Beer Review: River North Brewery’s River North White

River North White, River North Brewery, Denver

Style: Witbier

ABV: 5.0 percent

Serving Type: Can

Malty? Hoppy? A tinge of both.

Reviewed: July 2014

In this month’s issue, we laid out the Ultimate Colorado BBQ for you. But what would a perfect spread of dishes be without the perfect Colorado beers to pair with them? That’s where the editor-picked 5280 Summer Six Pack comes in. There’s a little something for everyone: Ska Modus Hoperandi for the hop-lover, Odell 5 Barrel Pale Ale for the IPA beginner, and the much-debated Coors Banquet, a classic standby. River North Brewery’s River North White, a simplistic take on a witbier, also snagged a spot. The brewery, which opened in 2012, exclusively uses Belgian yeast. The brewery is “yeast-centric”—that is to say, none of their main taps use extra ingredients like fruit or spices. The same goes for this witbier, a style that traditionally contains orange peel and coriander.

The white ale is crisp and flavorful, with high carbonation and a tangy finish. It reminds me of warm, cloudy days spent on a backyard patio, which is exactly where I enjoyed this RiNo creation. Ingredient-wise, it is simple, but the lack of bells and whistles allows it to be what it really is: a well-brewed beer.

Bonus trivia: Matt Hess designed the River North White can himself, which recently won an award for graphic design in a beer-packaging competition. Read more about the brewer here.

Would we buy it again? Sure, whilst the weather’s warm. Find the 5280 Summer Six Pack here.