Drooling Elf
Bube's Brewery

 

Sampled from Growler courtesy of Axilla.

Poured a deep orange color with a small sized off white head. Aromas of strong ginger. I found the ginger aroma to drown out all other aromas. Tastes of ginger, citrus, bready, and caramel. Light lacing left on the glass.

Notes from: 12/22/06

Poured a clear reddish brown color with modest off-white puffy head.
Smell is very restrained with a light maltiness noted.
Taste is also strong and malty with a very mild fruitiness (cherries) present.
Finishes malty with a nice hop bittermness at the very end.
Drinkability must be good because I finished most of the growler myself at the in-laws this afternoon.
A pleasant product that was very enjoyable, but nothing outstanding.

Thanks to axilla for this...
Appears a transparent, orange toned amber with a small white head that quickly fades away. Little spots of lacing cling to the glass.
Smell is of basil, peppercorn, ginger, coriander, & nutmeg...very weird.
Taste is of a spicey, Belgian, dry pasta, yeasty, wacky creation that reminds me a bit of my tomato sauce without the acidic, pureed tomatoes.
Mouthfeel is bitterly spiced, kind of weird but not overly bad...just very strange.

This arrived with a thin, almost non-existent off-tan head. There was Nebraska-quality clarity in this medium-copper colored beer. The nose had a sweet aspect, underlain with an apple tartness. The mouthfeel was kind of thin, with a real burst of spices, like nutmeg and cinnamon, on the palate. The finish was fairly dry, with a lingering presence of cinnamon. Not bad, but not great, either. There are just so many better winter beers available right now that this was a one-and-done for me.

Served on-tap at Bube's.

A: The beer is an amber color with some cleared red highlights and a small white head. Lacing was there but nothing to get jazzed about.

S: The aroma is malt graininess and a wee bit o' nutmeg. The nutmeg and some cinnamon become more noticeable as the beer warms up.

T: The flavor is pungent, overdone nutmeg up front. That initial blast is almost enough to wipe out any other flavors. The malt body is grainy with a biscuity cookie taste. The malts are not there to stand out, and thankfully they don't. The spices themselves, beyond nutmeg and cinnamon never really get off the ground very well.

M: The nutmeg is a bit over the top, scalding the taste buds. I'd like to see more spices show up and give the beer a bit more depth.

D: I had 2 pints in my attempt to get this beer. It is good but not remarkable, an acceptable attempt at a winter beer.

This is a solid, tasty drinkable brew though nothing to flip out over. It is hard to peg what it is similar to as it seemed to be somewhat of a seasonally spiced juice.

Appearance: It is served a quite attractive cherry red color with an ivory cap and showcased noteworthy lacing on the walls of my glass.

Smell: The aroma is reserved but pleasant with a sweet malty hint of berry and cinnamon .

Taste: The flavor is bigger in the mouth than the nose though it is all around a light-ish beer. It is sweet and malty with suggestions of cinnamon nutmeg brown sugar and cherry in a syrupy juicy body. It tasty a bit like the syrup that canned peaches or pears come in. Not bad, just different. As the beer warmed the flavors did evolve to show a little more depth. The aftertaste lingered pleasantly and especially near the end of the glass I noticed a splash of lemon juice and mint in the aftertaste. [EDIT my friend phnphilly helped me put my finger on that flavor in the aftertaste. It did to my palate the same thing ginger would do.]

Mouthfeel: Juicy and slick, smooth across the palate.

Drinkability: With a sigh, I slouch back in my chair and with a nod of approval nonchalantly say "Okay, not bad guys." This is the first brew off with the new brewer and 2 assistants so... Let's see where you go from here.

Hope this is helpful.
Cheers!