This is the next in the LTD lager series from Full Sail. It’s an Amber Lager brewed with Pale, Chocolate, and Caramel malts with Czech Saaz hops.
Stats:
Amber Lager. 5.6% ABV. 28 IBUs. Oregon.
Nice dark amber to copper in color with a nice fluffy head in this pils glass.
Lots of caramel malts with just a hint of chocolate malt on the nose. Nice little hop spice component.
Light body with high carbonation, but what else were you expecting?
Hint of chocolate, caramel, raisins, all wrapped up in this nice spice component. Grainy finish with a hint of vanilla.
This is nothing but a solid brew. I’ve loved this series of lagers and here’s another good one. Buy it. 88 points.
One of the last beers that I havn’t reviewed from Full Sail is their flagship Amber ale. I’ve had this beer many times, and as someone who isn’t a huge amber fan, I keep going back to it. It’s also been around awhile; according to their website it’s the first bottled craft beer. This brew features Pale, Crystal, and Chocolate malt with Mt. Hood and Cascades.
Stats:
Amber Ale. 5.5% ABV. 31 IBUs. Oregon.
Dark caramel brown with a very loose head that fades quickly.
Lots of sweetness and caramel on the nose with a little bit of vanilla and honey and just a hint of black pepper and tobacco.
Mouthfeel is a pretty light on the body with medium high carbonation.
Lots of caramel sweetness with brown sugar and raisins. Hint of plums carries to a slight tobacco and pepper mid-palate and then to a vanilla and grain finish.
I think this is a classic of the style. It’s a fairly light brew, but has a ton of flavor and surprising complexity. Definitely a buy. 90 points.
This is the second in the new Brewer’s Share series from Full Sail. The cool thing about this series is that a portion of the proceeds go to the Brewers charity of choice. In this case, it’s the Friends of the Children charity in Portland. This alt features a “generous amount of Munich and Vienna malts” with some kind of German Noble hops. It’s also been lagered for 6 weeks.
Stats:
Altbier. 5.1% ABV. 43 IBUs. Oregon. Limited Release.
This is just a beautiful looking beer. It’s got this nice dark caramelized color with a fluffy off white head.
Caramel and vanilla on the nose. Just a hint of plums and blueberries.
Mouthfeel is a bit of a surprise. It’s actually quite full bodied, as I was expecting a light and carbonated body.
Caramel, vanilla, custard, and roasted plums on the palate. The finish is fairly grainy with a lovely length and a nice hop bitterness to balance out.
Well, this is just a fantastic beer, especially on this rainy afternoon. It’s got a great price point, supports a good cause, and tastes damn good. Buy it. 91 points
Well this is new, a raspberry RIS. This beer features Pale, Caramel 60, Midnight Wheat, Chocolate, and roast barley with Alchemy, Willamette, and Cascade hops. Then they add raspberries during the fermentation.
Stats:
Russian Imperial Stout. 9.3% ABV. 70 IBUs. Oregon. Spring Seasonal.
Dark brown color with a lovely tan head.
This smells like chocolate raspberries. Seriously, it’s like a cake or something. It smells a bit sweet, but not overwhelming.
Mouthfeel is huge. It’s very thick with a nice level of carbonation.
Chocolate, raspberries, caramel. There’s a little bit of roast. I love how the raspberries play with the chocolate of the malt. There’s flavor everywhere on the palate, but it has a really beautiful balance.
Well, I think this is an exceptional beer. It’s got some amazing flavor with a nice balance. It’s bit too rich for me. This is the definition of a dessert beer and will go amazing with chocolate or maybe even a cheesecake. 90 points.
This seems to be a new seasonal for Bridgeport, but no mention is made on their website. They call it a Black Pale Ale, so I’m assuming a slightly less hoppy black IPA? Anyways, it features dark Crystal and wheat malts with Nugget, Chinook, Crystal, Centennial and Cascade hops.
Stats:
American Black Ale. 5.6% ABV. 60 IBUs. Oregon.
Very dark brown in color with a little bit of head and lacing on the glass.
A little bit of caramel, toasted malts, and chocolate on the nose.
Mouthfeel is light to medium body, but fairly light and has a fairly high carbonation.
Chocolate and a little bit of caramel coming through on the palate, hint of spicey hops and a slight earthy quality. Hops come in on the finish with a little bit of pine, grapefruit, orange, and just a little bit of bitterness.
It’s not too bad. It’s a fairly typical black IPA with just a little bit less hops, but worth a buy. 85 points.
I’m trying to go down the list of beers from this brewery. The Blue Boar is one that I’ve actually had before as it seems to make a presence at every college party that has something other than Bud Light. They refer to it as an Irish Ale, but I can’t for the life of me figure out why. RateBeer calls is an APA, while BA calls it a Cream Ale. It has “Select” Pale and Caramel malts with Cascade, Willamette, and Cluster hops. It also got a bronze at the ’08 GABF for American Style Cream Ale, so we will go with that.
Stats:
Cream Ale. 4.6% ABV. Oregon.
Very pale yellow color with head that fades very quickly, but has left a little bit of lacing on the glass.
Well, this smells a lot like Corona. Slightly skunked with a sweet grainy note.
The mouthfeel barely exists.
Skunky, sweet, mild malt flavor with a hollow mid-palate and slight grain on the back, which isn’t too bad.
If lack of flavor is your thing, but Corona is out of style, then this is for you. 72 points.
I’ve been loving these LTD lagers from Full Sail. The 04 is a single malt, Pale, and one hop, Willamette. You might think this is going to be really light, but it packs enough malt to give it a 7% ABV.
Stats:
American Pale Lager. 7.0% ABV. 45 IBUs. Oregon. Rotating Release.
Golden color with a pillow-y head.
Buscuity malt with a heavy black pepper spice. Actually, it’s almost a bit like a chili pepper with a honey component.
Mouthfeel has a medium-low body with a fairly heavy carbonation level.
Spicey hops and biscuit malts with that slight honey flavor. It keeps it’s flavor throughout, and has a surprisingly high bitterness.
It’s a solid lager, but I find that it’s a bit too bitter for my liking. 86 points
The Weinhard’s are stacked on the other end of the beer aisle at my local supermarket, right next to the other Miller products. I don’t usually venture down there, but I happened to see this as I was passing by. I buy pretty much anything that says “private” or “reserve” on it, so why not this? Besides, I love the label. This lager is made with pale malt and Cascade hops.
American Pale Lager. 4.8% ABV. 15 IBUs. Oregon.
Pale golden color. Head fades right away. Lots of carbonation rising.
The nose just brings a little bit of grain and just a hint of lemon. Pretty limited, but not bad.
Mouthfeel has a light body and medium-high carbonation.
Little bit of that malty grain, hollow mid-palate, and an okay finish of lemon and grain.
Not a great beer. It’s acceptable for a hot Summer day, but that’s about it. Just a hollow, watered-down brew. 77 points.
This Oregon ESB features Golden Promise, Pale, Melanoidin, and Caramel malt with torrefied wheat and Magnum, Fuggle, and Goldings hops. I havn’t had too many beers from this brewery, but I’ve enjoyed the couple that I’ve had. Let’s see how this one stacks up.
Stats:
Extra Special Bitter. 6.2% ABV. 48 IBUs. Oregon. Spring Release.
Dark copper color with a fluffy head.
Not too much going on on the nose here. Just getting some caramel and malt.
Mouthfeel is actually very light with a medium bitterness.
Light pine and caramel, and a hint of vanilla. Just a tad bit of lemon on the mid-palate and has a low bitterness on the finish. Very light flavor.
Granted, ESB is not a favorite style of mine, but this just doesn’t satisfy me at all. It’s certainly sessionable, but it’s so light in flavor and body that I feel like I’m almost drinking water. 83 points.
There doesn’t seem to be any mention of this beer on the breweries website, so I have no idea what’s in here. Let’s just dive right into another black IPA.
Stats:
American Black Ale. 7.3% ABV. Oregon.
Dark brown to nearly black in color. Nice tan head on this one.
Piney hops meet chocolate. Nice little nose on this one with a nice hop profile and a hint of malty sweetness.
Mouthfeel is actually pretty full bodied and has medium carbonation.
Cocoa and orange hit the palate first, then turns a bit earthy with a honey and chocolate backend. Medium bitterness on the finish, but fairly well balanced.
Another solid rendition of the style. 89 points
