BeerSweden advises all beer lovers to prepare themselves over the weekend. Take long walks in the fresh air, drink plenty of water and have a couple of early nights because on Monday, March 15th a knee-weakening total of 17 new beers are being released simultaneously at the Systembolaget.

The Easter Bunny is taking it easy. He knows what's coming on Monday...

Nothing says Easter quite like the sight of bottles of Easter beer hitting the shelves of the Systembolaget and this year no less than 12 beers are going on sale – 10 of them from microbreweries!  In addition there are 5 exciting beers being introduced as part of the SB’s ‘mitt i månaden’ release for March – three of which I consider some of the best examples of their styles in the world right now!

I can barely contain myself so let’s get started with the Easter beers first. Here’s a look at what’s coming your way and a link to the Systembolaget’s homepage for more detailed information.

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Fantastic to see so many Swedish microbreweries making the list this year. BeerSweden broke the news about both the Easter beers from Sigtuna and I got particularly excited about Sigtuna Easter Ale, brewed using New Zealand Riwaka hops which gives it an amazingly intense burst of tropical fruit flavours. A must-buy!

Good to see Jämtlands Bryggeri back on the shelves with the welcome return of their very solid Påsköl. Also making a comeback are Nils Oscar with their Kalaspåsköl (which this year is a completely new recipe with a stronger, more rugged character), Oppigårds Easter Ale and the herby, spicy Pumpviken Påsköl from Nynäshamns Ångbryggeri.

Don’t forget Dugges Påsköl, a rich 6% ABV beer with the coolest label of the year so far and an invigorating hoppy taste and Blåkulla Påsköl from Slottskällans Bryggeri in Uppsala, which this year has gone all ecological.

Finally there are outings for both Spendrups with their Mariestads Påskbrygd and Carlsberg Sweden with Eriksberg Påsköl.

Turning to Denmark you rarely go wrong with a Mikkeller, so grab a bottle of their Hoppy Easter, a 6.6% ABV IPA which Mikkeller promises has a distinct German Tettang hop aroma. Less well known to me is Easter Bird from Fuglsang, an American-inspired ale made using Cascade and Simcoe hops.

That’s a round-up of the Easter beers for you. I think I’ll take the other 5 March releases in a separate post as they totally deserve your undivided attention! I’ll post more details in the next few hours.

Have a great weekend everyone, take it easy and get ready for the best Monday of 2010 so far………..

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!)