Bear Republic El Oso Lager

Brewed by Bear Republic Brewing Company
Style: Premium Lager
Healdsburg, California USA

On tap @ Bodega: Pours a clear copper with a white head. Aroma, grassy, fruits, yeasty notes, grains. Flavor, caramel, earthy notes, some toffee, toasted notes. Some grassy hops, sweet finish. Better than I thought it would be.

On tap @ Mulholland. Was not marked as a Bear Republic beer, just "El Oso Mexican Lager". This beer was surprisingly tasty. Very fresh aroma of blueberry (imitation blueberry, but blueberry nonetheless) and malt. Crisp, refreshing, and noticeable dry hop character. Reminded me of a Dortmunder with a fruity finish. Would not guess this was a Mexican beer at all.

On tap at the brewpub. Copper color, white head. Flavor is straightforward lager, more of a "safe" brew than most at Bear Republic, nothing noteworthy. No harm, no foul. .

On tap at HDG. Deep clear amber in color with a little white head. Sweet caramel malty aroma. Hoppy notes. Malty and grainy flavor. Sweet tasting. Crisp and refreshing. Medium bodied. Finish is clean and crisp. Nice beer. Drinkable.

Tap at Hop Devil. Fairly dark yellow, somewhat transparent. Nose is lightly sweet, toast, pickle, sage. Not much character. A touch of sweetness in the palate is nice, maybe. Or it may suck. Hard to decide. This isn’t very good or very drinkable. Could be cleaned up a lot.

Multiple draught pints at Sunset Grill, on 11/17/07 and subsequently.
A deeper bronze than Modelo or any other tropical lager, but the thin white head is not long retained, leaving little/no lacing. Clear.
Definite modelo yeast notes in the aroma (acetyldehyde, paper pulp, various minerals) with some backing bready/doughy malt notes that are lightly sweet. A trace of toffee enters on the finish, after warming, with slightly more fruitiness (apples mainly) than I’d expect from a tropical lager. Not much hoppiness in the nose, though some lighth grassiness is apparent. No alcohol. Acetyldehyde is the only flaw.
Toffee-tinged doughy malts are sweet and rather supple for a lager, with a strong mineral accent that balances. Crisp and papery (acetyldehyde) on the finish, but it works in so far as using this yeast goes. Some stronger noble hop presence, while departing from a tropical pale lager, would still be appreciated. As is, it’s faintly grassy, with a pinch of bitterness throughout. Medium carbonation does not get out of control, nor is the beer watery/thin. The malting is definitely the strong point here. No alcohol in flavor, only acetyldehyde is perceived slightly.

Draft at the brewpub. Poured a clear gold-orange color. Head was off white with good retention and lacing. Aroma was of noble hops and light cereal grain. Dry and crisp on the tongue with toasted bread and subdued noble hop flavors. Typical lager, but solid.

On tap at Bear Republic in mid-June. Deep golden with a white head. Grainy, light grassy hop nose. Light caramel, grass, hay and a twinge of lemon/citrus in the overall flavor. Medium/light bodied with moderate carbonation. A fine plain ol’ drinkin’ beer.