Samuel Smiths Organic Lager

Brewed by Samuel Smith
Style: Pale Lager
Tadcaster, England

4/07 KC tasting. Thanks John. Clean and crisp with earthy hops. Not bad at all.

A very attractive gold color. Very light. A subtle, slightly grainy nose. Pleasantly bubbly, and a nice malty sweetness. Very light taste (to compliment the color), almost laughable, almost a weak Pilsner -- BUT still so much better than an American mass-produced (more hops, for sure). I believe the consensus was, good for a pitcher, along with oily fish, pizza, or perhaps mild Indian food.

550ml Botle: Poured a very nice golden color with a thin head. It goes down really smooth with no aftertaste.

Bottle poured into pint glass- poured transparent golden yellow, white ring around glass for a head. Aroma of mildew, not appealing. Hits the mouth with a thin body, some grain and sweetness, finish is a bit dry and lacking. Not worth the $5.50 I paid for!

I still have really yet to be impressed by Samuel Smith beers. I like their Imperial Stout, but that is pretty much it. Little to no aroma, and incredibly clear. The flavor was okay for a lager, better then any macros, but nothing special.

04-Dec-07 (550-ml bottle: Purchased 20-Nov-07 for $3.49 at BevMo in La Jolla, CA) Dusty hop aroma with elements of butter, orange fruit and honeyed biscuits. Sweet, bready, yeasty attack with obvious notes of diacetyl, but finishing with a hint of banana in the flavor as well. Nevertheless, the overwhelming flavor is buttered biscuits, especially after the fragile hop character fades off the palate in the finish. On the palate, the beer presents a light-medium body, gentle carbonation and a soft mouthfeel, but the buttery finish negatively affects the crisp drinkability I hope for from a pale-colored lager. Medium-yellow body has perfect clarity. Half an inch of off-white head settles to a thin ring and sugar sprinkles. Better than most in this style, but I still was hoping for better.

That was weak alright. Depressingly clear, pale dull yellow with a fading white ring. Its hoppiness immediately procures a citrus impression that takes a limey orientation and establishes a connection with 7-up through the global sweetness that is predominant. Agressive carbonation enhances the metallic aspects of the finish. Rough broken biscuit, creamy sweetness. Woah.. I drank this in London, I can’t imagine what it must be after having spent months on a boat towards North America.

The last "organically" produced beer I sampled was flushworthy. This one is very good; good balance of hops, right amount of bitterness and carbonation and has a pleasing and somewhat complex nose. None of that crappy sweet maltiness or burnt malt that induces reverse peristalsis is found here. This is a very good lager.