Good Old Potosi
Potosi Brewing Company

 

A generous two-finger head of slightly off-white foam slowly sinks in to light transparent apple-juice colored liquid. A light hops scent arises from the glass more noticeably than from the bottle. An unexpected hint of sweet roundness is present with just of astringency left on the front of the tongue. It's a hot night with spicy food, and I wish I had some more of this.

 

From Woodman’s in Madison. Straight from the bottle at Blue Mounds AirBnB. Dinner prep easy drinker.

Pours a slightly hazy golden with minimal head resolving to thin lacing.
Smell is sweet honey malt.
Taste is grassy and a little earthy. Followed by a faint citrus flavor and some light caramel.

 

 

Got from a build your own sampler pack
L: Light gold color with thick white rocky head that dissipated within a minute.
S: Sweet grain smell, little creamy.
T: Not as sweet as initial smell but its a nice blend of sweet and bitter with an aftertaste of sweet grains.
F: Really refreshing, a lot of carbonation.
O: A nice lighter beer with not a whole not of complexities, easy drinking.

 

I got a bottle of this off the single shelf from a beer store in La Crosse, Wisconsin. It poured a clear golden with no head and no lace. The scent had faint grain notes. The taste was nicely balanced and easy to drink with subtle malt base and hop finish. The mouthfeel was lighter in body with good carbonation. Overall its a decent beer.

 

 

 

 

 

This is my favorite beer hands down. I am a big fan of amber/darker beers, and although this isn't either, it's definitely my favorite. I'm lucky enough to live close to the brewery so most stores carry this around here.

Came across better in the taproom. Picked up this six-pack at a gas station outside of town. Maybe should've not been lazy and picked up some when I was at the brewery the day before. The difference that I noticed was sort of creamed corn flavor and aroma, but it's still pretty drinkable.

 

 

 

Bottle:
Pours just on the dark side of golden, quite clear, with a barely controlled white head. Head lasts, but there's not really any lacing.

Nose is malty sweet, maybe a bit of creamed corn. Sweet like a cream ale or AAL, but not listed here as such. There's a vegetal note, maybe grassy, that counters this sweetness with little success.

Taste isn't quite as sweet as the nose indicates. It's still a malty beer, but the grassy bitterness that counters it to a degree.

A light beer, probably easy drinking to many, but a tad too corn-like sweet for me. Even if this were a cream ale, it'd be a tad sweet to me. And I don't know that there is any corn in this, it just seems it.

 

 

L: Pours a classic 'dirty blonde' in color. A hazy off-straw, and not clear like a Pils or other beer with very good to excellent clarity. Thin cap of white foam rest atop the glass and fades rather quickly.

S: Big, yeasty and even (somewhat) fusel, vegetal character on the nose. Reminds me of a classic American Cream Ale -- you know, a corn adjunct lager brewed a little bit warm, and "underlagered"? Yeah. Wheat malt? That might explain the lack of clarity, as would rough or coarse filtering. So which is it? There definitely seems to be wheat malt in the nose, and none of the above is a judgement or pronouncement that this is a "cheap, adjunct beer" -- more on that in the Overall notes.

T: Initial sip tells me that this is a sweeter and somewhat full-bodied beer, with somewhat lighter carbonation. Full and sweet across the tongue and upper palate, coating and not-quite scrubbing carbonation.

Minimal bitterness, but appropriate for the style. Some nice (pale, biscuit-y) malt character lingers along with the hop bitterness, and the finish is drier than many in this style, but not quite truly "Dry." There are notes of higher ferment in the aromatics, along with the vegetal character from the nose. Yeast profile is unobtrusive and stuck somewhere in the middle of the malt and vegetal aspect, fairly neutral for the style. Wheat malt? It seems like it to me (this reminds me of a beer from a not well thought of brewery which I happen to love, which DOES have wheat malt), and as for corn, again, that's a guess. Maybe the wheat and corn character that I perceive are strictly aspects of the proprietary yeast strain, itself? In which case it's far more active than strictly neutral. : )

F: Not "full bodied" in the manner of a stout, but certainly -MORE- full bodied for a pale lager or Golden or Cream Ale, while still quite pleasing on the palate. Seems to be one that could be well suited to fatty, buttery food pairings.

O: For a Golden Ale this is not bad, and probably just below average. However!

I'm reminded of the adjunct character in the nose, which immediately reminded me of "Huber Original" (a brand which I loved but which is almost completely loathed) once I'd popped the crown and decanted this beer . . . and then I was reminded of the heritage of this beer.

Good Old Potosi was the flagship brand from Potosi Brewing Company, an "old line" brewery which closed in 1972.

The brand was brewed up until they closed, before being brewed by others, including Joseph Huber (Monroe), by which point the character and flavor profile would have changed. But the important thing to remember is this: The beer was as traditional as it came -- for the area. It was a pale lager brewed using portions of corn and wheat in the malt bill!

They likely didn't lager as long as they might have done with a Pils, and whether they brewed it with a hybrid yeast or a proprietary house yeast, I don't know. I certainly never tasted it, as it was unavailable in my home town (and I was just a toddler when the original brewery closed!)

When Potosi re-opened in 2008, they entered into a co-packaging contract with the ever-capable Point Brewing. That incarnation of Good Old Potosi, while certainly a good and drinkable beer, was still a far cry from the original, and not far from the type of clear ale / pale lager which Point excels at brewing; An American Golden Ale (Cream Ale) it was not.

NOW! What all of this half-remembered history and guesswork on my part boils down to is this: It's not a bad beer, and for what it is (assuming it's meant to be a western Wisconsin-regional Cream Ale) it's above average!

In the end, I'd highly recommend this one to anyone interested in trying a classic example of that style.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pours a clear, straw color. 1/5 inch head of a white color. Poor retention and poor lacing. Smells of pale malt, hint of wheat, and a hint of hops. Fits the style of an American Blonde Ale. Mouth feel is sharp and crisp, with an average carbonation level. Tastes of slight hops, strong pale malt, hint of wheat, and a hint of sweet malt. Overall, a session Blonde with simple flavors.

Another good, breathy malty blonde ale, with a slight fruity taste. When you make a blonde like this, you've got my attention. The nearby Galena brewery makes one like this, but a little better. This is a brewery I need to revisit.

Rather simple and not complex, it had a little metallic edge mixed with smooth in the finish, not a lot to it going on really but easy to drink and not nasty.

 

Pours hazed lightt golden with a thin head. Minimal lacing sticks.

The smell is of light bready malt.

The taste is of light bready malt. A hint of general fruitiness and floral notes balance it.

Creamy and refreshing, it's an easy-drinking, light, subtle brew.

Tastes a little skunky. Do not like this style much but this seems to be a bottom feeder.