The taboos associated with Utah seem to be broad and polarizing. Locals are protective of their state. From the outside looking in you can only imagine men with five wives who belong to a cult that won’t allow you to drink alcohol. Visitors to the state seem to revel in its beauty, gloating over world-class ski resorts to the vast red rock desert in the southern regions and are often puzzled over the strange Utah liquor laws.

One of the more frustrating aspects of Utah, for everyone who enjoys a nice drink, is the state run liquor stores are closed Sundays. Leaving us with an assortment of baby ABV selections, we want to tell you, Utah doesn’t hate beer … it just likes its citizens to be fresh on Monday. Many times we’ve wandered over to the nearest grocery store to see what we could find. This time our goal was to find different styles from different Utah based breweries. One big thing in common: 4% ABV—you call it session, we call it life.

Moab Brewing | Johnny American IPA 4.0%

Johnny American IPA is from the home of the famous Arches National Park. This IPA encourages you to put some hops in your step! On our journey to beer nerdom, JA IPA was a staple, helping us cure the hop fix we craved. The hop strong smell comes across piney and sweet, almost honeydew melon; which is interesting for a low abv. The beer pours a wonderful golden color with a sustained head. Being initially hop forward, it relaxes to an early finish which is quite refreshing – fitting for the harsh land where it’s brewed. And we love the carnival style 16 oz. can!

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Bohemian Brewery | Cherny Bock 4.0%

If you are looking for beer ‘brewed the hard way’ look no further than Midvale Utah’s Bohemian Brewery’s Cherny Bock. Committed to the old styles, this brewery declares it’s beers ‘old school brew’. Cherny, as in ‘Black’ in Czech, is exactly what you get when you pour this beer. Dark with very little head which retreats in the blink of an eye and smells authentic as most European brews have. The well or earthy-water taste has a hint of bite from the dark malts. This is a nice way to display the style, which does follow the German Purity Law.

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Squatters | Full Suspension Pale Ale 4.0%

Squatters Brewing is a staple of Utah craft beer. Full Suspension is a classic amongst its line-up. Two time gold winner at GABF during the rise of Nirvana and Pearl Jam, it’s hard not to associate this beer with the grunge era; Doc Martins and flannel be-damned. This beer pours like liquid fool’s gold and has the bitterness like a finely boiled copper penny (did we mention the gold winning category was Bitter?). We’re a fan and we like grunge. “And with lights out, it’s less dangerous …” -Kurt

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Shades of Pale | 4-Play Porter 4.0%

This beer is friendly. Easy to get along with. Pours like an acquaintance you’ve learned to love; a smooth character and a pleasure to have around. So much so, they spend the night with a morning beginning with light chocolate and coffee porter and pancakes. Put a ring on it? We just met … but, it is Utah. Had the chance to meet Trent and Alex at the Mountain Brewer’s Beer Fest last year and just toured their gigantic new facility. This Beer Community we have is so welcoming and friendly. Keep having babies S of P—we’ll play all day! Cheers!

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Uinta Brewing Co. | 801 Pilsner 4.0%

In a cool attempt to give back to their home state, Uinta Brewing decided to brand this Utah-only-community-builder pilsner, donating portions of the proceeds to benefit local nonprofit organizations. It is a light, smooth, crisp, easy-drinker that does what it can to breathe much needed life into what seems to be a basic beer style. We like the message they promote, “Take care of the people that take care of you”.

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Wasatch Brewery | Apricot Hefeweizen 4.0%

This traditional German-style wheat beer with its suds soaked in apricot is a Utah favorite. It goes quickly so if you see it on tap at The Beer Store, get your growler filled quick. Honestly, fruit beer hasn’t been one of our favorite styles, however with its recent Great American Beer Fest medal, we decided to give it another shot. We can tell you now, our taste buds are much more forgiving. This unfiltered Hefeweizen pours hazy like a home brew and tastes bright and fruity, with plenty of apricot and hints of banana. This is a good beer. There is a reason it sells.

We think we’ve mastered a way to survive in a ‘dry state.’

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