The Six Session Beers of Session Beer Day, 2016 (Ch. 6): An Akasha trio and a Monnik guest.

6th of 6 previews.

Previously:

The Six Session Beers of Session Beer Day, 2016 (Ch. 1): Falls City Kentucky Common.
The Six Session Beers of Session Beer Day, 2016 (Ch. 2): Gordon Biersch Golden Export.
The Six Session Beers of Session Beer Day, 2016 (Ch. 3): Bluegrass Brewing Company Altbier.
The Six Session Beers of Session Beer Day, 2016 (Ch. 4): Against the Grain Neckhole or Sho'Nuff.
The Six Session Beers of Session Beer Day, 2016 (Ch. 5): Goodwood Louisville Lager.

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Thursday, April 7 is Session Beer Day 2016 ... and since it's one of my favorite holidays of the year, I'll be celebrating it.

Join me on a Session Beer Day Brewery Crawl on Thursday, April 7.

On April 7, I'll start before lunch (circa 11:00 a.m.) and traverse downtown Louisville on foot, walking from brewery to brewery and having a session beer at each. Most usually have at least one 4.5% choice on draft. The brewery list, traveling roughly west to east, would be: Falls City (Over the 9), Gordon Biersch, BBC 3rd Street, Against the Grain, Goodwood and Akasha.

For all intents and purposes, session beer consciousness as we know it today originates with Lew Bryson's Session Beer Project.

For our purposes, 'session beer' is defined as a beer that is:

• 4.5% alcohol by volume or less
• flavorful enough to be interesting
• balanced enough for multiple pints
• conducive to conversation
• reasonably priced

Over at Lew Bryson's Session Beer Project, we scored some ink from the maestro himself. Thank you, kind sir.

If all goes as planned, I should be arriving at Akasha Brewing Company around opening at 5:00 p.m. One of Akasha's owners is Rick Stidham, whom I consider not just a friend, but also one of the most thoughtful and authentic personages in local brewing circles -- and we have so many fine people hereabouts.

When it became evident to me that I'd be unable to continue the tradition of Session Head at NABC, I asked Rick about the chances of Akasha having some session-strength beers on tap for Session Beer Day. He was enthused, and because of his gracious support, the idea of a Session Beer Day Brewery Crawl germinated.

Listen up: I've committed to full pours of small beers on Session Day, one at each stop. However, at Akasha, I reserve the right to consume halvers, because 3 + 1 = 2.

Akasha American Pale with Brett
Sour Ale/Wild Ale · 4.2% ABV
Funky and fruity, brewed with Nugget and a blend of citrus-fruity hops, fermented with California Ale yeast and six strains of Brettanomyces simultaneously.

Akasha Belgian Blonde
Golden Ale/Blond Ale · 4.5% ABV
Our Belgian Blonde is inspired by, but by no means a clone of, one of our all-time favorite beers from our friend, Yvan: De la Senne Taras Boulba. Dry, hoppy, and quenching.

Akasha English Mild with Brett
Mild Ale · 3.1% ABV
English Milds of long ago had Incidental Brett in them. We put Intentional Brett in ours. Dry, drinkable, light in body, dark in color.

Not only that, there's a guest from Monnik Beer Co. in Schnitzelburg, roughly two and a half miles south of Akasha. I'm glad Monnik Mild George (English Brown Ale, 3.5%) will be at Akasha, because after six beers ...

Like I said, 3 + 1 = 2 ... two full pints, that is. There's a chance that Rick can join me for some of the afternoon stops. That would be serious fun.

There's a 50% chance of showers in the morning on Thursday, with clouds in the afternoon and a high of 56 degrees. In short, delightful Irish weather for a brewery crawl through downtown Louisville.

I'm @newalbanian on Twitter, and will be using #sessionbeerday as a hashtag. My Instagram account is The New Albanian, and I usually post photos to Facebook.

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