Maple Nut Brown Ale

A big thanks to Kate Ries for this donation to the blog.  Only have had a few Tommyknocker brews rated so far so this should be interesting!  Tasted on a Thursday night following the women's track team pre-meet dinner and while making some delicious pita chips (soooooo good).

Appearance:  Dark chestnut brown that poured with a thin, but bubbly head.  Within a few seconds, the head almost entirely disappeared and all that remains are microbubbles along the rim.  Very slight haziness and no carbonation can be seen in the glass.
Aroma:  The aroma is kinda hard to distinguish at first, definitely subtle and delicate.  Roasted malts hit the nose first followed by the sweet scent of maple and some brown sugar.  Mild earthy tones along with a bit of caramel scent.  Slight hint of nuttiness and hops at the end, but I feel you have to search for it to really find it.
Taste:  Very sweet in the first few sips.   Lots of maple sweetness and an overly woodsy character.  Not much beer flavor, I can't really taste any hops in the mix; this is more of like a sweet syrup.  Possible hints of caramel and brown sugar adds to the candied flavor. The beer might be very under attenuated or have the maple addition in secondary to preserve an overwhelming sweetness. Some spicing rounds out the flavor in the form of cinnamon and allspice. Licorice permeates the flavor as the beer warms.
Mouthfeel:  Light bodied mouthfeel with small and active carbonation.  The beer leaves a bit of maple sweetness in the aftertaste and is slightly sticky.  Lacks robustness
Overall Impression:  For those who like sweet beers with hardly any hop presence then this would be a beer for you.  The carbonation and mouthfeel adds a light drinkable quality to it.  Personally, I like my beer to have a little more kick to it from the hops, so I don't think I will be stocking my fridge with it in the near future. 


Jen: 67/100
Tim: 71/100