Rotbier
Notch Brewing

 

16 oz can

Pours a bright ruby red color, with thick layer of off-white white colored head. Nice aroma of toasted caramel malt flavor. Similar taste, great depth ot the flavor but with a dry quick finish. Medium bodied, smooth mouthfeel

 

Pours a dark reddish hue, almost like a cherry wood or mahogany. Some fruit character in addition to bread, I kind of get some watermelon. Caramel and bread rust are probably some of the more prominent aromas though. It's really quite great to drink. I think the malt character of batch 1 is what I liked a lot but batch 2 is a little drier, a little more drinkable. You get a lot of that sour dough bread crust you loved in batch 1, but it's slightly more balanced. I don't know if I like it more than batch 1 but it's still good.

 

 

Rather sweet, a sipping beer.

Beautiful presentation, thick lacing.
Smells of toasty malt and a touch of yeast.
Sweet, almost syrupy taste. Caramel balanced with a light bitterness (capers???) , some dark fruit, a little snap on the swallow.
In spite of the sweetness it has a relatively light feel.
Natural carbonation is gentle and just right.

Once I got my head into the right space it was rewarding. (Previous beer was a Pilsner, very very different!) Drink slowly, think double decoction. After the first few sips I thought it would be a much lower score but slowing down and giving it time to open up has made all the difference.

Crowler filled 6/12/22

The last of 2 new crowler fills I purchased at Notch this weekend, we have a German interpretation of an Amber Lager. As Notch themselves point out, this is quite uncommon, so I’m not sure what to expect here. Let’s crack it open and find out

Pours a clear reddish brown with 2 fingers of soapy light brown head that fades to a thin cap and leaves minimal lacing

This is very toasty in the nose, and quite sweet, but still balanced. I’m picking up on aromas of bread crust, honey, toasted grain, floral hops, toffee, nutty malt, and a touch of general citrus

It’s similar toasty in taste, and it’s quite clean. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting biscuity malt, earthy hops, cereal grain, honey, and light lemon zest. The swallow brings notes of toasted grain, toffee, earthy hops, honey, lemon zest, and nutty malt

A light medium body pairs with gentle tingling carbonation, resulting in a crisp and slick beer. Finishes a tad sticky which doesn’t really hurt it but it could excel further if it was completely dry

Damn, this is another good one. Definitely different from an American Amber Lager, but it’s a welcome deviation. I already miss having new Notch beers to review, might have to go back soon