Gordon Biersch Alt

Brewed by Gordon Biersch Brewing Company
Style: Altbier
Palo Alto, California USA

Draught at the DC location. Brown with a fluffy beige head. Light molasses and earthy hop aroma. They served it ice cold so it took awhile to come through. The server described it as the hoppyest of their beers, and while it did have some spicy hop flavor and respectable bitterness, it was far from a German IPA. A bit of caramel and toasted malt sweetness. Strikes a good balance. Not great, but respectable from such a mainstream brewpub.

draft at plano location, almond colored pour with slight head, bitter malty aroma, flavors tend towards dusty caramel and fruity bitter, better than expected

Draft. Included as part of a sampler at the brewpub in Vegas. I remembered liking pretty much everything but do not remember specifics. Definitely surprised by the high quality from what is essentially a chain restaurant.

On tap at New Orleans location. Pours a dark brown color with reddish highlights and one finger tan head. Aroma is sweet and malty with notes of nuts, caramel, honey, some fresh fruit and floral hops. Flavor is sweet and malty with a higher hop presence than I would expect for this style along with notse of caramel, roasted malty, some hints of toffee and coffee. Generally medium body with a some hoppy finish.

On tap at brewery. Brown with a white head. Faint malty aroma. Good grainy slightly nutty and roasty taste decent.

Yellow-brown with a thin white head. Aroma of caramel, sweet malts and mild hops. Taste of floral hops, lemon, light caramel with a mild bitter finish. Drinkable and forgettable.

Pint glass from San Diego’s Mission Valley Brewpub. Served from tap to a pint glass. The pour was a medium brown color with some amber highlights. The head was off-white, creamy, ample and had good retention. The aroma was muted (probably because the beer was served way too cold) I detected a faint trace of molasses and some nuttiness. The flavor was rich with walnuts, roasted malts, anise, cloves and molasses. The mouthfeel was full, smooth and creamy. The finish was long with lingering biter walnuts. Overall: I was pleasantly surprises and impressed by this beer. Better than the average Gordon Biersch offering.

Okay. So mayhaps I was unduly influenced in my rating by the attractive lady behind the bar and her two lovely, large, lucious eyes (Caught you by surprise, didn’t I, RAYBOY01?), but I liked this beer.
It poured a clear brownish-copper body with a respectable, sustained pale beige head. Good lacing. The aroma was toasted grains, lightly roasted malt, a subdued caramel presence, and an earthy, herbal hop bitterness. The hoppy bitternes grew during the drinking and tipped the scale in its favor, but the rich maltiness, seasoned with black pepper, remained sturdy throughout. The finish was dry and peppery with an herbal/earthy bitterness. Nice.

<font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Biersch Brewery Restaurant, Bolingbrook, IL<font size=-1>