Muskie Capital Harvest Ale

Brewed by Muskie Capital Brewery
Style: Amber Ale
Hayward, Wisconsin USA

Dark brownish red color, lots of sweet honey and syrup. A little to much on the sweetness for my taste. I was expecting this to be a fresh hop beer when ordered. Not so much.

Sampled on draught at the brewpub in Hayward, Wisconsin. Pours a clear medium brown brew with a thick and creamy off-white head that has good retention. Lacing is very thick and sticks to the glass throughout. Aroma of lightly roasted caramel malt, some flowery hops and a mild nutmeg spice. Taste is medium bodied, lightly carbonated with flavors of lilght roasted malt, some sweet apples, and a mild nutmeg. I could not detect much maple but the mild spice was a nice touch. Finish is semi-sweet at first and then a lingering mild spice aftertaste.

On tap.
Pours a dirty copper color with a long-lasting tightly-packed off-white head that leaves sheets of lace everywhere on the inside of the glass. Aroma gives up maple syrup and something akin to pumpkin pie spice though it doesn’t really smell like a pumpkin pie (thankfully). While I didn’t detect any of the fruity esters in the aroma as mentioned in the commercial description, the esters sure do show up in the flavor – dried cherries and a touch of apple. The maple syrup and “autumn spice” elements are also present in perfectly balanced levels, and they combine with a hint of toasty, soothing alcohol to make this a deliciously sweet and cozy-warm autumnal brew once it is allowed to warm up a little. There is just enough hop and light, dry grain to keep this from getting overly sweet. Slightly thin palate much like an English mild. This is a superb fall seasonal beer that I’d order over and over at my local pub were it available in my home market.