South Station Steam
Raccoon River Brewing Company
- From:
- Raccoon River Brewing Company
- Iowa, United States
- Style:
- California Common / Steam Beer
- ABV:
- Not listed
- Score:
- 80
- Avg:
- 3.53 | pDev: 0%
- Reviews:
- 1
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- May 10, 2007
- Added:
- May 10, 2007
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 0
SCORE
80
Good
80
Good
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews.
Reviewed by BuckeyeNation from Iowa
3.53/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.53/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Radiant tawny, like lacquered oak. Although the golden beige cap was slim and trim when it reached me, and didn't last very long, it was nicely creamy and deposited thin sheets of lace that tattered with time and drinking. I have no idea what a California Common is supposed to look like, but this one looked pretty good.
The nose was dominated by generously toasted malt (I'll guess caramel and Vienna) as well as a fruitiness that smelled more ale yeast-like than lager yeast-like. It also reminded me of a cream ale to some extent, but I didn't appreciate vanilla per se.
It took me a while to figure South Station Steam out, and I'm not sure that I did in the end. The beer was most reminiscent of a bitter dark amber lager or even a light-bodied, highly hopped Oktoberfest. If anything, the flavor was more toasted than the nose and was significant nutty as well. Maybe a lighter end of the spectrum English brown ale?
I couldn't tell if the beer's earthiness originated with the malt or with the hops. There was a spiciness that put me in mind of something German; Hallertau perhaps. I know one thing, the brewer didn't stint on hops. Unfortunately, alpha acids superceded flavor by a wide margin.
In addition, I picked up a hint of alcohol; unusual in a beer that, by state law, has to have an ABV less than 6.25%. Finally, there was a slight medicinal flavor (that wasn't quite phenolic) that seemed to be the product of an especially messy yeast strain. Maybe that's what happens when a lager is fermented at relatively warm temperatures.
The mouthfeel was appropriately light with a lingering slickness on the finish that became accentuated as the beer warmed. I also thought there were a few too many bubbles.
Given the above complaints, one could be forgiven for assuming that I didn't like South Station Steam. That wasn't the case at all, but I certainly didn't love it. I'm not the one to pass this sort of judgment, but it didn't strike me as a very accurate version of this somewhat unCommon style.
May 10, 2007The nose was dominated by generously toasted malt (I'll guess caramel and Vienna) as well as a fruitiness that smelled more ale yeast-like than lager yeast-like. It also reminded me of a cream ale to some extent, but I didn't appreciate vanilla per se.
It took me a while to figure South Station Steam out, and I'm not sure that I did in the end. The beer was most reminiscent of a bitter dark amber lager or even a light-bodied, highly hopped Oktoberfest. If anything, the flavor was more toasted than the nose and was significant nutty as well. Maybe a lighter end of the spectrum English brown ale?
I couldn't tell if the beer's earthiness originated with the malt or with the hops. There was a spiciness that put me in mind of something German; Hallertau perhaps. I know one thing, the brewer didn't stint on hops. Unfortunately, alpha acids superceded flavor by a wide margin.
In addition, I picked up a hint of alcohol; unusual in a beer that, by state law, has to have an ABV less than 6.25%. Finally, there was a slight medicinal flavor (that wasn't quite phenolic) that seemed to be the product of an especially messy yeast strain. Maybe that's what happens when a lager is fermented at relatively warm temperatures.
The mouthfeel was appropriately light with a lingering slickness on the finish that became accentuated as the beer warmed. I also thought there were a few too many bubbles.
Given the above complaints, one could be forgiven for assuming that I didn't like South Station Steam. That wasn't the case at all, but I certainly didn't love it. I'm not the one to pass this sort of judgment, but it didn't strike me as a very accurate version of this somewhat unCommon style.
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