Estes Park Staggering Elk

Brewed by Estes Park Brewery
Style: California Common
Estes Park, Colorado USA

Name: Staggering Elk
Date: 09/08/2007
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party

opaque dark yellow, fine white head, slightly sweet cereal aroma with a strong earthy component, creamy body, lots of rich grain flavor, well balanced by the earthy quality,

Aroma: 4/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 4/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 7/20
Rating: 2.1/5.0
Drinkability: 6/10
Score: *+/4

Poured a medium and cloudy yellow color with an averaged sized white head. Aromas of citrus, bananas, and grainy. Tastes of bananas, lemons with some grain and somewhat fruity. Thinner body. Somewhat on the sweeter side.

12 oz bottle-pours a white head, yellow color. Aroma is grain. Taste is grain, malty. Good carbonation.

Pours a hazy golden bronze with a thin, wispy-lacing white head. Aroma of fresh spicy spruce and pine needles with some pale malt. Body starts thin and watery with a light malty presence and some piny bittering hoppy character toward a blander, but drinkable finish.

Draft at the brewery. Filtered clear amber yellow colored body. Sweaty apple/dried hops/crisp cracker nose. Clean nose and clean flavor/body. Somewhat syrupy. Fresh, without any glaring defects. Crisp red apples and semi-sweet corn. Refreshing.

Dark straw color with a slight chill haze. Bright white head diminishes rather quickly. Slight floral hops aroma. Very slight oxidized flavor, but still quite drinkable. Powdery floral hops flavor dominate with undertones of mild sweet malt. Finishes very clean with only a slight malt flavor lingering. With out the oxidation this would be the perfect hot summers night lager.

Head is initially small, fizzy, off-white, mostly diminishing. Body is hazy dark yellow, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly malty (grain, cereal, bread), moderately hoppy (flowers, grapefruit), with a light note of DMS. Flavor is moderately sweet, moderately acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, watery texture, lively carbonation, lightly astringent.

12 oz bottle purchased at Brennan’s Country Market in Brookfield, WI (Oct 2005). No expiration date on this puppy, and I feared the worst as I popped the cap with nary a sound....the body is unfiltered dirty gold, not bad in and of itself I guess (rather reminiscent of some European strong lagers) but there is no head at all, it’s stagnant and still...honey, fresh grains, perhaps some lavender and some underlying caramel malt surprise my cynical nose, wow maybe this will be....flat, lactic, and perhaps spoiled in the body unfortunately, light English hops don’t help the essentially lifeless character which becomes metallic and lightly vegetal late...complete lack of carbonation doesn’t help matters either, helping to make a rather syrupy mess. I finished it, but barely. Probably too old (would help if the bottle was dated!) but I doubt it would be really terrific under any circumstances.