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The Top 11 Beers We Drank in July 2025
Summer is hot. Beer is cold.
Graphic courtesy of Derek Campos, Senior Graphic Designer, Next Glass
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Hop Culture’s summer travel adventures continued with visits to Estonia and Latvia. We were most excited to check out the world-renowned Põhjala, known for its crazy barrel-aged program, session sours, and an imperial Baltic porter unlike any you’ve ever tasted.
But we were perhaps most surprised by Labietis, a brewery in Riga, Latvia, which makes what they call “Pagan Brews,” or beers governed not by rules and regulations, but rather by what the co-founders can find in the forests around them. This is the kind of brewery that makes you pause, sip, and unpack everything you believed about beer.
We also took time to share all the spots we loved in both Tallinn and Riga.
Plus, we brought back our seasonal guide to the most iconic beers to drink in summer.
And once we got back to the West Coast, we visited some of our favorite spots to see what’s fresh and new.
All in all, July kept us pretty busy, so here’s everything we drank as we covered thousands of miles from Eastern Europe to the West Coast of the States.
Hop Culture’s Top 11 Beers We Drank in July 2025
Torpedo Extra IPA – Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Chico, CA
Graphic designed by Derek Campos, Senior Graphic Designer | Next Glass
American IPA – According to Sierra Nevada, Torpedo Extra IPA started as a napkin sketch in a pub. Sam Calagione developed the idea for a device that continuously distributed hops. In the same vein, Ken Grossman had an idea for a device that would enhance hop aroma without increasing bitterness.
A revolutionary piece of brewing equipment, the “Hop Torpedo” inspired the creation of Torpedo Extra IPA. Pleasant, if not a tad aggressive, in its bitterness, this American IPA includes whole-cone hops. Citra, Crystal, and Magnum contribute to the beer’s intriguing blend of citrus, pine, and grassy notes. In contrast, two-row pale and caramel malts add a nice, mellow backbone.
We give respect where respect is due.
Broken Heels – New Trail Brewing Co.
Williamsport, PA
Photography courtesy of New Trail Brewing
Hazy IPA – For whatever summer adventure you plan, we highly recommend taking along New Trail’s Broken Heels. The flagship hazy came from New Trail Director of Brewing Operations Mike LaRosa, who brought some serious hop game with him from previous stints at Kane and Tired Hands.
“He was on the cutting edge of that hazy IPA thing when it popped up,” New Trail Brewing Marketing Director Don Rieck chuckles. “He came here and was like, we’re probably going to make hazy IPA pretty often.”
Initially, only planning to brew this beer every two or three months, LaRosa homed in on the recipe. “Even from the beginning, we wanted to make the best beer we could,” says Rieck, noting they still hold true to the original recipe today. “We made this really, really excellent beer.”
Packed with hand-selected Pacific Northwest Citra and Mosaic hops, Broken Heels drinks orange-forward, “maybe with a little bit of citrus rind and pine,” shares Rieck. The New England-style IPA finishes dry, creating a classic hazy that’s just damn delicious.
And we’re not the only ones who think so.
Broken Heels took off so quickly that New Trail now brews it up to seven days a week.
Named after an adventuring accident that left New Trail Co-Founder Charles Imbro with two broken heels, the brewery’s first flagship “was a survival of the fittest,” says Rieck. “Everybody wanted that beer, and they wanted to drink that more than anything else we made.”
Rieck likes to take Broken Heels out on the Susquehanna River (the oldest in the world, he tells us) when he goes fishing. But he says he’s seen fans take this beer all the way to the Matterhorn, a mountain in the Swiss Alps.
Where will you take your Broken Heels?
Blackberry Miabellini Cooler – Five Flowers
Photography courtesy of Five Flowers
THC-Infused Cooler – We’ve all been there. It’s Sunday morning. We groggily roll out of bed, brush the sleep from our eyes, and start to shake with the Sunday scaries. Until we remember one thing: We’re going to brunch today! For just a few hours, we escape reality, traveling to a place somewhere between bliss and breakfast, where mimosas flow freely and stacks of pancakes never end. Together under the clinking of cutlery and tinkling of toasts, we talk about last night’s adventures or bemoan upcoming projects at work. These are the sparkling occasions Five Flowers captures in a can.
“That moment is full of hope, expectation, and joy for the rest of the day,” says Marina Jackman, CMO of Drink Modern Technologies, which makes Five Flowers and other infused beverages. “You go to a brunch to meet people and share delicious food and drinks.”
During these weekend revelries, we drink in all the good vibes. But with Five Flowers, a fizzy THC- and CBD-infused beverage, you don’t need to wait for one specific morning.
These meticulously curated coolers bring a calming spark to your day, allowing you to escape the mundane for a moment of bliss and relaxation.
Those like the newest flavor, Blackberry Miabellini Cooler, which bursts with plump, juicy blackberries for a subtly sweeter, more indulgent sip.
Launched just this year, Blackberry Miabellini Cooler has the potential to be one of Five Flowers’ most successful flavors.
And we’re here for it.
Raspberry Highball – Cheech & Chong’s Cannabis
Photography courtesy of Cheech & Chong’s Cannabis
THC-Infused Seltzer – Before cannabis was a billion-dollar industry—before dispensaries looked like Apple stores and you could order THC seltzers straight to your door—there were two guys in a beat-up van getting stoned and making America laugh. Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong weren’t just countercultural comedians; they were pioneers, rolling joints and rolling tape at a time when the risks were real. The pair’s first feature-length film, Up in Smoke, lit up theaters in 1978, quickly becoming a cult classic. Suddenly, weed wasn’t just a vice—it was a punchline and a protest rolled into one.
“It was a political statement,” says Cheech & Chong Global CTO Steve Gunn. “These guys risked everything by putting their names on something outrageous.”
And he’s not wrong.
These guys weren’t just getting high—they were getting heard. With every skit and screen appearance, they helped shift the cannabis conversation from criminal to cultural. Now, over fifty years later, they’re still planting seeds—this time in the form of THC-infused drinks and low-dose gummies that continue the same mission: to normalize, to entertain, and to advocate.
“Cheech & Chong’s Cannabis was never a business plan; it was a belief, a movement,” Chong wrote in an email to Hop Culture. “And now, decades later, we’ve turned that into something people can actually hold in their hands and enjoy.”
Like with the brand’s line of THC-infused drinks called High & Dry.
At the beginning of the year, we predicted that the “fifth category,” which includes drinks with cannabis, THC, hemp, Delta 8, or Delta 9, would see the highest (pardon the pun) growth in 2025.
“The writing is on the wall,” says Gunn when it comes to the growth of THC-infused drinks.
Cheech & Chong believe these are the future of the industry, especially as the “ultimate alcohol alternative,” as Gunn calls it.
The brand feels that, in ten years, THC-infused drinks will even supplant the place of traditional light lagers in American culture. “These will be the quick after-work or have a couple at a barbecue [drinks],” says Gunn. “They will be the choice for responsible adults who are looking to get that social buzz and responsible head change.”
Cheech & Chong has several drink offerings, including a 10mg THC line of High Teas and a 5mg THC line of lightly flavored seltzers.
“Similar to La Croix, but with THC in them,” explains Gunn.
All of Cheech & Chong’s bevvies are made with one hundred percent American-grown hemp, federally legal, and third-party tested, so you can feel safe about what’s going in the can.
Safe to say these drinks have made a big splash.
Currently, Gunn says Cheech & Chong’s High & Dry line of THC-infused seltzers is either number one or two in the category in each of their retail markets.
With flavors ranging from mango to watermelon, Cheech & Chong’s Raspberry Highball currently ranks as the brand’s best seller for its perfect blend of tart and sweet.
Raspberry Highball is an excellent introduction to the lasting legacy of Cheech & Chong.
Rukkirääk – Põhjala
Tallinn, Estonia
Photography courtesy of Grace Lee-Weitz | Hop Culture
Rye Beer – In Rukkirääk, the Estonian name for a small bird called a corn crake that primarily inhabits rye fields, Põhjala pays homage to Estonians’ affection for rye. “People eat rye bread daily,” says Põhjala Head Brewer Martin Vahtra, who occasionally even makes his own rye bread at home. “So we created a beer that’s almost like liquid bread.”
Looking to hit a flavor expression of rye crust—caramel-y, a bit toasty, and with deep grain character—Vahtra added caramel rye malt, chocolate rye malt, a roasted rye malt, and a type of Estonian fermented rye malt (the same used in Estonian breads) to the base.
“We basically used rye in every type of way that we possibly could,” he told me.
What at first appears dark shimmers with a deep ruby red when held up to the light. Vahtra calls this a “nice in-between beer,” not something you go to every day, but a good intermission between hoppy beers or a malty showcase that’s not as heavy as a porter or a stout that you can enjoy once or twice.
“I feel like it’s an overlooked beer,” says Vahtra. “Like the Estonian rye doesn’t say much to anybody, but it has such deep roots in the culture, culinary arts, and just people’s hearts.”
Vahtra explains a common phrase in Estonia used as a local greeting to people dining, jätku leiba. “It’s basically an Estonian counterpart to bon appétit,” he says, noting it roughly translates to “may there be bread.” “Bread and rye have always been profoundly important in Estonian culture and cuisine.”
Põhjala may be known worldwide for its Cellar Series, which features excellent imperial barrel-aged ales, but when we visited, we had to admit that we kept going back to Rukkirääk.
Sadu – Pühaste Brewery
Tartu, Estonia
Photography courtesy of Grace Lee-Weitz | Hop Culture
West Coast Pilsner – Technically based in Tartu, Pühaste has a taproom in Tallinn, which is helpful if you want to try one of the brewery’s envelope-pushing beers.
Pühaste Co-Founder and Brewer Eero Mander is known for creating innovative flavor combinations, experimenting with unusual ingredients, and exploring new brewing techniques.
It has hit in Estonia, where the brewery currently holds the highest rating on Untappd, boasting 582,000 ratings, nearly 350 beers listed, and an overall 3.92 ranking.
During the last two years of the Untappd Community Awards, Pühaste has accumulated the most medals in Estonia with fifty-five, securing twenty-four golds in categories such as barleywine, Cold IPA, DIPA, and imperial stout.
Pühaste brews a wide array of styles from lagers and IPAs to strong dark beers and wild ales. Their Silver Series barrel-aged beers are highly sought after, with many rated over 4.25 (currently twenty-four different offerings).
Built into an old Russian grain factory, the taproom’s arched brick ceilings still preserve the old grain chutes.
Today, underneath those silos, instead of trucks filling up with grain, you’ll see raucous tables of folks filling up on beer.
We personally loved Sadu, a West Coast pilsner hopped with Krush and Citra.
Zilgas Humpalina – Labietis Pagan Brews
Riga, Latvia
Photography courtesy of Labietis
Mixed Fermentation – Juniper red ale, Bronze Aged Braggot, herbal dark ale—just a few of the terroir-based beers that we tried at Labietis in Riga, Latvia. The “Pagan Pharmacy,” as the brewery was described to us, focuses on making beers with a sense of place and time.
We particularly loved Zilgas Humpalina, a secondhand mixed-fermentation grape saison.
Made with “not your typical grapes, but small, dark ones that typically grow around Latvian lawns,” according to Labietis Bartender Roberts Laķis. “They became quite popular in the Soviet times as a way to add some greenery.”
In Latvian, Humpala is shorthand for secondhand shops. During the ‘90s, “people thought we needed help, so there was a lot of humanitarian aid,” explains Labietis Co-Founder Reinis Pļaviņš. The secondhand reference refers to how Labietis reused Latvian grapes to make a second beer.
Pļaviņš explains how they initially used the grapes to brew a one-off mixed fermentation beer. They had planned to discard the grapes, but a visit from the folks at Garden Path Fermentation in Washington State changed their minds.
“Two or three summers ago, we were pouring off the first mixed fermentation from the berries, and they were like, ‘Oh, cool, now you’ll be able to make another two or three beers out of the berries … drop something fresh on it and see what happens.’”
So they did.
Labietis dropped a fully fermented saison on the second-use Latvian grapes to make a stunning yet subtle saison.
“It’s a beautiful, easy-drinking beer that’s a bit dry, a bit sour, and a bit fruity,” says Pļaviņš.
For us, it was one of our favorite beers from Labietis, and truly emblematic of what they do.
PINEFRUIT – Nurme
Riga, Latvia
American IPA – Untappd’s third-highest-rated brewery in Latvia, Nurme blends traditional local ingredients with modern contemporary brewing techniques. Eclectic experimentations give you beers like PINEFRUIT, an IPA brewed with grapefruit zest and pine buds.
Located in an old industrial part of the city that’s going through a revival, Nurme seems to stand for the future of what’s to come in Riga while still respecting where it’s been.
Pixel – Phase Three Brewing
Lake Zurich, IL
Hazy – Phase Three’s flagship hazy IPA, Pixel, which we received, actually came in a four-pack as part of Phase Three’s Pixel & Pals campaign.
Combining collabs with worldwide and coast-to-coast breweries, including Omnipollo, North Park, and Trillium, Pixel & Pals featured three hoppy collabs with this flagship stunner.
Brewed with oats, wheat, and Pilsner malt and Citra hops, Pixel is a Citra showcase. Reminding us of those orange or pink creamsicle bars you’d find at ice cream trucks outside the zoo, Pixel drank with such a luscious texture and oozing indulgent creaminess. Tropical fruits like guava, papaya, and mango zipped around our minds like a dazed Looney Tunes character. With almost no bitterness, Pixel had a little lingering resin that coated the top of your mouth, but this beer is all about the juice.
Yes, we tried all four beers in the pack, and they were all fantastic, but the one we kept coming back to just so happened to be the OG. And there is certainly nothing wrong with that.
Nueve – Temescal Brewing
Oakland, CA
Mexican Lager – If you know us, you’ve heard us sing the praises of this neighborhood brewery before. Temescal has been the setting for so many of our birthday parties, silent book clubs (IYKYK), and weekend hangs. It was the first (and last) place we got a beer when we first moved to the East Bay on March 1, 2020, right before the global pandemic shut down the world. And in July, we stopped by twice.
First, for our monthly silent book club, a group of what we’d call introverted extroverts who get together to share a beer, but also read silently for an hour.
Second, for the brewery’s Friday flicks, where they show classic movies out in their fantastic beer garden.
Both times we ordered the new Nueve, an heirloom purple corn Mexican-style lager brewed with heirloom purple corn, malted barley, and German hops.
Temescal describes this beer as “aromas of fresh tortilla, herbs, and earth rise up—flavors that stay clean, velvety, and crisp. Like cracking a beer at golden hour on a hot sidewalk.”
We’re not sure if we could say it any better. So we won’t.
Copper Ale – Enterprise Brewing Co.
San Francisco, CA
American Amber Ale – Before heading over to the War Memorial Opera House for a special Pride concert, Hop Culture Senior Content Editor Grace Lee-Weitz stopped by Enterprise, one of Hop Culture’s Best New Breweries of 2023. No longer the new kids on the block, Enterprise continues to kick out fundamentally sound beer. For instance, Copper Ale, a lovely caramely amber brewed with Admiral Malting’s California-grown Maiden Voyage, Kilnsmith, Pacific Victor, and Admiral’s Hearth malts.
This beer is a bread basket of some of California’s best malts. All in one glass. Get yourself to Enterprise’s taproom and order one. Thank us later.
