It's time (finally) for clean, clear libations

A few years back, the baseball world was abuzz about state-of-the-art steroids called "the Clean" and "the Clear." Now I hardly needed steroids to become as large as I am, but I do know this: In summer, our beverage preferences tend strongly toward the clean and the clear.

In terms of spirits, we're definitely talking "clear," as in vodka, perhaps the lightest and liveliest of the major liquors. And while neither wheat beers nor vinho verdes ("green wine") are technically transparent in the glass, they're clean on the palate and lighter in color than their liquid peers.

In all cases, these beverages go down easier than almost anything else containing alcohol.

And vinho verdes are lower in alcohol (7 to 11 percent) than just about any dry wine. These sometimes-effervescent offerings from northern Portugal are fresh, floral and fruity, sometimes going down almost too easily.

Vinho verdes should be drunk young; the translation refers to youth rather than color. They generally contain one or more of the native grapes loureiro, padanare and trajadura. Among my favorite brands are Gazela, Pavao, Aveleda, José Maria da Fonseca "Twin Vines" and the almost candylike Fuzelo.

While vinho verdes are generally straw-colored, wheat beers are generally, well, about the same hue as the grain that gives them their name.

Blue Moon and Leinenkugel make popular American versions, and the German conglomerate owning both Paulaner and Hacker-Schörr produces some tasty hefeweizen and dunkel weiss.

But it's in Belgium that "wit" really shines. Hoegaarden is widely distributed and a worthy choice, but my advice is to go deeper. Stop by Four Firkins in St. Louis Park, Blue Max in Burnsville, Princeton's in Maple Grove, Strong Liquor in Minnetonka or Surdyk's in Minneapolis for great selections and (usually) someone to steer you through them.

These and other liquor stores also will have a bevy of options in the vodka department. At a time of year when we tend to lean toward locally grown food, I like the notion of opting for locally made vodka. Parallel 45, based in New Richmond, Wis., is making some outstanding artisanal stuff, and Prairie Organic Vodka, from western-Minnesota corn, is flat-out delicious.

Elsewhere there are flavored vodkas galore, including the oddly likable (at least for those of us with a sweet tooth) Jeremiah Weed, a sweet tea-vodka amalgam. It's not clean, but you can almost get there by making an Arnie Palmer with some fresh lemonade. And what's more summery than that?

Bill Ward • bill.ward@startribune.com Read Ward on Wine at startribune.com/blogs/wine.