Capital Rustic Ale

Brewed by Capital Brewery
Style: Amber Ale
Middleton, Wisconsin USA

Thanks to Skyview for giving up a bottle of this. Copper color with a medium head. Dusty hop aroma with some raw grains. Lots of toasted malt, biscut and caramel flavors. Floral hop finish. Quite a nice surprise.

Golden orange to amber; hazy Smells clean and lager-like with detectable citrus. Tastes malty with some cramel, doughy bread, and a faint nuttines. A touch of bitterness but hardly a hop presence. Tastes strong and similar to Fat Tire. Has a creamy mouthfeel and sweet finish. Not bad.

On tap at the brewery on 8/9/08: Pours a transparent dark copper with a well-lacing white head. Aroma of lightly sweet toasty grainy malts with a touch of noble hops. Body starts fairly full with good toasty caramel notes and some semi-sweet maltiness before a drier, smooth finish. A pretty decent amber ale.

Pours pale amber with haze. Minimal head that dissipates quickly. Biscuit/roasted malty aroma. Good roasted flavor with light hops to match. Good stuff.

Bottle. A straight-forward, simple beer (compared to "big" beers) that is just plain tasty. Hazy dark amber body with some orange highlights. White head, most diminishing. The aroma is sweet with caramel and toasted malt. The flavor is lightly to moderately sweet and lightly bitter. It finishes lightly sweet and lightly to moderately bitter. Tastes of caramel and toffee with just enough bitterness to reign the sweet malts in. Medium body, watery texture, adequate carbonation to keep it a smooth drinker. Nice.

12 oz bottle

After a long session at Olin Park I needed to clear some room in my suitcase. Choosing something that went well with the pizza I popped open this as a nightcap. As I suspected it was solid but nothing special. I would drink more though because it might be one of the better made amber ales on the market.

Aroma / Appearance - The transparent bronze body hints at the simplicity of the beer within. Carbonated with no head it smells of whole wheat bread, cheerios and that sugary glazing on Krispy Kreme donuts. Simple and effective it does exactly what it sets out to do.

Flavor / Palate - Chewing gum (the non sweet kind) forms an unusual interplay with rye toast and honey. Above average for the style it is the sort of thing I’d pick up for a day of grilling brats if I were still in Wisconsin. Should you find a bottle it is worth checking out especially since the risk is low (about $1.40).

Poured amber with a thin head. Roast malt and caramel aroma. Taste was nutty with grassy hops and toasted malt. Maybe a bit thin.

Pours a clear copper gold with a small off white head. The aroma is medium sweet malt, nutty and light grassy hops. The flavor is nutty toasted malt and light grassy hops. Light to medium bodied, thin texture. Finishes long and malt dominated.