Narragansett Lovecraft Series - The Temple
Narragansett Brewing Co.

 

 

 

First of all I love the artwork on the can (by Scott Minzy), and enjoy the connection to H.P. Lovecraft, a writer who should not be forgotten. I poured this 16 ounce tall boy into a 12 ounce can shaped glass (not sure why I did that, perhaps it was Lovecraft speaking to me). Decent head, dark ale. Lots of smooth malty richness in this Sticke Altbier. I wasn't sure what the Sticke part meant so I looked it up: a special version of top-fermented Dusseldorf Altbier, higher in abv and more assertive. This one clocks in at 7% abv, so it meets the definition. Perhaps Narragansett's best beer in the Lovecraft series!

 

Poured from a pint canned on 5/4/17

A- Dark, clouded amber. Little head due to a careful pour, but robust lacing

S- Clove and dark, bready malt

T- Bitter hit up front, with toffee and fig off the back

F- Medium body, low effervescence, not too syrupy for a heavy style

O- a fresh take on a weird style from a macro brewer at a reasonable price... What more could you ask for?

 

 

Modest head but it leaves a superb blanket of lace. Amber color. Clear.

Relatively nondescript aroma of soured milk and lightly malted barley.

Good malty base with the lightest touch of maltose sweetness. This leans strongly to the malt with very little hop to note. Rich body with moderate carbonation. Think weak Scotch Ale and you're close.

 

 

Pours clear amber with a bit of orange coppery fire. Generous cream colored head that lasts and clings. Nose is crisp malt. Breaddy with some sweet strawberry and caramel. Lively hop pepper and juicy melon. Wheat. Drinks with only a modest warmth and a few bubbles to finish it bitter from hops. Pale caramel on Munich malt. Sweet strawberries and melon. You know how bourbon lingers on your lips sweetly, sensationally. This does the same thing only with hop bitter. It lingers just sensationally on your lips with it's strawberry sweetness . I think that the brewer must have made this with us ladies in mind. The idea I often see is that for a beer to appeal to a woman it must be fruity or sweet. This was as sexy as possible and not really too sweet. I would never have thought of the altbier as a summer beer but with those hops it was a real treat!

 

A: Pours a clear deep copper in color with moderate amounts of active visible carbonation rising from the bottom of the glass and faint burnt orange + garnet red colored highlights. The beer has a two finger tall dense foamy light tan head that slowly reduces to a large cap of thick film surrounded by a large patch of thin film covering the remainder of the surface of the beer and a medium thick ring at the edges of the glass. Significant amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Moderate aromas of toasted + bready + caramel malts with a moderate amount caramel sweetness with a light to moderate aroma of earthy + spicy + floral hops and just a hint of tropical/melon hops.

T: Upfront there are slightly stronger than moderate flavors of toasted, caramel, and bready malts with a moderate amount of caramel sweetness. Light to moderate flavors of slightly fruity yeast. That is followed by a moderate flavor of earthy ,spicy, and floral hops with a hint of tropical/melon hops which impart a light to moderate amount of bitterness which does not linger for too long.

M: Slightly heavier than medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation. Smooth with a hint of dryness in the finish.

O: An enjoyable slightly more modern take on the style (Sticke Altbier) due to the use of the Huell Melon hops but still drinks pretty easily.

Pint can poured into a stem glass.

Appearance: Opaque amber with a lot of bubbles, and a crown of bubbles around the bottom. One-finger eggshell head.

Aroma: Grass, booze, cereal grains, malt, toast.

Taste: Nice malty body with a noticeable booze kick. Grass is there. Grains. Toasted bread. Caramel.

Mouthfeel: Medium depth. Has body. Almost heavy; a somewhat slow drinker.

Overall: Nice slightly boozy alt. Well executed.

 

From the 16 fl. oz. can that was canned 05/04/17. Sampled on June 30, 2017.

It is an attractive looking medium amber pour with good clarity and a lingering light tan head. Lacing.

The aroma is sweet and malty to keep it short. Maybe a light hop sensation and generally crisp and clean on the nose.

The body is medium and smooth.

The taste expresses itself sweetly with Caramel malts galore, perhaps a vague citrus thing, and otherwise clean, crisp and easy to drink.

 

16oz can. Pours a clear light copper color with an inch of frothy white head. No lacing. The aroma is malty with earthy hops, caramel, melon and orange peel. The taste is bread crusts, melon, floral/herbal hops, caramel malts, and orange peel. Medium bodied with lots of carbonation. Mild alcohol presence.