Arcadia Amber Ale

Brewed by Arcadia Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
Battle Creek, Michigan USA

Pours a cloudy, opaque, amber with a little, off-white head. The aroma is light, caramel and a touch of floral hops. The flavor is similar. Pretty boring.

Copper Coloring. Citrus On the Nose and Tongue Notes of Toasted Dry Malt. Odd Amber. Something Not Quite Appealing About it.

(12 oz bottle: Obtained in trade with Sully, thanks Mike) Given my past experience with near-gushers from Arcadia, I superchilled this beer (i.e., beginning to form ice crystals) in an effort to keep the heading down. It doesn’t appear to have helped. I still have a glass that is three-quarters foam. And talk about some stiff foam, I can bang the glass on my desk, swirl it, tip the glass sideways and the foam bounces like it’s a jello mold. Ten minutes later, I still can’t get to the beer, so it’s time to scoop the excess inches of foam off. All that work, and for what?! The predominant flavors are floral, bitter and soapy, which seems to be a signature flavor profile with Arcadia. Also, mildly sweet and caramely malts are in the background, but just can’t gather enough steam to save the beer. Again, I’m getting soap in the aroma, with some hops and light caramely malts. Medium "plus" body. Medium-dark amber, very cloudy in appearance, and lots of chunky sediment gathers along the bottom of the glass. And even still, the light tan head refused to dip below a quarter inch and leaves quite the dense curtain of lace behind. I don’t know what Arcadia does to their beers, but what seems like soapiness to me is present in many of their beers, and I don’t like it.

Dark copper color with a quickly disappering beige head. Earthy malt nose, almost like toast. Sweet caramel taste with some apple, and lots of toasted bread. Light use of the citrus hops, mostly noticable in the long finish. Like others have said, this is not your typical "amber ale" but more reminds me of something scottish.

This damn beer did the same thing the Battle Creek Reserve did: overflow immediately. Murky copper color with a towering head. Dry citrus aroma. The taste was pretty simple malt with no decorations.

Sunsetting orange with a dullish copper hue. Small, smoothly set cream colored froth. Keeps a solid skim always present and firmly fluffed collar creeps along the sides of the glass distributing lace in thin sheeting as its consumed. Aroma is clean and calm with a simpleness thats adequately bold and present. Lightly toasted toffee wafferness and a small dulled and dried cedar wood dusting with a smidgeon of floralness and paled fruityness. Gained a heavier presence in the wood notes as it warmed. Taste is quite easy to take. Moderately malty with a very tame tone of biscuity caramel dry bakery stuff. Medium to light-sided heft in flavors. Middle seems to miss some as it finally begins to urge a bit of tenderness of floral, woodish, dried hops across the tail end. A very gracefully approaching beer, but not all that complex nor active enough to bring a full notion of appreciation in flavor length or character. Feel is close to medium, quite smooth and lightly carbonated with very nice little gradual steps into the woodish hops as it finishes. Semi dry and light but super fine to drink. Sessionable by alot. A solid amber that would make for a good crossover beer.

Pours a clear amber color. Nose is of cheapness, malts, caramel, and a touch of hops. Not bad, but just seems too... not blah.

12oz - Aroma is a subtle toasty malt and hazelnut. Pours transparent amber with an enormus head that faded to leave decent lacing. Flavor isn’t very strong, a touch of hop and the flavors of the aroma. Palate is mild and bitter. Not as smooth as an amber should be.