Beer Tourism: Abita Springs

Where Abita began pouring ...

It pains me to admit it, but Abita Brewing was an afterthought on our trip down the Natchez Trace. Mississippi finally approved sales of high-alcohol beer and has one brewpub. I didn't hold out much hope for Louisiana outside New Orleans, where Abita now brews.

But a short Internet search turned up their  brewpub in Abita Springs, the town of pristine water where it began brewing in 1986. Nancy was intrigued. After leaving Baton Rouge, we gunned down Interstate 12 for a quick Abita rendezvous. 

On the border of Covington and Abita Springs, we passed the brewing facility, a relatively nondescript building the town's outskirts. The actual brewpub sat on a low-key lot off the traffic circle at the center of Abita Springs.Set back from the main block, the low-slung pub had a quiet patio and dark interior.

The town of 2,000-plus hummed with energy. The St. Tammany Trace trail gave cyclists as much right-of-way as motorists. We parked next to a two-story pavilion built for the 1884 World's Fair in New Orleans. A wedding party geared up to celebrate on both decks.

With rain threatening, the dark brewpub was sparsely populated. I went with Saint Gleason, an imperial red ale brewed to honor Steve Gleason, a former New Orleans Saint diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). The red malts runs against a strong pill of hops, much stronger than what I usually expect from Abita. An interesting twist of lemon citrus worked into the malty finish. Reminds me slightly of Green Flash Hop Head Red and Marble Red, only bolder and with more black pepper from the higher alcohol content.

Along with dinner, Nancy tried the Restoration Ale, their session blonde, and the strong wheat pilsner SOS (Save Our Shores), brewed to support Gulf oil spill cleanup. Not everyone digs Abita's brews, but it's hard to argue with their ethos and support of local causes.

Available only in bottle, I went for a Strawberry Harvest Lager. Fruit beers have long been a weakness; when the weather turns steamy, I want nothing more than something alcoholic and sweetened with fruit juice. Abit makes one of the best, produced with local strawberries.  I don't know whether the flavor is more complex from puree, full fruit or juice, but for Abita's pale lager, the juice works refreshing wonders.

While Abita could not us their beers to go, its neighboring market could. Artique's Abita Market stocked a nice selection of Louisiana brews and had ample supplies of Vanilla Doubledog, which Nashville burned through back in December. The bartender told me Abita continued to turn out that incredible 25th special edition beer and were unlikely to run out soon.

At the Slidell hotel, I did sneak in one more sample ...

Covington Strawberry
Sampled: April 21, 2012

Our Abita visit left me with a taste for strawberry beer. When it’s springtime in Louisiana, go with the local drink. For a switch, I grabbed a sixer of Covington Brewhouse Strawberry Ale, the only local option at the carryout in Slidell. Unlike the Abita, which pairs pilsner with strawberry juice, Covington goes for puree and a higher-fermenting ale. Covington comes off cloud ywith a tinge of crimson hue – there’s no hiding from the berry here. Covington meant to brew a bold strawberry ale.

Working with a cream ale as a base, Covington Strawberry stays light and lively. Strawberry might dominate, but it never overstays its welcome. I still think Abita produces the superior strawberry beer, but Covington deserves points for keeping it interesting. The high temperatures of Louisiana make it ground zero for fruit-flavored craft brews. When strawberries are in season, stock the ice chest with strawberry beers. Covington is definitely a harder sell than Abita, but thirst-quenching beer nonetheless.