CynicAle

Tasted on Friday, the night before Taming of the Slough, in Moline. I retrieved this can from the nice folks of Surley while at the Great Taste of the Midwest during the hectic and near disorderly after clean-up of all our booths/tents.

Appearance: Brilliant with a yellow hue. Clarity is strong making bubbles easy to identify as the rise to the surface. Some bubble accumulation present on the sides of the glass. Head caresses with an upper-lip around the inner perimeter of the glass, as it takes on an opaque film across the surface.

Aroma: Strong yeasty character present right from the get-go. Similarly, the Belgian yeast interestingly incorporates a lemon zest along with a faint fruity/estery complexity. To finish there remains a subtle earthy citrus about it with a mild note of phenols.

Taste: Just what the aroma foretold, yet with more of a honey'd grain base and may as well contain some adjunct corn too. Yeast remains a prominent co-factor in the flavor as well as some floral undertones. The end is quite peppery boasting a Belgian yeast character as well as an unassuming spice and a fruit tannin dryness that resembles pears. For 6.5% ABV, the alcohol is nicely incorporated. Some clove begins to present itself as the beer warms, as well as the peaches and other fruity esters. A faint note of bubblegum as well.
Mouthfeel: Lighter bodied, but on a heavier side than I was expecting from the description on the back of the beer. Carbonated fizz occurs more at the front of the tongue, and then loosens as it goes down. Dry hoppy resined feel at the end.
Overall Impression: For a "lighter yellow beer" such as this one, it sure packs a rich and interesting flavor profile. Complexity is a better word! Choked full of fruitiness, malt, adjunt and hops. Little else I can say except a worthy choice if you need a gateway from the light American Lagers.
 

89/100

Coffee Bender

Tasted Friday morning before heading to Great River for bartending for the afternoon. Received from the Surly people at the Great Taste of the Midwest

Appearance: Deep stained wood brown  and a rubied hue with a surprising clarity (either filtered or crashed at 32 for a while) The head is dense and beige, or representing an expresso colored foam. It dissipates into an evenly distributed entire film, caressing the sides of the glass. Hardly any activity within the glass.
Aroma: Mellow coffee and roasted barley permeate the nostrils. There is of course a tinge of vanilla along side this roasted complexion. Some bittersweet chocolate, but overall there isn’t anything very robust to the scent.
Taste: There isn’t very much of a malt base to this beer, perhaps just a basic dark brown ale or porter with brewed coffee added to the brite tank. A bit nutty at the middle with some toasted barley and some graininess, while the vanilla seems to have disappeared. Another key feature to this beer, and many others like it is the acidic coffee flavor that rounds out the end after the roastiness. It reminds me of stale coffee. Bitter tannic flavor at the very end.
Mouthfeel: Immediately on of the first characteristics of this beer I noticed once I tasted it was its unusually high carbonation right at the forefront of the mouth – not necessarily a bite, but a fizzed scraping all the way down the throat. Body is very light for this “stout-like” beer. Texture is aggressive and the beer finishes dry and bitter
Overall Impression: Was expecting more from this beer, especially Surly (though perhaps I’m just used to Great River’s Redband stout. Oh well, acidic and burnt but still getting you your morning’s breakfast beer’s worth of coffee. Lacking a malt sweetness upfront and rounding out bitter.

71/100

Hell Lager

Thanks to the People at Surly at the Great Taste of the Midwest for giving me a can of this to review! Tasted Monday afternoon while making a new batch of Kombucha and Kefir.

Appearance: Light pale yellow but still an adequate coloring to it (i.e. not the slightest bit watery looking). Fuzzy foam head initially but rapidly dissipated into a minimal white ring. Carbonation persists in a few places in the glass. Haze is present, but I can still see my fingers on the other side of the pint glass.

Aroma: Spicy and herbal. There is a prominent yeasty complexion. Floral and a little bit grainy. Lager yeast byproducts are the largest influence

Taste: Sweet, almost bready foretaste...similar but maximized corny sweetness that most lagers have. nevertheless there is a complimentary bite at the end. Light graininess, but the hops encourage a not in the slightest bit staleness. Floral hops really come through at the finish. I would never have guessed that they were American hops, I would have said Saaz. A bit of a fruitiness arises pertaining to a subtle pear complexion. The very finish makes an interesting combination of hops and bitterness.
Mouthfeel: A carbonated is medium, yet perfectly complimentary to the beers overall texture. I enjoy how it is a bit heavier than most lagers, and surely boasting more flavor. Finishes dry with that thematic floral flavor in the aftertaste.
Overall Impression: A good lager, as it maintains a lot of the hop profile, as well as a basic yeasty grain bill. Complexion isn't the greatest, but it's still a relatively good lawnmower. Overall, it is nicely balanced. Wish I knew the ABV though!


81/100

Furious Beer

Thanks to Ben Siltman for giving me a can from his un-touched four pack during out Imperial Stout Barrel racking party. Tasted following a disastrously difficult parasitology final. Pint served with home made pita chips. I can finally relax for spring break and get logging on all the beers I have sitting in the fridge.

Appearance: Dark mahogany amber with a bronzed hue. Initially the beer supported 2 fingers of thick frothy tan foam. As it dissipated, there still remained a beautifully peaked appearance. Lacing is strong. Clarity is mediocre, but nothing really flocculent abut the beer. Micro carbonation visible.

Aroma: Aroma is very piney and citrusy. There are nice biscuit and toffee malt undertones to support the ever prevalent hop profile. I can tell from the smell that this beer has the potential in being very resinous. Somewhat fruity and tropical. Very fresh and outdoorsy with some grassiness at the end.

Taste: Nothing really hits in the foretaste, but immediately with a flashing appearance there is a brief taste of caramel that no sooner transitions into a robust alpha acid bitterness. The beer almost has a tart finish from the audacious amounts of hops. Obviously pine is a prominent contributor along with mild tropical flavors such as grapefruit and zest. Dark fruit of raisins shines through along with some subtle nuttiness from the toasted barley and caramel malts. Quite literally a coniferous forest in a glass. Gradually as the bitterness mellows, a great complexity of fruit and malt sweetness emerges that was otherwise previously masked by the 99 IBU's.
Mouthfeel: Smooth with a mild carbonated zip at the end of the beer. Body is thick with a cloying texture. The finish results in a very resinous, sticky and dry feel. Overall this beer is soft and creamy to the feel and overwhelmingly drinkable
Overall Impression: I'm digging this one. Too bad it's not located out here. At 99 IBUs and only 6.2% alcohol, the under attenuation of the yeast leaves a lot of malt flavor, while balanced by the hoppy character. Everything about this beer says big (except the alcohol) both complex and balanced. Mm! A heavier IPA. definitely a show for the can industry. If I ever find it, I'd certainly buy it. Again, Thanks Ben!


Tim: 93/100
Jen: 89/100