Eel River Certified Organic Amber Ale

Eel River Certified Organic Amber Ale is a clear red ale with a thin, eggy white head that leaves very good lacing. It smells malty and slightly sweet; fresh and herbal. It’s medium bodied and very smooth with a lively finish. It’s well balanced and pretty dry. It gets minty toward the finish. It seems like it was made for sessioning. Served in a mason jar at Farmer Brown’s in San Francisco.

On tap. Pours golden red with plenty of white lacing. Aromas of caramel and some red fruits as well as an almost peach-like smell. Taste is fresh, of grass and sugars.

(bottle) amber with ok head. Sweet malt aroma. Flavor is sweetish caramel/biscuit malt.

Bottle. Pours a lovely burnt-orange amber with a vanilla head. Sweet toasty aroma and flavour, hints of maple syrup and brown sugar. Mild bitter finish. A really nice sessionable amber.

Pours amber color with off white head. Caramel and biscuit malt aromas. Toasted malt and mild hoppy flavors. Medium body with moderate carbonation.

On tap at the brewpub. Amber like in color, clear, and a light off white head. The nose is hops, caramel, some citurs, and pine. The taste is sweet, caramel, hops, and malts. Better than I thought.

Sweet sugary aroma. Flavor is pretty sweet, not too malty. Overall a pretty decent brew, just un-inspired.

Polished amber and mahogany shimmers in my glass while a small, copper-hued head fades quickly into nothingness. No amount of encouragement can bring her back to life, and lace is nowhere to be seen. Her nose is lemon, candied sugar, and a bitter artificial sweetener tang that leaves an unpleasant singe in the back of my nose. Canned black cherries give her a sweet, sugared fruity palate which leads most unfortunately into her body. As I take my first quaff, root beer esters hit my nose as my tongue is smothered in artificially sweeteners, sugars, and black cherry syrup without the cherries. Waxy lemon skin dries the top of my tongue, leading into a seltzeresque, mineral finish. I am not at all impressed by the Eel River Certified Organic Amber Ale, and a few further quaffs produce more of the same unpleasant artificial sweetness with a bitter, mineral finish. I am unfortunately unable to finish my glass, and so she flows unceremoniously down the kitchen sink drain.

I had optimistic hopes for this beer, especially since it came at the recommendation of a good friend. Unfortunately, it fell far short of my expectations and its potential. Next, please.