the effects of regional terroir on a finished beer, Peak released their very unique “Local Series” beers, a set of four brews with identical recipes but featuring malts and hops produced in just one particular state, either Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, or New York. To learn more about Peak, visit their website at www.peakbrewing.com.