Cavalier Brown
Cavalier Beer

Pouring a deep chestnut brown, this beer smells as good as it looks a light creamy head, it gives a strong sweet roasted coffee flavour.

The it has a rich coffee flavour to it, with sweet hoppy notes coming through on the mid-palate, with malty finish.

This is a great beer, only had the one so did not get to see how it went over session but this was a very approachable beer.

 

 

A real good brown. Light and drinkable. Maybe lacks a little on the hops but has a great malt character.

Cavalier Brown Ale, which I think I’ve had several times before (and spoke highly of), is the next head on my chopping block... sometimes I feel like a beer-executioner, donning a black hood and wiping clean my glass of Ale with the conviction that I am serving some sort of beer justice with my pen [which is actually a keyboard]. I almost feel like my reviews are a community service to beer-drinkers around the world, but then I remind myself that taste is highly subjective and my 10 out of 10 is another man’s trash... here’s to wishing Cavalier the best of luck ;-)

Poured from a 330ml bottle into a nonic pint.

A: Presents a rich hazy mahogany body with a beige half centimetre head. It’s always great to see a truly brown Brown Ale (some of these Brown Ales do push the gamut of their namesake). 8/10.

S: The aroma is as rich and exciting as a Brown Ale can get with notes of: Wood and earthy/nutty hops, followed by hints of chocolate and toffee. A touch of spring water lingers on as well, letting you know that Cavalier haven’t skimped on water quality for their brews. Phantasmagorically exceptional Brown nose! 9/10.

T: Flavour is a step backwards, followed by a Three Stooges comical trip over... there are notes of the above flavours (woody/nutty/earthy hops) but there isn’t enough of a sweet malt base to carry it through. Far too watery as well. Finishes with a tinge of bitterness from the earthy hops. Lacklustre taste abounds with this Brown. 6/10.

M: Mid to light bodied with a decent enough dense carbonation... but that wateriness distracts in the feel. 6/10.

D: Needs way more malt sweetness, and maybe a few more hops, to make it exceptional. As it is this is an average Brown Ale - a missed opportunity for Cavalier to assert itself in a market that is becoming flooded with great craft brewers (especially the exponential growth of the Australian brewing scene, which is spectacular!)... I really wanted this to be the Cavalier brew I loved but forgot about all those years ago, oh well - the hunt continues then. 5/10.

Food match: The nutty/earthiness of this brew made me think of an Indonesian dish: Gado-gado, which would suit this beer well.

500ml bottle poured into a pint glass

A - dark brown like coca cola, pours a very thick bubbly pale brown head that lasts for ages.

S - subtle roasted malts with a whiff of dark fruits (dates/raisins) and a massive chocolate backdrop.

T - rich roasted malts and a hint of coffee upfront, followed by a huge cooking chocolate taste with hoppy bitterness in the background, finishing off with a brief sweet cloying feel (as if I was eating homebrand cooking chocolate!). There is another sharp and brief bitter kick at the end. Complex, yet consistent with each sip.

M - Medium bodied, dry texture. Very high carbonation for style.

O - not overtly impressed - yes its got some complex malt/hops/choc flavours going for it, but theres too much chocolate in there for me and not enough nuttiness. Plus I find it overtly carbonated. And at >$9 a bottle? no thanks.

 

 

 

Tried at the Sydney Craft Beer Week launch party; my reviewin' app says it was on tap but I'm not entirely convinced of that.

Pours a deep brown colour, head is beige; dense, with nice lace. Pretty nice.

Pleasant brown ale notes on the nose. Lots of chocolate, roast and a touch of vanilla. Sweet, brownie goodness. Pleasant indeed.

Taste is more roasty, quite bitter but still very decent chocolate notes, some vanilla and almond marzipany notes. Some orange peel on the back. Touch of coffee on the finish. Yeah nice roast, chocolate, fairly smooth and creamy. Not seamless; there's a bit of bite but nice and pleasant.

Drinks like a nice brown ale. Desserty and pleasant.

330ml brown bottle purchased from Slowbeer in Melbourne.

Pours a pleasant deep brown port colour, with a slightly fizzling bubbled head of yellowish-white. This dissipates almost immediately, leaving just a fuzz around the edge of the glass. Looks pretty flat by the end of it. No visible carbonation or lacing.

Nose is a pleasant nutty brown. Smooth and warm, without going to far towards roasted or astringent. There's a pretty strong sweetness mingled with a slight aniseed bite to pull it back. It's pleasant enough. Solid, dependable stuff.

Taste is similar enough. Smooth, mildly nut roast characters, without a true darkness. Some light coffee flavours and a bite towards the middle and back that cuts through everything. Strangely enough, there's not much sweetness here, but the nutty basis provides some breadth to the palate at least. Feel is clean and light.

Solid enough stuff. It has some of the classic brown characters—the nuttiness, the very mild roast, and some of the smoothness on the nose. It's nothing extremely exciting (even, I'd say, if you regularly get excited over Brown Ales), but it's easy to drink and smooth enough.

Pours black with ruby highlights and a large, lasting head.
Nose shows chocolate, roasted malt, nutty notes and, later on, some coffee. Pretty decent.
Similar flavours really; cocoa, coffee, roasted malt. Could use more sweetness/less roasty coffee.
Carbonation is pretty much spot-on, however it could use a lighter body.

 

Hazy red-brown colour with a small, creamy tan head. Poor to fair head retention.

Very lightly roasty with some mild earthy characteristics. Okay.

Lightly roasty and a touch nutty with some fruity esters. Simple but easy.

Medium-light body with moderate carbonation. Decent.

A middle of the road and easy to approach Brown Ale.

Share of a 22oz bomber thanks to bluebetty! My share poured into a 7oz glass.

Pours a rich brown colour with a touch of ruby about it. Has a modest head of foam that is retained well and is off-white in appearance.

Smells like rum & raisin ice cream with a touch of coffee as it warms. Not what you'd expect from an American Brown Ale at all, but not unpleasant. Just a little nuttiness, but certainly not the hoppiness that the style generally has.

Taste is of rum & raisin ice cream with a little coffee to finish it off at the back of the mouth. Again, not what was expected, but happy enough for it to be there. Little bit of malt at the end to remind you that this is a brown ale after you have taken a sip.

Mouthfeel is creamy and the body suits the style well.

Overall, not true to style, but not too bad either. Different, nice flavours and decently enough put together. If you go into it expecting a true American Brown Ale you will be disappointed, but if you drink it for what it is, you wont mind it.

This brew pours a murky light kola hue with decent cabronation that leaves behind a two finger frothy head that stays and leaves heaps of lacing,the smell is fruitcake,nuts and dark berries,it has a light bodied almost watery mouthfeel with tastes of raisins,nutcake,a touch of candy,dark berries and finished with a fruitcake bitterness and overall i probably wouldnt buy again and have had better examples of the style cheers.