Rocky Mountain Kolsch
Upslope Brewing Company - Lee Hill

Poured from a 12 oz can into a pint glass. Pours straw yellow with good foamy head that rapidly recedes. Tastes of light corn coupled with lager tastiness. Good.

 

 

Poured from a couple 12oz cans into my weizen glass

On the pour a nice 2 finger head forms, but becomes rocky and shrinks down to one finger relatively quick.the color is a touch darker than other lighter beers bringing a night light honey amber color with a very vague haze.

Aroma is relatively light with a nice hit of floral hops. Some fermentation character as well, but not a lot that I can smell before drinking.

Taste is actually quite Interesting. More bitter and hoppy than some pilsners I've had, but I guess this was just a style less guarded by beer geeks in the us so it gets the pass to be americanized. The honey is present in the flavor and brings a nice subtle sweetness that I'd say is required to balance the hops, which remind me a bit of an ipa but less pronounced, more light, and sweet. Quite floral probably from the sage and hops intertwining, and still light enough to have kolsch characteristics but in Germany this definitely wouldn't be considered a "real kolsch" disregarding location of origin.

Stepping away from style geekery, feel is actually very good the head is doing just what is should do with just the right amount of carbonation bite. Definitely not a light feeling beer however quite creamy and sticks around on the palate for a while.

Overall it's an interesting but rather hoppy American style kolsch. You can definitely taste the non-traditional ingredients, but they aren't overwhelming like in some beers. If anything the hops are overwhelming especially for the style. When drinking from the can you can forget about tasting anything but hops. It's definitely not a kolsch at all to be honest.

DONT DRINK THIS STRAIGHT FROM THE CAN. IF YOU DONT POUR THIS INTO A GLASS IT WILL JUST TASTE LIKE A LIGHT IPA.

L-Great clarity..light golden color

S-Herbal and floral

T-Crackery malt, lemon rind, herbal, decent bitterness

F-Light to medium bodied...good dose of drying bitterness on the finish

O-Interesting take on a Kolsch. Doesn't hit the mark for me.

12oz can with a best by date of 12-7-21. Opened 11-20-21.
1.5 finger white head with nice retention and spotty lacing left behind.
Straw gold with excellent clarity and ample slow-moving bubbles streaming up.
Nice hit of minerality, light sulfur and some apple peel...maybe some sage late (?). ***Second can (11-24-21) definitely getting some sage in the nose.
Flavor very similar to the aroma. Sweet malt initially, simple and refreshing. ***Pine needles, more complex...moving up by .25.
Light bodied with medium plus carbonation and slight bitterness. Quick and ultimately dry finish.
Good.

 

 

 

maybe we have gotten too used to mediocrity in this style, but i feel like its never really right to ask or expect to much out of an american made kolsch, i love the style, but despite ordering them with great enthusiasm most of the time, they so often leave something to be desired. that is why i was stoked on this one, these guys always hit on the classic styles, and they deliver again here. not only is this very well made, but i would go so far as to say its fairly unique too, traditional enough to be recognizable as a kolsch, but also relatively hoppy as they go, and the hop profile seems more american to me, it really works and makes this stand out, and i came away impressed with this and wishing for more. unique also because its brewed with honey and sage. i feel like both are appropriately subtle here for this to still be kolsch first. the honey adds some richness to the grain profile and a floral aspect that hits in the center, but its light and dry enough to be out of the way and sort of wrapped up with the malt. the sage accentuates the hops on the finish and maybe a light botanical spiciness to compensate for what more traditional noble hops would have brought, but more than anything it adds an obvious freshness, a cool component in a style where the imports often taste fatigued. the hop profile is more citrusy than grassy and without much bitterness, sort of more modern there on the end, but again, this is still kolsch first. i love the ferment, its clean like a lager and crisp even with the honey, not overdone at all, and really well refined on the whole, peppy carbonation too. i loved this, and think it would make a cool base for other fun ingredients, thai basil, green apple, juniper berry, lots of things come to mind for future versions. fun and different while being rooted in tradition, awesome!

Drinking this at The Bird in Jackson Hole Wyoming.
Poured from a tap into a 22 ounce pint glass.
Looks clear golden yellow with a nice tight foamy white head that lasted.
Smells herbal, Floral, biscuity, lemony.
Taste follows the nose and I am picking up the sage right away, third sip and that builds on the palate the more you drink it.
Mouth feel is medium light for the style.
Overall a very nice Kolsch that I would definitely order again.
Cheers!

 

Idk I thought this slapped, as far as light tasting stuff to have with literally any food, I like Upslope in general so maybe I'm biased but I definitely would buy over and over.

 

I was compelled to try this beer as a lover of both sage and Kolsch style beer. I was unsure about how pervasive the sage would be, but hoped it would converge with the mosaic hops to create an astringent piney, smoky sort of profile... and a balanced by the floral citrus of the coriander and lemon drop hops.

Look— Deep golden crystal in color, a little more amber yellow than apple juice. A solid 2-finger head lingered and reduced into a fine, fizzy mat of foam, which retained until the end.

Smell— A sort of cracker sweet smell, I didn’t really get any sense of the sage. The coriander and lemon drop hops did, however, rise through with their citrusy notes.

Taste— Clean and biscuity, no hint of the sage or citrus up front. Yet, after a few sips I got a really enjoyable sensation of the sage and other botanicals fuming on my palate. It was a pretty minuscule sage flavor compared to what I expected, but the combination made for a highly refreshing snappiness.

Feel— Very clean and inviting at first, like any Kolsch. Yet, continuing the beer skews the crispness into a heartier, herbier experience as the collaboration between botanicals intensifies.

 

12 oz can from the grocery store. Pours clear gold with a large coarse white head. Good carbonation. Aroma: mostly sage, some malt and hop aromas but I can’t pick out specifics because of the sage. Taste: sage, honey, pilsner hops. Sweet honey aftertaste. I have had this a few times. This batch seems to have way more sage, and I wouldn’t rate it as high if this was my first try. Other times I have thought it was much better balanced with the sage and honey noticeable but neither was overwhelming. Maybe it’s just that my taste Is off today and I am noticing the sage a lot more.

Not exactly a kolsch, it's more like a golden ale with honey. But if you just think of it as a golden ale and not a kolsch, then it's good. Not bad for a bastardized American version of this style.

 

Initial gut reaction from a 12 fl oz can:

C / AVERAGE

***
06/17/20 impression:

The honey and lemondrop hops do come through and I think I taste the sage, but I don't find any Mosaic hop flavour whatsoever.

Wouldn't be my first choice Kolsch, but it's drinkable.

C / AVERAGE