12x12 Review: Wachusett Summer Mix Pack

Beers Included: Summer Ale, Pilsner, Blueberry Ale, Blood Orange Ale

Purchase Date: 21 June 2025

Purchase Price: $15.99

Initial Impressions

Wachusett is always a brewery I've had a soft spot for. In an era before Untappd, one of my early craft beer memories was the inside flap of one of their sample packs was a post card. I cut off the flap, reviewed the beers in the 12-pack, stuck a stamp on the piece of cardboard and mailed it to the brewery in exchange for a prize. The keychain bottle opener I received in the mail was on my keyring for several years. 

The brand has evolved quite a bit since it's 1994 founding. They started producing classic styles like the severely underappreciated flagship Country Pale Ale. Blueberry Ale, which is in this 12-pack, has probably been their best-selling beer since the early 2000s if not earlier. Wachusett was one of the first New England breweries to make a range of IPAs. Their original IPAs were old-school east coast, but with more of a Munich than Crystal Malt flavor. Two of those IPAs were the Green Monsta and Larry, which lead the brand to release more Boston sports-themed beers like Bella Czech Pils.

Wachusett's Wally Hazy IPA was one of the first New England IPAs I remember being produced by a regional brewery at a really low price point. This was around the time Wachusett opened the Brew Yard at their Westminster, Massachusetts brewery. It felt like the brand was keeping up with the times.

Over the last five years their beer other than the Blueberry Ale hasn't been as easy to find in my part of the state. One of Wachusett's big contract brewing customers was acquired and moved production; that was a big blow to the company. The brand was purchased by Smuttynose in January of 2024 with production in Westminster shut down. Exactly a year later Smuttynose merged with Harpoon, and now Wachusett is part of a 15-brand regional conglomerate called the Barrel One Collective.

That's a long way of saying I was excited to find this sample pack at a beer and wine store in Seabrook, New Hampshire

Beer Reviews

Summer Ale

Packaged: 6 March 2025

Aroma: Spicy at first, like a blend of hop and spice, and lemon zest

Appearance: Pale yellow, quite clear with a touch of haze - probably from wheat in the grist. Fizzy white head that fades  

Flavor: Balance is even between malt, hops and spice - all are fairly light. Malt flavor is grainy, with notes of wheat. Low hop flavor and bitterness, but both are noticeable with the malt being light as it is. The lemon is very subtle as well  

Mouthfeel: Medium light body, medium carbonation, slightly creamy. Neutral finish. 

Overall: A very light American Wheat Ale with just a hint of lemon. It’s a little like drinking a Widmer or UFO Hefeweizen garnished with a lemon, but with the lemon built-in. Whereas Sam Summer hits you in the face with citrus, especially the post-2019 recipe, here it plays a supporting role. I’ve always loved this beer. I don’t remember it being quite this light, but that’s probably just my memory. I could happily put away a 12-pack of just this beer over a holiday weekend. 

Pilsner

Packaged Date: 6 March 2025

Aroma: Mostly bready malt. Crisp and lager-like. Some hop aroma as it warms and as you taste the hop flavor. 

Appearance: Yellow, quite clear. Frothy white head with good retention and lacing  

Flavor: Melanoidin-rich malt balanced by medium-high hop flavor. Hop flavor and bitterness more evident than in aroma. Fermentation is clean and crisp. 

Mouthfeel: Medium body and carbonation. A little creamy . Hop bitterness provides a crisp finish  

Overall: A reasonable approximation of Pilsner Urquell. I doubt this was decocted, the brewers did a nice job making a beer that is light enough to be drinkable with rich flavor enough to support the hop flavor. Maybe if this was fresher, or if this was stored cold, the hop aroma would be more present. 

Blueberry Ale/Blood Orange Ale

Missing blueberry garnish.

Packaged: 6 March 2025

Aroma: Fruit. The Blood Orange did have a hint of zest.

Appearance: Pale yellow, almost straw. A touch hazier than summer ale, and Blood Orange Ale a touch hazier than Blueberry Ale. Fizzy white head that fades. 

Flavor: Grainy and slightly doughy malt is the canvas for the blueberry flavor. The fruit flavor is reasonably authentic. No hop flavor and bitterness is sufficient. Fermentation is a little estery and adds a little extra.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light body and medium-high carbonation that prickles slightly and provides a crisp finish. Blood Orange finishes a little pithier and drier. 

Overall: These are likely the same base beer just dosed with different flavoring.  Compared to Sam Adams Blueberry Lager, this tastes more like fresh blueberry, whereas the Sam had a jammy note to it. The base beer is just beery enough. For me this is something I can enjoy once in awhile. Getting three Blueberry Ales in a 12-pack is perfect. Enough that I can enjoy it, but not so many that I become bored. The Blood Orange Ale was fine. If you like blood orange fruit more than I do, you might like the beer more than I do. 

Overall impressions of 12-pack

I probably enjoyed the variety in this 12-pack more than the Samuel Adams Summer pack that came with two lemon beers, a blueberry beer and a light lager. Here I got a variety of flavors. The Pilsner was the surprise package in this 12-pack. That should be a core beer for the Wachusett brand if it isn’t already. 

Wachusett is a brand that should be celebrated. I hope it isn’t lost in the shuffle of 15-brand portfolio. I’m encouraged that Barrel One invested resources in refreshing Wachusett’s branding. 

A few of these are still in production.

The longer term question for Wachusett, and the rest of the Barrel One portfolio for that matter, is what is Wachusett? Is it a 90s craft stalwart that produces classic styles? Does it aspire to be the unofficial beer of Central Massachusetts having taprooms in both Westminster and Worcester? Is it the fruit beer brand that makes Blueberry Ale, which is on tap at restaurants all over New England? Whatever it is, how does it complement and not compete with it's corporate cousins?