L'Aradia
Jester King Brewery

American Lagers is not what Jester King typically brews. Therefore, it is a Lager with something extra. It is a bit different. I love everything that Jester King brews.

Look: yellow with a fluffy white head

Aroma: toasted white bread, grapefruit, mild grassy hops

Flavor: toasted white bread, cereal, with an addition of mildly tart fruit, grapefruit and melon maybe, as well as a refreshing grassy bitterness.

Body/Overall: light to medium body

L: A mostly filtered dark goldenrod hue with three fingers of stark white foam, settling to a long-lasting third and decorating the teku with an awesome patchwork pattern of sticky lace.

S: A stark musty funk that reminds me of wall spackle (mud), along with lemon Joy dish detergent. There is straw and oak, but they take a back seat.

T: Follows the nose with a rather musty and funky aftertaste. ‘Bretty’.

F: Thin as expected for the ABV. Well carbonated.

O: Not a clean finish. Not a beer for me.

 

Foggy straw gold with a tall creamy white head that clings in thick ridges leaving some spongy lace on the glass.

The soft, fluffy medium body has delicate and subtle notes of hay, straw, corn and light oak, accented by semi-bitter lettuces and herbs. There's nary a hint of tartness or funk, as one might have expected from Jester King--just a clean lager that's almost pils-like actually. There is, with time, a hint of soft wheat that develops, with maybe the faintest touch of brett.

 

2020-07-11
16oz can served in a pint glass. Canned 5/21/20. Gift from @mr-jj, probably purchased on Tavour.

Pours a moderately or slightly hazy golden with a smallish head. Smell is lagery with a little lemon. I can get it to "vaguely fruity" if I put my mind to it. Yeasty, with a bit of blondeness to it, too.

Taste is moderately tart, definitely funky. Mild overall, leaning towards fruit. Tart, but I don't get the kettle sour flavor that I really dislike.

Mouthfeel is rich, but not heavy. Creamy. Overall....it's light, tart, enjoyable, yeasty. Not flashy.

Canned on date smudged and perpendicular to the bottom rim of the can — CA 05. Poured into a Samuel Adams Perfect Pint.

A: Hazy golden with 1-2 finger frothy white head with excellent retention (a cap sits there forever) and lacing down the glass.

S: Aroma is of cereal grain (a lot like cooked oatmeal) with floral, pine, and honeysuckle hop notes. Not overly strong on the hop aroma despite being dry-hopped.

T: Flavor tastes like camping in a pine forest with breakfast being cooked cereal with cereal grain flavor dominating barely and complemented with floral, spicy, and herbal hop notes. Bitterness is low-medium with a clean flavor profile.

M: Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation and medium finish.

O: Enjoyable and I look forward to the rest of the 4-pack but not sure what the dry-hopping added — the cereal grain malt backbone is still the strongest aroma and flavor component.

16oz can poured into a tulip glass canned on 05/21/20.

Appearance: Pours a pale gold with slight haze, 1/2 finger of head

Smell: Grain and grassy hop aroma with a faint cantaloupe note

Taste: Melon notes up front leading to cracker malt and grainy finish

Mouthfeel: Medium body with a dry finish, melon notes linger

Overall: A very complex lager that is another example of Jester King continuing to diversify with clean beers while still making them their own. This is in no way is a boring lager. The hop blend gives some interesting flavors but are overall still muted with the cracker-malt notes. This would pair excellent with hummus.