Ach! Roggenbier
Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery

Pecan brown on the coaster and rusted russet with sunlight behind the glass. Nearly two fingers of golden ecru colored foam was present to start and faded over the appropriate length of time. Jagged rings and tiny dots of lace were seen as the beer fell with drinking.

The nose was the weak link, but only in the relative sense. It was brown malty, modestly fruity and mildly earthy-spicy. Either no more than a small percentage of rye malt was used or my rye malt detector is on the blink.

It's entirely possible that the semi-pungent, earthy, sometime spiciness that many of us attribute to rye beer has more to do with abundant hops than rye malt. It just takes a less well-hopped beer like this one to bring that point home. Another possibility is that I have no idea what I'm talking about.

Ach! Roggenbier was pretty good right out of the hopper and improved considerably as it warmed. It was primarily brown bready, with a gentle push of earthy rye and a side order of overripe apple fruitiness. Sweet-bitter balance was right on the money and tanginess was minimal. All in all, a fine drinker that complemented my antipasto lunch with no trouble at all.

The mouthfeel was light-medium, held on admirably through the lightly clingy finish, and contained semi-bright bubbles that didn't come close to being harsh or tongue tingly.

Ach! Roggenbier is good beer ('gut bier') of the sort that I've come to expect from the West Des Moines Rock Bottom. It's a great choice for this time of year, when summer hasn't yet let go and fall isn't yet in full swing.