Swedish microbrewery Sigtuna Brygghus isn’t putting all its Easter eggs into one basket this year as it gets ready to launch not one but two Easter beers at the Systembolaget next month.

BeerSweden is thrilled to be the first blog anywhere to try them out almost 5 weeks before they go on sale on March 15th!

This Easter it basically comes down to a choice of colours. Do you prefer yellow or red?

Choose red and you’ve got yourself an American amber/red ale by the name of Sigtuna Röd Påsk. Brewed with an equal split of Centennial and Amarillo hops it pours a glowing sunset red and despite its 65-70 IBUs (international bitterness units) has a wonderfully balanced sweetness courtesy of dark crystal malts. At 6.2% ABV it has all the ‘weight’ and richness a red ale should have. Watch out for this one!

However, pick yellow and you’re in for a real treat. Sigtuna Easter Ale may not have the most imaginative brand name but I’m going to stick my neck out here and predict this is going to become one of the most popular Swedish beers launched this year.

Why? Well because it exemplifies everything Sigtuna Head Brewer Mattias Hammenlind believes a beer should be – big but balanced.

He’s taking a calculated risk by moving away from the British and US hops Sigtuna normally uses and instead has experimented with New Zealand Pacific Gem and Riwaka hops, the latter of which has achieved something of a cult status down under where it is considered by many to be more than a match for US favourites like Centennial and Cascade.

But boy was the risk worth taking! Open a bottle of Sigtuna Easter Ale and the aroma will literally demand your immediate attention. The Riwaka hops burst out of the bottle with thick, oily, luscious smells of tropical fruit, sweet lychees and lemons. The taste of this 5.6% ABV beer is as invigorating as rolling around naked in snow, with lots of fresh citrus flavours and a welcome and assertive bitter finish.

It’s simply amazing stuff, and together with a beer from another Swedish micro I recently raved about is yet more proof that Swedish craft beer isn’t only catching up with the US and other craft brewing nations- it’s leaving some of them behind.

Put the date of Monday, March 15th in your diary right now so you don’t miss the chance to try these two colourful Easter beers from Sigtuna Brygghus.

(BeerSweden spent a great afternoon at Sigtuna Brygghus earlier this week, sampling new beers  – some of which haven’t even been named yet – and talking about the brewery’s explosive growth and exciting plans for the future. Full coverage of the visit will being posted very soon here at BeerSweden!)