Sprecher Mbege Ale

Brewed by Sprecher Brewing Company
Style: Fruit Beer
Glendale, Wisconsin USA

Sprecher Mbege Ale, Fire-brewed, African-style. Label adorned with colorful parrots and bananas. Ale brewed with banana extract. 16 ounce bottle, 5.2% abv. Thoroughly clouded, and peach-y colored, with a slim, but sure, white layer of foam. Flowery aroma, then sweet, then the banana takes over...slice of lemon on the side, maybe, but banana is all over this, and it’s an even, balanced, appealing aromatic, at that. In the taste, banana, banana, banana....and little else. . Light bodied, slightly malty, with a light, faintly fruity finish. No hops here, but that would be correct to style, I’d think. Maybe this brings me closer to tasting a true African banana beer, but I’d still like to think I can make that trip to Mt. Kilimanjaro and try some of the real stuff. Worth the $2 I paid for the bottle. Yeah, I thnk so, it’s unique enough, the novelty is worth it just to try and say you did. Share one or two with friends while listening to Yvonne Chaka Chaka’s song "Umqombothi (African Beer)", available on iTunes, still the only song I know of sung from the perspective of a brewer.

Pour is hazd amber with a thin off white head...smell is lightly sweet with hints of banana...taste is shocking sweet with some tartness toward the finish...tons of banana and copper...blech

Date: 03/22/2008
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party

Appearance: hazy orange, wispy off white head, bits of lace,
Aroma: big sweet fruity aroma with a caramel sweetness and a light fruity tartness,
Body: thick body,
Flavor: sweet banana flavor, lots of thick fruity sweetness,

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 7/10; Overall: 11/20
Rating: 3.1/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: *4

Appearance: Pours a pale, burnished gold body a fizzy, white head. Smell: Strong scent of Laffy Taffy. ’Nuff said! Taste: Sweetish pale maltiness, but it’s a taste far and away made up of a Banana Laffy Taffy. A drop of citrus juice near the finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Medium carbonation. Drinkability: No, no thanks. When I want a banana beer (and I assuredly do not), I’ll turn to Well’s Banana Bread Beer.

Pours a copper color with a white head. Aroma is horrible artificial candy banana aroma. Flavor is a god awful fake banana.

Poured into snifter glass. Pale looking, but with some gold. Nose is very strong with banana. Very fruity taste. Dry finish, not a lot of aftertaste.

1pint. pours hazy copper with small white head around the rim. nose is awful, wheat germ, anti-septic, artifical bananas, flavor of no! wheat artifical banana juice. oh its bad. do i have to take another sip? oh man this is horrible. i wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. this really should be used as an interrogation tactic. if someone made me drink a few ounces of this i would spill everything i had.

Bottle; poured a very slighlty hazy amber; not much head. Aroma of grain, banana, and funk/ass. Flavor had a strong band aid essence. Some banana and malty sweetness. Pretty gross; didn’t finish most of it. Aftertaste like apple juice.