Thomas Hooker Blonde Ale

12oz bottle from Whole Foods (Tampa, FL). Pours a slightly hazy dark golden color with light white head. Aroma is sweet and malty with notes of honey, wheat, grain, light veggie aromas, yeast, some hints of caramel. Flavor is sweet and floral with notes of caramel, honey, light floral esters, wheat, yeast, light spice notes. Generally light to medium body with a light floral finish.

Small, off white, short lived head with little lacing over a clear gold body. Grassy, sweet malt aroma. Barley and other grains hit the taste buds first, with floral hops mingling in the mix to add a touch of bitterness. Light-to-medium bodied, moderately carbonated mouthfeel. Crisp, dry finish did not linger. Confused this with an amber ale in a blind tasting.

My Bottom Line:
This storyless Cream Ale relies on its biscuity toasted malts to supply a clean and very drinkable session.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A sheet of foam dwindles into the clear golden.
-The finish was rather empty.
-The ghost of a few hops passed by midway through the sip, methinks.
-A mineral touch seems to accompany the prickly carbonation.
-The body is well rounded, with a penchant for buttery creaminess.

Bottle.

on tap at the brewery. Light sweet aroma with more hop character than I expected. Light hop bite to the flavor as well. Not bad at all.

creamy for a blonde, which actually makes it very nice to drink, great palate. a little more taste and this would rate much higher.

Had this at the brewery. Nice color, lots of carbonation, the head went away pretty fast. This beer was refreshing but lacked any real significant flavor, I was a bit disappointed. Still refreshing and light-bodied though.

On draft at the brewery, but they served this after the watermelon brew, taste buds a bit overwhelmed, wth? Appearance was boring golden and with a head that was a tad on the weak side. The aroma was light grains, some fruity ester type notes. The flavor followed, some hops to keep it clean and balanced. Mouthfeel is as expected, light and clean, amply carbonated to keep this even more drinkable. Nothing to write home about (the style), but for what it portends to be, not bad.

Bottle from Cletus. This was suprisingly good. Nice balance of sweet and grainy malt and mild bitter hops. Dry finish. I dunno... I think there was still a bit of Westy 8 lingering in my glass, but this beer intrigued me much more than I thought it would. Very drinkable.