Get introduced to a Marzen-style beer at Effingut Brewerkz, hop over to The Bombay Canteen for some tea (and beer), or pop into Doolally next week for some Mango Cider.

With summer around the corner, craft beer folks across the country are either hard at work on, or soft-launching, new brews. Among them is Pune’s Effingut Brewerkz. The craft brewery, located in Koregaon Park, recently launched its Effingut Jag, which is a collaborative effort between the brewery and the city’s craft beer enthusiasts.

Effingut Jag is a Marzen-style beer. The Marzen is a type of lager that was first brewed in Bavaria, and takes its name from ‘Marzen’, which is German for March. The Marzen is usually brewed around the end of winter, and was originally a dark lager. Today, though, it is a lot lighter in colour and body. The idea, says John J Eapen, was to create “a dark medium-bodied beer with a rich malty profile, finishing with the sweetness from jaggery.” Eapen, who blogs at Talesoffroth.wordpress.com, was among those who were closely involved with the creation of the Marzen-style lager from Effingut. Word is that the guys have brewed a 550-litre batch, and you could have a go at it if you are in Pune this weekend.

Meanwhile, in Mumbai, Gateway Brewing, which recently launched a coffee stout, has brewed a pale ale to mark the occasion of The Bombay Canteen’s first anniversary. “We were looking at something unique and Indian, and first thought of nimbu-paani as a base, but lime doesn’t work well if it’s not fresh,” says Navin Mittal, who heads Gateway. So, Mittal and the founders of The Mumbai Canteen eventually worked with a pale ale that was infused with the flavours and aromas of Darjeeling black and Earl Grey teas, and named it Darling-jee.

“It’s a fresh, easy-drinking pale ale,” says Mittal. Darling-jee will be available at The Mumbai Canteen until the end of this month, but Mittal says he would also look at releasing another batch after a couple of months, which will be available across the city.

Speaking of India-inspired beers, the Pune-headquartered Doolally, which is part of the Make in India initiative, has re-released a few classics from its past, including the Honey Mead, made from honey sourced from the Sunderbans, an Apple Cider made from Himachali Apples, and a Mango Cider, with kesar mangoes from Gujarat. The beers will be available at Doolally’s taprooms in Mumbai and Pune next week.