Magnolia Dark Star Mild

Brewed by Magnolia Pub and Brewery
Style: Mild Ale
San Francisco, California USA

Tap at the brewpub: Brownish amber pour with an off white film. Nutty aroma- slightly chocolaty (hazelnut notes). Thin bodied with an earthy malt flavor. Gritty, dark grains, a bit thin and fizzy. Peanut brittle notes. Nutty on the back with a husky bitterness. OK.

Draft. Ruby colored beer with a dark cream colored head. Caramel and light roast aroma. Caramel and light roast flavor. Lighter bodied. malt, light roast, and light espresso linger.

Darker colored, looks like a porter. Aroma is cocoa, chocolate, some coffee and caramel. Medium to light bodied, quite drinkable. Mild is a good word to describe it.

On cask @ Toronado SF. Dark amber color, thin soapy white head. Thin toasty biscuity aroma, light grain and earthy hops. Thin palate. Very light taste, a hint of toasty malts and not much else. But, hey, it’s a mild.

Cask at Toronado. Dark brown/garnet. Modest, frothy, off white head. Well roasted malt, old wood, bittersweet, earthy, lightly vegetal. Light/medium body, smooth. Usualy vegetal elements will kill a beer for me, but they actually work well here. Easy drinking session with some nice roast.

Half pint at the brewpub. Initially sampled on cask, but the sample was sour and infected. I then had a half pint of the beer from the tap. The following rating is of that beer, but the score takes into account of them serving an infected version of this on cask. Aroma has some definite anise present as well as some roastiness with a light grassy hoppiness. Pleasant enough. Mostly transparent burgundy-hued mahogany body with a creamy off-white head. Spritzy carbonation with start--too much so. Roasty, grainy, some nutty flavors in the middle, too. Very fain grassy hops present later. A bit acidic and too coold and too carbonated.

Woody roasted nose, deep clear brown color, scumy head. A bitter end like cold coffee. Huge roast malt taste throughout. Watery body and flat. Really like a British mild, but with more flavor.

Thought this was the brown when looking at it. Very mild. Thought it lack something. Not bad, but not their best