Tallgrass Ale

08-Aug-08 (12-oz bottle with a competition label only: Free sample bottle for stewarding the 2008 World Beer Cup in San Diego, CA) Pouring the beer is quite a challenge since the beer wants to foam out of the glass something fierce. A fairly prominent roasty flavor jumps out on the first sip, but it’s a light roast with mild bitterness. Moderately sweet cocoa and chocolate throughout, but also some background off-flavors like sweet apple skins and plastic-like phenolics starting to creep in. These flaws are slightly more evident in the nose where the plastics are more noticable, though the sweet "Nestle’s cocoa mix" and lightly roasty malts are still present. Medium-bodied and fairly dry on the palate, and the turbo-charged carbonation is expansive in the mouth on each sip. Auburn in color and perfectly clear, it’s easy to see the streams of carbonation racing toward the surface, keeping the tan-colored head at a quarter inch in height for the session. Not a bad beer, quite drinkable, but it seems rather ordinary. But because the off-flavors are a bit distracting, I’ll seek out a new sample if this brewery does indeed start bottling this beer commercially.

Has an aroma of nuts and toasted cereal. Strong coffee like character and puts me in mind of toasted rye bread. I liked the wheat better but this is good too.

On tap. Nice malty nose, lighter bodied than most browns but finished with typical malt, caramel and toffee flavors. As bad as their wheat is this was a nice suprise. Also heard 6pks coming soon...

Drinks a lot lighter then it looks. Aroma very nutty and malty, smooth caramel tatse with a spicy hop finish. Very drinkable. Very impressed, expect big things.