Worcester Red Sox And Harpoon Team Up For A New Summer Beer

Baseball and beer are two popular elements of summer and they make a great combo. The Worcester Red Sox and Harpoon Brewery know this, and they have a new collaboration, a beer titled WooSox Lager.

Harpoon, a local New England brewer, describes the beer by saying it is, "Crisp and clean from cold fermentation, this American Lager is like a full-flavored macro beer with the perfect amount of hoppy aromatics – brewed with American hops and a touch of flaked corn to keep things light."

This beer is a full-body brew with an ABV of 4%.

In a press release shared announcing the collaboration Harpoon CEO and Worcester native Dan Kenary said, “As the official beer sponsor of the WooSox, this collaboration is more than just a partnership; it's a celebration of the vibrant community spirit of Worcester. This lager embodies the essence of a perfect game-day beer, and I personally can’t wait to enjoy it at Polar Park this summer.”

In addition, Jack Verducci, WooSox Executive Vice President, Corporate Partnerships and Sales described it as a summer classic, showing local support. “By coming together to create WooSox Lager, we have produced not just a beer, but a symbol of local pride and collaboration. It's a testament to the strong ties between the brewery, the baseball team, and the fans who support them."

This beer will be sold at Polar Park in Worcester starting this week, just in time for Memorial Day. This weekend you can enjoy one of these cans at the park while the WooSox are in town for a homestand against the Norfolk Tides. This is the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles.

If you are unable to catch some minor league baseball this weekend, the WooSox Lager will be sold at Polar Park home games for the remainder of the season. Furthermore, bars and certain liquor stores around the Worcester area will be carrying the cans or will have the beer on draft.

You can find more information about where you can pick up WooSox Lager on Harpoon's Beer Finder.

Harpoon also has a few other seasonal flavors to be aware of this year. The Summer Style is a New England blonde ale, and there's also the New England pale ale. Included in Harpoon's "Summer Vacation" pack, you will find a mix of Harpoon IPA, Rec. League, Summer Style, and the return of the beloved Camp Wannamango as a mix pack exclusive.

Ben and Jerry's new flavors couldn't be more different from each other. The popular New England based ice cream brand has added three options to their creative family so far this year, and here I will rank them all.

Coincidentally, I tried each of these in one sitting. This was an unplanned taste test. With a house full of young kids, a visiting friend recently stopped by and knew the way to quickly win over the youngsters. Pints of ice cream.

Before I get into explaining which was best, I should note I am not an ice cream (or dessert) enthusiast by any means. Dare I say, I hardly seek out ice cream, even in the summer months. However, if it is put in front of me, I will eat it if it's one of my favorite varieties.

If I'm going for ice cream, though, Ben and Jerry's is easily my brand of choice. Being a New Englander, I have toured their Vermont location a handful of times. Their half-baked in a cone is my go-to choice.

If you are not familiar, these are the Ben and Jerry's new flavors that have rolled out in 2024. Impretzively Fudged, PB S'More, and Marshmallow Sky. Now, it's important to note that Marshmallow Sky is new just to pints. Meaning, it was available in their scoop shops only.

Another flavor entitled Strawberry Cheezecake was also unveiled earlier this year. This did not qualify here as a new flavor ranking because it had been an ice cream flavor (branded "cheesecake). The new "cheeze" version is a vegan dairy-free dessert.

Upon seeing these at my house, I realized they were new. So, instead of selecting one pint to scoop, I took one for the team and realized I needed one proper scoop of each.

My process was to try one at a time and not have all three in the same bowl. Blending flavors might compromise the intended taste.

As a result, there was a flavor where one bite was enough. Another where I couldn't get enough, and the third was somewhere in between.

Here is my official ice cream ranking of Ben and Jerry's new flavors.

It's chocolate ice cream with fudge covered pretzel pieces and pretzel swirl. The problem here is that I do not like chocolate covered pretzels. Oddly enough, I love pretzels alone. Dip them in sugar and ice cream and it either compromises the flavor or classifies as "too much." So, this was my least favorite.

Here we have toasted marshmallow ice cream with peanut butter cups, graham cracker pieces, and marshmallow swirl. The graham crackers are the star of this show. They pair better with the ice cream and chocolate than the typical marshmallow of a S'More. This was certainly a tasty delight, but I feel if the marshmallow swirl did not need to be invited to the party.

Admittedly, I was a little cautious about the blue ice cream color thinking it could suffer from cotton candy syndrome (where too much equals upset stomach city). That is not the case here. It's marshmallow ice cream with swirls, and then chocolate chip cookie dough and chocolate chocolate chip cookie dough. The latter of the cookie dough bites just brings this to another level. Some sweets get forced together and some just belong together and make each other better. That's the case here. It's no wonder Ben and Jerry's decided to promote this flavor. It tastes as cheerful as it looks.