355ml bottle of a 4.9% ABV beer (1.34 standard drink units)
San Francisco's famous Anchor Steam®, the classic of American brewing tradition since 1896, is
I have a a sinking feeling that this is going to be the lesser of the two beers. Expecting something a bit darker and with more carbonation. Malty more than hoppy.
Darker than I expected , and with a better head on it, but with a yeasty aroma above all else. This carries more carbonation and has more malts than the Liberty Ale, which isn't a bad thing. You can tell they're not variations on a theme.
So what else is there? Not a lot. This in some strange way has no 'taste' profile, I get "the nothing" , except a nice crisp beer. I know it's not overly cold, and I did have a profile in mind before I started to drink, and I've not even got close.
As it sits in the glass (and there's not a lot of it in the first place) it does develop a nice malt base, and that's a bit plus, you're not challenged to acknowledge that you had a mouthful of a beer that you're drinking because that's what on special in the beer shop.
And in the end I'm actually developing a fondness for this, it's not so bad, and quietly it's a little gem.
As a 7.8 on the pdubyah-o-meter is stands shoulders to all the competent but not spectacular beers, and is by no means lagging behind in any aspect. Comparable in alcohol to many beers I'd probably choose this for it's taste profile (or seeming lack of) over some of the wildly more commercial beers that get churned out at 4-5%ABV.
Hows that for a review that started with a frown that turned upside down?
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This is a more or less local beer for me. Your initial take on it is comparable to my long-time experience with the beer. Nothing remarkable about the flavor profile. Kind of like every beer made by Sam Adams.
ReplyDeleteBut it was a nice change from the same old beer we get round here.
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