Know your citrus: Abita Satsuma Harvest Wit

Image: Abita

I have lived in the North Texas area all my life, and have made many trips to and through neighboring Louisiana. But until today, I had never heard of the satsuma.

It seems a satsuma is a citrus fruit from Japan, similar to the mandarin orange or clementine. With a little online research, I find the satsuma is actually a cross between a tangerine and a mandarin, so named after the man who crossed them, Philip Satsuma.

That said, the reason for researching this citrus fruit is Abita Brewing Company’s new seasonal, the Satsuma Harvest Wit, made with genuine Louisiana satsumas. Witbier (“white beer”) is a Belgian tradition, a light wheat beer brewed with a touch of spices, an easily quaffable beer in the heat of the summer months.

Generally, I am not a fan of fruit beers as they usually come out cloyingly sweet, more soda pop than malt beverage. However, these past couple of seasonals to arrive here from Abita have been impressive because the fruit addition is reserved enough to actually marry well with the flavor of the beer.

The Satsuma Harvest Wit is a light wheat ale with an aroma of faint spices and orange pith. Its taste is of a toasty malt sweetness with the flavor of mandarin oranges (satsumas, I am guessing) and some light coriander and clove. As it warms slightly, you get more of a sweet/tart orange flavor—all without losing the nature of the underlying beer.

Naturally, this is a warm-weather beer, and at 5.1% ABV it can be enjoyed with almost any outdoor activity or light summer foods. Pairing it with anything containing oranges, marmalade or ginger will enhance its own flavors, so Asian dishes sound ideal.

Availability: Abita has been well-distributed in North Texas for years now, so look for this almost anywhere Abita beers are sold. Most likely only available through the summer.

Other beers by Abita: Abita Jockamo IPA

Cheers!

paul@scientist.com