Layla Dirty Blonde Lager
Ibbl Ashkelon / Tank Beer

 

 

Poured a light amber with a white bubbly head that disappeared. Minimal lacing.

Smells of herbal hops, light toasted grain, some sweet malt notes.

Flavor is a little odd. Fruity sweetness, sweet breadiness, toasted grain, with some metallic aftertaste and a little skunk (maybe I got a bad one?).

Kinda on the flat side, but brew finished clean except for the metal.

Overall, not bad -- got it for a buck in a closeout section of the local beer shop. I wouldn't hunt for this again.

Received from a colleague as a gift.

Looks ok with a golden auburn hue topped with ivory cap, but it's all downhill from there!

Smells like old pears, tastes like old pears.

Best before: NSN66.

This is some rough stuff. I hope that it toughens up their army troops!

11.2 oz. bottle into a pint glass.

Appearance: Surely a dirty blonde color to the body, yes, but with hardly any appearance of carbonation and little head and / or retention, the name doesn't hold up so well.

Smell: Malt sweetness in the nose with some interesting sourness, and perhaps a bit of candi sugar or yeast, since something's piquing my interest but not lasting a long time.

Taste: I'm not sure if I'm getting residual or adjunct-like sweetness or if there's just not enough punch for the quality to come through, but there's malt sweetness that doesn't lend itself to visceral or quality-like characteristics very much unfortunately. Little to no hop flavors, and an interesting fruit sourness near the end, but the finish is transient and fairly non-existent.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium-bodied, though with the lack of carbonation it feels more toward the latter, and more watery than it needs to be, with little carbonation even at the end.

Drinkability: I got a single bottle of this for the name and the country and hopefully for something different, and though I'm glad I tried it, I wouldn't try it again if I had a choice. A pretty below average brew all around, and nothing more.

Poured from an 11.2oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a light copper color, with a thin white head that fades quickly and leaves a thin lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is of caramelized malts and pale hops but they don’t seem to mix very well.

T: The taste starts out bready with a little sweetness, containing flavors of grain, caramel and nuts. There’s a decent hops presence that comes in to provide some balance. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

M: Smooth and very crisp, light-to-medium body, medium carbonation, finish is clean.

D: Tasty and it seemed to get better as I drank it, goes down easily, not too filling, mild kick, in a style that usually doesn’t do too much to impress a beer-drinker, this beer isn’t that bad. I could drink a few, but wouldn’t pick it if I had a decent group to choose from.

Pours a brown with an orange tint when light is held to it. Nose is like dirty water. Slight sugary sweet tone to it. Flavor is a little bit better than I was expecting, but still pretty lackluster. Metallic aftertaste is preceded by a slight sweet touch and a deeper typical lager. Feel is standard on the carbonation. Drinkable, sure. If this were cheaper, I might go for it in larger quantities, but I am not so impressed that I would be dropping the money for it ever again really. At least I get to add another country to the tally.

Served in a pint glass, the beer pours a clear amber color with a very small white head which goes away very quickly. The aroma isn't strong, but it smells like toasted malt and caramel. It tastes the same, except there's some nuttiness and some hops too. Mouthfeel is light and a bit watery, but it's also smooth. Drinkability is good, it's refreshing and easy to drink. It has just enough taste to make it interesting, it's not a bad choice as a session beer if you wanted something that wasn't overpowering but still has more taste than regular macro lagers.

11.2fl oz bottle procured as a single. Pours into my glass a crystal clear amber, slightly brown color with only a bit of fizzy white head that quickly falls to nothing. Aromas start with toasted grains upfront along with a light caramel nuttiness and a touch of coffee even. Mellow spicy hops as an afterthought. Interesting to say the least...clean, crisp and pleasant.

First sip brings a toasted grain malt right off the bat along with a touch of caramel and some light fruity and nutty flavors as well. Flows down with a little green hop bitterness on the back of the palate. A pretty tasty lager that is nicely balanced and finishes clean.

Mouthfeel is smooth and light with a fizzy, fast moving carbonation. Easy to drink and refreshing. Overall, this was a pretty tasty lager with a some nice subtle flavors hidden within. Much better than your standard pale euro lager...I could see myself drinking this again if the situation presented itself. Check it out if you can find it...this is probably my first brew from Israel.

It pours a crystal clear deep ingot gold, a touch more memorable than a typical macro. A finger of thin white head drops off to fine fizzy froth. Dots of lacing polka across the inside of the glass.

The aroma carries a light malt sweetness with berry and biscuit. The hops bring a mild noble tang, and pepper tries to mitigate a metallic tang, but a spray of skunk nonetheless comes through.

Upon tasting, a moderate malt sweetness is rounded with berry and biscuit. It may not actually be in there, but a taste of corn flashes by. The character crisps as the hops spice lightly and a tinny edge hones a fair bitterness. A nip of yeast precedes a rather dull, dry finish. It's utterly average, not offensive, and forgotten once it's gone.

Light bodied, it actually has a slicker feel than expected, and it coats amiably with a carbonated pep.

It's usually not a good sign when I don't care if I have another of a given beer. Ambivalence aside, it speaks of adjuncts, assumedly with none truly present, and just doesn't have enough to get out of its own so-so way. Granted, it's decently refreshing and it goes down with nary a thought, but you know, so does water. I finished it, and I have five left. I'll drink it, or I won't. I honestly don't care one way or the other.
Oh, and it definitely cannot hang with good barbecue. Trust me on this.

Dirty blonde, eh? Well, looks like a nice clear amber to me, topped by a decent white head – died just a bit too quickly.

NOT digging the euro skunksmells, and that quaff was a gagger – harsh, woody, and full of crappy cooked veggies. Wow, I feel sorry if this is all that is available in the mid east. Pretty much a euro skunk (not lite struck) fest.

Got this from my great niece, and I appreciate the taste – but I wouldn’t buy this.

Regarding appearance, 4.99 a sixer makes for a great first impression. The pour didn't disappoint, offering a decent head and a nutty brown color. Nice lacing too. Sweet & malty on the beak, but obviously in need of some friggin hops. The taste and mouthfeel follow suit, with mineral underpinnings which suggest that this came from London, as opposed to the land of milk & honey.

The only thing that surprised me about this beer is how much I enjoyed it. It's kinda funny to me that this beer tastes a lot like certain English bitters, but scores so much lower. I'm not a huge fan of the style, but given my druthers I'd be more apt to shell out the 5 bucks a sixer for this than some of the others I didn't mention. Put it succinctly, the bang for the buck factor is high.

First impressions - the taste is rather doughy/yeasty, but not much else. Appearance is standard fare; nothing note worthy, but nothing bad either. Fortunately, Layla is rather refreshing, and I can imagine it appealing to someone who likes lagers. Hops seem to be almost non-existent, and I personally find Layla lacking in any character. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad beer by any means, it’s just fairly average.

I definitely would not purchase this beer again, but I also wouldn’t turn it down if the only alternative is the American Macro-breweries. Might be worth checking out if you happen to like this style, but otherwise, I’d pass.

A deceptively simple beer, the Layla Dirty Blonde Lager pours vibrant bronze with a bone-white head. Though its smell is decidedly average, its flavor is worth sampling. A sweet, full, almost doughy flavor dominates, set off by a light and tasty hoppiness. Manages to be extremely drinkable without being dull (a tradeoff that many lagers, even dark ones, often fail to properly balance). I can imagine enjoying a couple glasses with all kinds of cuisines.

My chief advice to the brewers would be to improve the mouthfeel. I found Layla just a tad too watery and lacking in carbonation. Otherwise a solid, if not earth-shattering brew.

Pour was a medium copper hue. A minor head of white color vanished almost as soon as pour was finished. Decent amount of medium sized carbonation bubbles. Only a few clupms of lacing.

An aroma combination of malth and hops leaves me looking for something a little more balanced. A slight finish in my nose of alchol soaked fruit.

The taste was, for lack of a better word, average. A bland blend of fruit and malt. The finish is a light plastic flavor under a malt extract taste.

A slight watery body. Almost no carbonation feeling on the surfaces of the mouth.

Just an slightly less then average beer. It would refresh on a hot day, only for it's very watery taste and body. I would only serve this with food as a last resort, since almost any pairing is going to leave the food feeling overpowered.

11.2 oz bottle poured into a hefe glass. Dark copper color with minimal head and no lacing. Smell is malty sweet with a slight strawberry presence. Taste is a mild malt, with more of the berry sweetness. Very low carbonation, just barely feel it on the tip of my tongue. I'm not sure if it's not supposed to have a lot of carbonation or if it's just flat. This looked interesting in the mix and match section, I doubt I'll get it again.

Poured copper with a thin bubbly head that almost immediately disappeared to a few bubbles. It left virtually no lacing.
The smell was thin - some vague hops and a touch of sweet malt.
The taste was on the watery side. Some hops and grains hint at emerging, but never really manifest themselves fully. Rather bland on the whole, but not much in the way of offensive either.
The label claims that it is full-bodied, but medium-bodied would actually be a stretch.
It is fairly smooth, but more from the wateriness than from the flavor. There was nothing especially bad about it, but nothing stood out either. It's a mediocre brew, at best.

A pretty enough brew- golden, a good amount of head that stays for a while, pretty clear. Not un-appealing. Smell and taste are pretty basic, some sweetness and maltyness, not too much in the way of hops. Kinda reminds me of a slightly less tasty PBR, but you can actually let this guy warm a little without being afraid of it. Mouthfeel is kind of bleh, nothing exciting. Overall easy to drink, and I could have a few, but this is an unexciting brew on the whole.

Has a pretty good head that stays for the life of the beer in the glass. Darker than your average macro pale lager... which I guess makes sense for the style. Golden color, white head... blah blah blah.
Smells pretty clean, lightly malterd with some fermented fruit in there. Nothing striking, nothing offensive.
Tastes mild and on the sweet side; quite a bit like a Helles lager now that I think about it. Not hoppy sharp like a pilsner, but juicier.
A downside, as far as I'm concerned, is the mouthfeel. There is a chalkyness there that I dont dig. Still, mostly dry in the finish, enough carbonation...
Not bad when cold, but probably not terribly wonderful for what you're likely goind to spend on it.

Pours clear amber color with a medium beige head that lasts pretty well. Thin, spotty lacing. Aroma of sweet malt and grassy hops. Medium-bodied with a sweet malt character, as well as some caramel and grain flavoring. The finish is sweet and a little chalky, with a mild hops bitterness lingering. Passable overall.