Bluegrass Altbier

Brewed by Bluegrass Brewing Company
Style: Altbier
Louisville, Kentucky USA

Pours with a nice head, diminishing. Body is a hazy dark brown. Appealing nose of brown sugar, light fruity hops. Palate is nutty, slighly dry, hints of metallics. Very very thin bodied. Finish has some toasted malt character, very faint. Thanks Kevin!

Plain malty beer. This is to Alt what R.C. Cola is to Coca-Cola...a cheap immitation. A little flat, a little metallic, a little caramelly. But not much of anything. Thanks Kevin for bringing the bottle from Kentucky.

Sampled at the music city brewers festival. Man, I had to snort this thing to get some aroma, which was a very faint yeast and malt. Pours brown with a white head. Flavor of bread, fruit cake, caramel, brown sugar. Very mild finish. This was not that bad, my score is a tad misleading. But again, this was rather boring and uninteresting. This brewery has better beers to offer.

Bottle. Clear shining copper hue. Crisp on the tongue, malty, fresh tasting, but lacking a depth of flavor... has some light malt and corn flavors, but really light, and I almost want to say that it’s close to flavorless at times. Has some biscuit malts in the nose, and a bit of a butter presence in there as well. Lightly toasty, not nearly enough of a crisp toast aroma that I enjoy from altbier. Very drinkable, but lacking complexity. When altbier is made properly, it is close to my favorite beer to drink... but this one and other US-made examples I’ve had have been disappointing.

Bottle from Kevin, Light malty flavor with a bit of what appeared to be wheat tossed in. There was something in here that I could not place. I see other raters say Apricot but I am undecided.

12 oz bottle, via Kevin. Pours a clear dark copper colored body under a small fizzy beige head. Moderate visible carbonation. Aroma is slightly grainy with some light caramel and a light fruitiness. Flavor is fairly thin with some cookie and cereal maltiness. A light bitterness emerges in the finish. Mouthfeel is thinnish with moderate fizzy carbonation, just shy of a creamy texture. Overall, not too thrilled with this one, a little too light in the flavor department.

Draught at the brewpub. Clear copper color with thin white head and no lace. Spicy aroma with sprucy hops and cereal grains. Dry and tangy, again with the sprucy hops and a nutty, earthy character. Okay overall.

Pours dark amber with a fully receding light tan head. Mild aroma of toasted malt, sweet toffee, and candied fruits. Taste is sweet maltish, vegetable, grain. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Easy to drink, but not terribly enjoyable.