No sour grapes here, just fruity beers of summer

Finally there’s a reason to thank La Nina – extended beer-drinking weather is expected to last through to April across the nation. With the Bureau of Meteorology predicting warmer than normal conditions for much of Australia in the next three months, it’s the perfect time to tantalise your tastebuds with fruity craft beers that taste like summer.

Hot days makes us think of strawberries, oranges, passionfruit and mango. And now you can enjoy them in a can. Here our SmartCraft Beer Club experts offer five of the best fruity beers to try:

Bright Brewery Spicy Beagle Mango Lime & Chilli Sour

That’s one hot dog. Brewed in collaboration with Clint Weaver of Pocket Beagles Design Studio, this beer seamlessly blends sweet, sour, and spicy in a succulent sip you’ll want to savour. Mango puree and lime peel deliver the flavour, while a decent whack of Birdseye chillies ramp up the heat.

CBCo Market Sour Orange Mandarin & Fennel

A classic German-style gose that’s all things nice with fruit and spice.

The base has double the acidity of their core sours before adding sweet orange peel for a tangy citrus pith note, supported by mandarin puree. A unique pairing of milled fennel and coriander seeds offset this fruit sweetness with herbal spice to maintain balance. These complex flavours are all brought together by sea salt providing mouthfeel.

Holgate Blush Wild Berry Sour

Holgate’s original semi sour pale ale, the Hop Tart, naturally lends itself to fruited variations after the classic Belgian sour beer tradition. The Blush is a wild berry version, with a deep rose colour and distinctive raspberry and blueberry fruitiness giving an incomparably refreshing tartness. Crush a Blush.

Two Bays Brewing Passionfruit Sour

You called for a return of their gold medal-winning Pulp Fusion Passionfruit Sour and now they are calling you to crack one this summer. Back for a limited time only, Pulp Fusion features a powerful passionfruit aroma, backed up by refreshing tropical flavours and a subtly tart finish. Brewed at a lower 3.5% ABV, this is the perfect summer thirst quencher.

Bright Brewery Strawberry Dream Milkshake Ale

Exploding with sweet strawberry flavours, Strawberry Dream is brewed with 800kg of strawberry puree, creamy lactose and dosed with vanilla for a creamy, dreamy finish.