Little Village MFA
Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks

Little Village MFALittle Village MFA
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From:
Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks
 
Pennsylvania, United States
Style:
American Strong Ale
ABV:
7.5%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.91 | pDev: 7.42%
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
24
Status:
Active
Rated:
Aug 20, 2017
Added:
May 15, 2011
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  5
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by tviz33:
Photo of tviz33
Rated by tviz33 from New York

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%

Dec 14, 2014
More User Ratings:
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev +1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Elk Creek Cafe & Aleworks "Little Village mfa"
22 fl. oz. brown glass bottle without freshness dating
$6.36 @ Pletcher's Beer Distributor, State College, PA

Notes via stream of consciousness: Having had a decent beer from Elk Creek last week I'm looking forward to this one but I have no idea what it is. "mfa"... is that a beer style? Or is that the guy on the label? Great artwork, BTW, I wish they'd made it bigger. It should be the size of the whole label. Guy with a harmonica. Looks like it could be Sonny Boy Williamson, but I don't know. Could maybe be a young Little Walter. I can't think of any harmonica players with the initials MFA. Maybe it's just a local guy. Anyway, a rough pour brought up a finger thick head of pillowy tan over a hazy crimson-ruby body. The nose is quite caramelish and lightly citrusy. The flavor follows. Wow, not bad. It's richly malty but not too caramelish or sweet. It's toffee-like, somewhat like almost-burnt sugar, and there's some citrusy (orange) and apple and berry-like fruitiness to it. Some spicy notes of pine help to round it out, and a firm bitterness balances it. It finishes dry and spicy with soft pine lingering amidst some light, residual, darkly caramelish malt. Ahh, there's some citrus there as well, orange and grapefruit. Pretty nice. What's the alcohol content? 7.5%... it's not on the label. It doesn't particularly show but there's a presence to it - you know you're drinking a stronger beer. Yeah, I like this. I'm not sure why. There's just something real about it. It doesn't seem to be unfiltered but it might be. Very nicely done. Full flavored but smooth and polished. Quite tasty, and satisfying, but also very drinkable. Medium-bodied and gently tingling then smooth across the palate. One drawback, the head retention and lacing could be better, well, really should be. Still, well worth it. Grab it if you can find it.
Aug 20, 2017
 
Rated: 3.75 by jwat from Pennsylvania

May 31, 2017
 
Rated: 4.58 by KLRSKIR from Pennsylvania

May 19, 2017
Photo of doppelmeup
Reviewed by doppelmeup from North Carolina

3.36/5  rDev -14.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
This beer had a nice golden appearance and creamy lacing. The aroma was quite IPA-like, with plenty of orange and grapefruit and other citrus. But the taste did not match up with the those aromas - instead more of a malty biscuit-like flavor followed by a bitter, hoppy aftertaste. My palate was definitely confused, and I couldn't rectify the battle between what my nose said was coming and what my tongue said arrived.

Overall, I didn't care for this beer as it seemed to be confused about what it was.
Nov 08, 2015
Photo of BeerAdvocate
Reviewed by BeerAdvocate from Finland

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Yeast, Warming, Biscuity, Orchard

We don’t need another beer with endless buckets of hops dominating the palate. This malt bomb really knows how to throw down; an underlying sweetness is there, but a thick, toasted graininess of biscuits, dried grass, bread crust, and faint husk are present, too. Yeasty with overripe apples and warming alcohol. Without a doubt, this one has personality even if the yeast character is a little over the top.

STYLE: American Strong Ale | ABV: 7.5% | AVAILABILITY: Year-round

Review from BeerAdvocate magazine issue #99 (APR 2015)
Aug 25, 2015
 
Rated: 3.85 by Yellolab2010 from Pennsylvania

Aug 11, 2015
 
Rated: 4.17 by deg from New Hampshire

Jul 23, 2015
 
Rated: 3.54 by djrn2 from New Jersey

May 17, 2015
 
Rated: 3.81 by tdm168 from Pennsylvania

Jan 04, 2015
Photo of ajm5108
Reviewed by ajm5108 from Pennsylvania

4.23/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Pours a rich copper with great clarity & carbonation. Barm is half an inch and retains well. Aroma is bold & robust - lots of fruity phenol & hop resin, with that combo produces notes of dry pear, tannin, forest floor, pine, grapefruit, apricot & champagne yeast. Really nice stuff. Flavor isn't nearly as diverse, but holds up its end of the bargain well enough. Starts with a standard caramel malt note before segueing into a drier German malt mid-palate (Czech pilsener, wheat stalk) with some nutty characteristics. the hops come way in the back palate, adding a piney punch at the end. Lost a lot of the fruity phenol notes from the nose, but still a solid beer. Medium mouthfeel, finishes pretty dry with a yeast padding.
Nov 22, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by Omnium from Pennsylvania

Nov 21, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by Blaze5445 from Pennsylvania

Sep 03, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by LexShaw89 from Pennsylvania

Dec 03, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by hoppyhelena from Pennsylvania

Dec 02, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by John00lee from Pennsylvania

Nov 11, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by JimmytheSaintPSU from Pennsylvania

Aug 19, 2012
Photo of TheMultiYeast
Reviewed by TheMultiYeast from Vermont

4/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours clear amber with a small white head.

Smell is malt forward with mild sweetness, caramel, very light pine/floral hops.

Taste balances malt and hops upon 7.5ABV. Sweet and bready upfront where malt dominates, light herbal hop quality and mild bitterness.

Mild carbonation, pretty light actually. Refreshing.

Not my favorite from Elk Creek but pretty good!
Jun 07, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by mscott1975 from Pennsylvania

Apr 14, 2012
Little Village MFA from Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 24 ratings