Railyard Ale
Upstream Brewing Company - Old Market

Light amber with a minimal head and lacing. Good color enticingly grabbed my utmost attention.
Although outdoors and with a decent wind I was able to smell light hops and small burnt orange.
Nice sense of hops – not too strong – finished with light caramel flavor.
It must be the water but most of the offerings by the brewers at upstream are leaving smooth almost a silk finish in the mouth long after the last swallow. It’s as if the beer vanishes, an almost air-like dissipation.
A solid representation of the style, nothing too strong. Good beer overall.

Presentation: Sampled during a visit to the Upstream Brewing Company, Omaha on 23rd September 2003. Served on draft, in a pint Glass.

Appearance: This immediately reminded me of an English Bitter in appearance when it arrived. Pleasant amber-brown body, with a nice smooth faintly beige head, that stayed around a while. Nice looks.

Nose: Hops and Malts in equal splendor. Average strength odors that were enough to add a dimension to the Railyard Ale.

Taste: Bitterness twixt malts and a feint yeasty bread aspect. It tasted fresh, as opposed to young. Very crisp lines and an exceptional clean drink. Good levels of inherent carbonation, dance well with the nice balance of Hops and Malts, which just added to its appeal, & gave it an almost Cask character at times. Appealing and more-ish. Dynamic clean Malts and fresh bitter Hops, inter-phasing at times, well-crafted and very tasty for a 'style' that often lacks flair.

Mouthfeel: Smooth, creamy and lip-smacking good. Although clean, it was far from thin, had a solid feel and sat well in the mouth, before, during and after food. The sign of a great session bitter. Well above average.

Drinkability: This beer was the second of my visit, & washed away the awful memories of the Gold Coast Blonde which I struggled with. A very good session beer, malt and hops in a perfect ever-changing balance, make this an enjoyable gulper. I just had the one – but wanted another.

Overall: I really enjoyed this, and would have had a second and even a third perhaps, if it had not been for the fact that I wanted to try the other beers. English Bitter fans will take to this one – as I indeed did. I nearly passed on this one, but the Waiter to his credit, told me to try it as I was English, which sounded a tad tacky at first. He was either lucky, or was just so very right. Don’t let its rather staid name, or higher profile style brethren tempt you to miss this one. Very nice, one of the better beers of the night at the UBC for me, after a couple more I may well have voted this their best beer hands down, as I suspect it may very well be.

Served tawny-amber with a nice white head, fair retention, good lacing. The nose is hoppy but far from strong, some citrus notes. The palate is pleasantly hoppy, some malt for support, kind of juicy. Medium bodied. Its a very pleasing Pale Ale, drinkable and enjoyable… above average… this is just a hard style to impress.