Notes on beers in the style
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6 pack of 12 oz bottles 'India Style Brown Ale' - marketing claptrap. Bottled conditioned. Mmmm, hopped up brown ales? What's the point? I'd rather have a brown ale with its traditional smooth, malty background with nutty sweetness, or an IPA. When...
12 oz single. Labeled as a brown ale, at first this doesn’t make much sense. With the Christmas theme fairly obvious from the labeling and name, the beer has a hoppier approach than I was expecting/hoping. I was hoping for a more spice based, malt...
Although there is a subtle, underlying difference between a India Style Brown Ale and a Black IPA, the initial massive hoppy bitterness in a beer that you are not expecting it, is still the takeaway. Light burn all over the place, the beer is...
American brown ale with chillies. Close to black pour, well formed head, solid looking. Very large amounts of chocolate to the point that this is starting to get out of brown territory for me. It's nutty too, and were moving in the general...
GREAT! A simple beer that does what it says on the label - imagine that! A nice, deep colored brown ale with some reddish highlights. A really nice white head that has some easy-going lace and some creamy retention. Nose has a lovely dose of...
25.4 oz bottle, $13.99 Smyrna World of Beverage. Not sure why I bought this. Anyway ... A lighter than expected, reddish hue on the pour. I'm a little surprised at how thin the beer looks. No viscosity to speak of at all, and a beer that produces...
'A Beer For Hope', the third year that Terrapin has been involved in the Reunion Project. Nice work. The usual Terrapin bomber presentation with gold foil on the neck, this one goes into the Terrapin snifter. Lots of large bubbles cling to the side...
$2.99 from Trader Joe's who market and distribute the Mission St. beers. The range is brewed by Steinhaus, which are owned by Firestone Walker - this is a complicated arrangement! Apparently this is a blend of three different beers. 22 oz bottle...
12 oz can from Vulcan Beverage, Birmingham, AL, and also at the brewery tap room. Unlike the IPA, there seemed to be less discernible differences between the two versions of this beer (one from the can and one on draught). Both give pretty classic...
On-tap at Deckard's. Rich, brown body, off white head, decent lace. Fades to a slightly disappointing tiny collar. Held to the light, there's some pronounced, red clarity in the body. Bakers chocolate & light cocoa on the nose. Light in the...
The highly recognizable, 'Anchor shaped', 22 oz bottle that reminds me of their 'Small Beer' every time that I see it. Neck label along with the classic oval. 1GV on the rear gives the usual Anchor code in raised, dot matrix. Noisy, gulp, gulp pour...
Another beer in the charitable, reunion series. 22 oz bottle. A 'Dark Imperial Ale' whatever THAT is! This is the Shmaltz version. This should be interesting since Shmaltz is one of my favorite brewers with their malt based offerings, and...
On tap, Taco Mac July 16th, 2011. This is an aggressive beer, and some people claimed int was a Black IPA at the time. I don't know the truth of that, but it's certainly a beer that could get into that area based upon its taste, even if not its...
Not a brewery that generally sets the pulse running, but I'm always open to trying the next beer from any brewer, so when this one literally fell out of the DBF on to the floor and started leaking, I took as a sign to drink it! Thanks go out to...
Additional notes 04/11 This bottle straight from the brewery thanks to Joey. 1000x better. No infection issues here. A lovely, deep brown color with some decent head and retention. Not much lace, but still looks nice. Decent depth on the color too...
12oz single thanks go out to Kevin for the opportunity to try this beer. I do like the labeling and the presentation of the Berghoff beers, shame that's the best part of the beer. Color is a surprisingly dark body with a smallish head. Minimal...
Given to me as a gift from a well-known bar owner. Many thanks. 750 mL capped bottle. Not really sure what a Oatmeal, Rye, India Brown Ale is, but ... Opening produces a HUGE gusher - not a trivial amount of beer lost, in fact around one third of...
12 oz bottle, usual stubbie presentation from Tyranena, thanks go out to Kevin for a chance to crack this one. Fairly innocuous looking, mid-brown pour with some creamy head but not much lace. Nose and taste reveal quite a lot of the bourbon...
On-tap at Taco Mac in Douglasville, GA, USA. Pour is a good looking, dark brown color with some nice clarity. Carbonation is relatively low which seems appropriate. Small head with some spotty film on the surface and a little lace. A little thin. I...
On tap @ Taco Mac in Peachtree City, GA, USA. Absolutely delighted by the concept of a SN beer that *should* reduce the hop profile to a lesser role, let's see if the beer manages to apply that theory to practice. Nothing to complain about in the...
12 oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA. Deep brown pour with a nice head. Not very good retention and no lace. Body has a few orange and rust colored highlights. A barrage of sweet, bready malts in the nose and not hint of bitterness of alcohol....
12 oz single. What? I've never reviewed this? Seems unlikely, but here we go. Pour is quite a light, orange color that one would perhaps associate more with an IPA rather than a brown. Head is decent, but retention is not great. Lace is present,...
Massive thanks go out to Gregg for the opportunity to try this. Delighted to have the chance, and also humbled by his generosity. 22 oz bottle - silly label that does no favors for craft beer. (I agree with the Bros. comments in the mag about...
22 oz offering from a brewery that I had a chance to try when I was in Boston and was impressed with. The hope here is that they will be coming to GA but this looks like a one-off special release with a larger distribution than normal. Pour is a...
22 oz bottle adorned with an impressive gold foil top. Unusual to see Atlanta Brewing putting it out there in a few different ways; bombers, foiled, bourbon-aged, anniversary offering, transparent label, special release etc. Nice clarity on the...
22 oz bottle. Nice clarity om the pour to yield a red/bronze body. Some good, ice-cream dollop type head and some impressive lace. Solid looking. Nose is a little soapy and reveals the larger than necessary hop character that follows. Dry, cocoa...
12 oz bottle. Pour is a standard color of deep amber, but lacks much head or retention. In that respect a touch disappointing. Nose is also quite mute, with some malts coming through but overall the beer seems rather low-key. A mouthfeel which is...
12 oz single from Green's on Buford, Atlanta, GA, USA. Lively looking, amber body with an off-white head and some decent lace despite relatively little retention. Looks solid, with good clarity. Nose is malty with a touch of infused, sweet fruit...
Thanks go out to the groovy one for a chance to crack this one. 16 oz can. Nice, garnet color with super clarity. Lovely, high mocha head that fades fairly quickly due to the low carbonation of the can. Lace is there, sticky but not huge. The...
Thanks go out to Roy for bringing this back from New Orleans, LA, USA at Christmas 2008. Pour leads to very good clarity in the body, a mid-amber hue and some nice head. Good retention, but strangely not much lace. Aroma gives a malty promise which...
22oz bottle given to me by Jaime herself at the brewery - many thanks. Generic looking label that has been hand-dated with 11.11.08. (It must be really hard work producing this beer!) Dark brown pour with some fairly significant electric orange...
Pictured 06/25/12 Pretty sure that this bottled version came from a re-released mixed pack of anniversary beer. Tremendous beer that hasn't changed much in the interim with a richness and depth of flavor and malt that wasn't common during these...
Crystal clear pour with a solid head and nice lace & retention; this looks very good. Tasty malts are the order of the day (as they should be for a brown ale), and surprisingly (because this is categorized as an AMERICAN brown) the hops are...
Can split with Dave at The Brick Store courtesy of arkhamresident - many thanks. I *think* that this had the words "Oatmeal Brown Ale" on the can (whatever that is!) Anyway, on to the beer. Disappointing lack of pop on opening the can and this...
Green's on Buford, Atlanta, GA, USA. I *think* that this was $5.99 for 1 PT 0.9 fl oz bottle. Well it is what it is - it's a pretty good example of an AMERICAN Brown Ale which basically means that it is way too hoppy and as a result loses all the...
Updated Review 08/08 Four months on, and this beer still captures the nutty, malt character of the style nicely. Rich, great brown color and depth and some super red highlights. Original Review 04/08 One of my favorite styles. 22oz bottle, $4.99...
12oz single from russpowell as part of a recent trade. Pour has excellent color, with a beautiful red clarity and a nice creamy head. Good lace. Looks inviting. Malty nose, but some extra hop character. It melds quite nicely together. A little...
12 oz bottle from the 4-pack with the DVD attached! Thanks to ATLbeerdog for alerting me to the DVD! I nearly missed it! $12.99 from Jax in Sandy Springs, Atlanta, GA, USA. Essentially this pours like a RIS. Jet black body, small mocha head and...
Notes added 10/07/21 12 oz can (pictured) from a recent Cody, WY trip. It was all largely said in March of 2008 below. Easy drinking, nutty simplicity that looks great and stylistically true. More English than American, and when it comes to brown...
12oz stubbie bottle as part of a six pack. Clear orange lucozade color with some decent carbonation but it doesn't translate into much head or lace. Only an aggressive pour leads to any bubbles. Grainy, non-descript nose. Soapy taste is all I rally...
12oz bottle, thanks to a recent trader - apologies, I forget who. Slightly murky pour, this lacks the absolute clarity that I usually look for in my Brown Ales. Some chill haze. A little lace, but the head fades pretty quickly. A good sweetness,...
22 oz bomber cracked by Dave at The Brick Store, Decatur, GA, USA. Subsequently in many samples after that. The usual Frank Zappa crazy label. Pour reveals a deep, mahogany, rich brown body with some red highlights. Head is good, plenty of thickish...
Additional notes 11/09 I've really come to the conclusion that I don't like this beer very much at all. The combination of what amounts to a wet, fresh hop presence against a malt-based, sweetish Brown Ale simply doesn't work at all well. It simply...
12 oz single from Jax, Sandy Springs, Atlanta, GA, USA. Dark, dark brown pour with a certain murkiness about it. Spotty head left on the surface of the brew, not much lace. Sweet and malty nose which is surprisingly reminiscent of an English Brown...
12 oz single. Delighted to find this at Mac's, Atlanta, GA, USA as a single (mixed sixer $6.99), I presume from a broken down mixed Winter 12 pack. I've had quite a number of the Saranac beers, and although generally serviceable, I was not...
22oz Bomber, Green's on Ponce, Atlanta, GA, USA. This is a big beer all around. Very dark red pour with nice ruby highlights. Very bold upfront in all aspects - aroma, bitterness, malts, alcohol and general character. Great head and persistent nice...
Single 12 oz botle from Riverside, Chattanooga, TN, USA. Delicious. Dark red pour with the odd combination of not much persistent head but some really nice lacing. Carbonation is low. Nutty, sweet and wonderful caramel aromas, exactly what I am...
Thanks to Boolshot for a great trade. 22oz bomber. This is not the best beer that I have had from Stone - not by long chalk. The main problem here is with the style. In a Brown Ale I'm looking for a simple, malt based (low hop presence) easy...
From the mixed Dragon Pack. A surprisingly thick head forms with some lacing. The head is a light brown color, cappuccino like, that sits on top of the deep brown body. Nicely balanced, with a decent bitter bite complemented by the malts, this...
Interesting and I enjoyed it. Great deep brown garnet color, and a lovely large rocky head. The color of this beer is one of the best dark hues I have seen in sometime - very rich looking and inviting. Head fades a little too quickly though, and...
Very, very impressed. Delicious looking pour. Deep, deep red, mahogany brown, the depth of color is second to none. Head is large with some lacing, but it fades a little on standing. Aroma and tastes reflect the pour and are deep, deep malts with a...
Notes added 3/22/07: (bottle) This is certainly a much hoppier version of the original (English) style and I think the beer suffers as a result. In Brown Ales I am looking for a sweet, malty smooth beer but the hop presence here gives it an edge...
OK, back to RSTG to give the beer another try a few months after the initial, disappointing visit. If this Brown Ale is anything to go by, things are no better, and I suspect we are at the point where things are unlikely to improve to any extent....
Nice deep red/brown body, a fluffy rather than a dense head, and some non-sticky lacing. Malty nuttiness in the aroma. The taste is *absolutely* dependent on the temperature of this beer. When it is cold everything is very, very muted, but when the...
Very, very attractive pour with a really deep mahogany color, nice substantial head and significant lacing. Aroma is a nutty sweetness as expected. Balanced brew with a nice sweetness that does not overpower the brew. Still finishes with a little...
Pretty darn nice. I like the bottle presentation too, with the gold foil and nice label. Excellent deep brown color, and lovely tan head that is really quite creamy. A small amount of lacing. The alcohol comes through strong, but there is a nice...
Original notes 10/30/2005 (picture from 2022) Light brownish, garnet color, that when held up to the light takes on some serious red highlights and looks a lot thinner than I was imagining it would look. Some bubbly, cream colored head form an...
2003 edition (I think). BB 03/28/04. Beautiful red/brown dark color with a smashing looking head, lovely thick, tan color with some nice lacing. Rich, smooth fruit and marzipan aroma. Mouthfeel is good, but it doesn't quite live up to the smell...
Well, this is one of those beers that is difficult to review for me because I think it is not really within the traditional parameters of the style, but I still quite enjoyed it. So, not worrying about it too much, I'm going to comment on the drink...
Brooklyn makes several delicious beers, but this isn't one of them. Standard brown, caramel colored pour with a disappointing head and lace. A rather ordinary brown ale with nowhere near enough body for my liking. Quite dry and thin which may be a...