Sap Haus
Oxbow Brewing Company

 

 

 

Opaque dark brown body with a full tan head and lacing blobs here and there. Great classically smoky nose, with earthy and woody accents, maple is a whisper. Taste starts the exact same, but then the maple and dried fig emerges in a gentle way. Not sweet which is very much appreciated! Great smooth body, drinkable but full and smoky. Really nice work. Best on a cool summer night outside or early fall during the day.

 

 

 

 

 

One of my favorite finds from last winter, still fantastic!

16 oz can.

Pours a cloudy mahogany copperish color with a large fluffy khaki head. Nice, stubborn head retention. Leaves a halo of sticky lacing around the top of the glass. Great looking beer.

Strong aromas of smoked ham and wood chips, as well as maple syrup, brown bread, caramel and piney hops.

The flavor starts off with some caramel and sweet malts, followed by a wave of smoked wood, maple syrup and earthy hops. Finishes with sweet citrus and vanilla cola flavors. Nicely balanced with subtle complexity.

The feel is medium bodied with good carbonation. Lightly crisp and very drinkable despite the ABV.

Overall, this is a great smoked lager. The maple syrup character is present, but restrained, never overpowering the smokey flavors. Great balance and drinkability.

light smoke taste after taste of maple enjoyable but one or two at a time

Lovely dark caramel color. Body features a touch of haze, but you can nearly read through it. Decent head production, retention, and lacing from a fairly gentle pour.

Nose somehow nails absolutely everything: woody smoke, maple syrup, caramel malt body, and fresh piney and earthy hops.

Flavor is exceptional, especially for an American smoked beer. Tons of very woody smoke (little to no meaty or ham-like flavor), restrained but noticeable and complementary maple, oak, caramel, orange, dark bread. Lovely flavor profile.

Crisp and drinkable; medium bodied. Very smooth presentation of a relatively high ABV lager.

This is a unique and delightful beer. It reminds me of some of the darker malt smoked beers from Aecht Schlenkerla, and if it's not necessarily better, it does compare favorably - and that's high praise. The maple simply gives it yet another dimension.

Clear, dark mahogany body; thin yet lasting bone-white head. Excellent rustic sweetness to the nose; anise. Old, sweet taste; cola and root beer. The taste is sweet and spicy; very mild hop bitterness. Medium body; sweet and prickly on the palate.

This review is based on a partial pour. I used the majority of the beer for some home-made sourdough bread. Reading Hunter S. Thompson's 'Ancient Gonzo Wisdom' may have contributed to the weirdness. No, I don't get the beer's purported smoked malt and maple syrup components. It is dark, semi-smooth. But I just don't get anything really unique about the beer. I have other singles available at my local, so to be fair, I will grab at least one more for a proper pour and tasting to see if things come across differently.

Poured at 55 °F; smudged, hard to read canning date on bottom of can: 03/**/21

Canned March 2021; drank 8/10/21 @ Form Over Function Rosslyn.

Brown/orange appearance.

An even pour yielded a huge khaki head; frothy lace.

Smoke, light maple & faint bacon notes in the nose.

Medium mouthfeel.

Same notes in the flavor. Substantial & interesting; one is enough but it's a fun diversion.

16oz can purchased from the fridge as a single for $3.99. Canned on 1/8/21, so this is almost 7 months old.

Look: Nice chestnut brown color with amber/red highlights. Small fine-bubbled beige head. Decent lacing. Looks like a nice dark lager.

Smell: Nice aromas of dark bread and molasses. Subtle smoke flavor, similar to mesquite, on the back end. A bit floral and fruity on the nose as well - I get some interesting cherry aroma. Nice!

Taste: Very tasty. The smoke is a bit more pronounced on the taste than I was expecting from the nose. It's still very well-balanced and everything works in harmony. It has a subtle sweetness on the finish, but it's not particularly discernable that it's maple syrup. It's very nutty and a bit chocolately. This is a very delicious and drinkable beer.

Feel: Has a nice medium lager mouthfeel, with a bit of creaminess to it.

Overall: It's been a very long time since I have had a Smoked Beer. This is exceptional. It would be a very nice beer to enjoy with food. I may have to pick up some more of this.

Appearance - The beer poured a golden copper color with a bubbly white head.

Smell - The smoke came out in the nose, but there was an element of sweetness.

Taste - The smoke was very evident in the profile with the malts seeming to be rye. The maple rounded out the profile nicely. It balanced out the acidity of the smoke. The profile lingered nicely in the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - With lagers being naturally clingy, the maple added some stickiness.

Overall - This was a great beer.

 

 

 

From a 16 oz. can dated 01/08/21. Sampled March 14, 2021.

Attractive looking brown pour with reddish hues underneath a lingering light tan, fluffy head.

Lovely aroma of smokiness and maple syrup, Definitely malt forward. Vague floral notes.

Medium, fairly smooth body.

Sweet malt forward taste at first and then the smoke kicks in almost right away. Maple is present. It is a likeable beer I must say.

 

 

 

Drank from 16 oz can dated 12/23/20. Pours dark brown with initial head that recedes rapidly. Smoky smell is significantly present... which is good (and delicious). Tastes were somewhat muted when drank cold, however, as it warmed smokiness and ever so subtle syrup appears / more pronounced. I'm a fan of this style... and Oxbow nails it.

 

 

Really nice smoked lager, slightly bacony, subdued sweetness that picks up at the end and gives a creamier mouthfeel.

Can. Dark Amber mostly clear with ring and island. Smokey woody maple cured bacon aroma with some earth and herbals. Medium-light sweetness (surprisingly) light maple syrup pumpernickel with spicy herbal smoky woody finish. Light body fairly peppy carbo releases the smokiness. Excellent.

A- Tallboy pours into a becher with a deep brown body and a small cap. The head has a mostly foamy texture with decent retention ending as a small ring around the edges. Lacing is spotty at best.

S- Malty with a medium amount of smoke in the aroma. Nuttiness, maple, smoked malts, caramel, bread, toffee and a tiny bit of cocoa.

T- Strikes a nice balance as it did in the aroma. The smokiness finds a nice balance with the caramel, maple and bready notes and it isn't quite campfire but is more assertive here. A tiny touch of raisin, nuttiness and brown sugar. Slight roast hit as well as a medium bitterness throughout.

MF- Light-medium bodied brew with a moderately high level of carbonation. The texture is foamy and frothy and it ends with a smoky bitterness.

Easy going smoked ale that has a moderate bit of smoke in the flavor with a minor touch of maple and plenty of nice toasted malt notes.

 

 

 

 

How is this beer average so low? This is--for me--the campfire beer for fall. Each element is present, but subtle so as not to overpower the other aspects: smoky sweetness and a clean finish. Great from the can. I almost never enjoy smokey beers, but this one is so balanced and drinkable a fan of straightforward pilsners and lagers as well as smokey stuff will enjoy.

this is a wonderfully complex beer that comes off as so clean thanks to the subtle lager yeast notes pairing with a truly decadant malt profile. There is mellow smoke hinting at smoked meat or bacon, there is a sappy maple sweetness and hints of candied nuts and brown sugar. molasses, caramel, leather, and a mellow slightly bitter roasty character rounds this one out beautifully. WOW!!

 

Can from Blending and Bottling in Portland. Pours opaque dark brown with fluffy light tan head, nice lacing, smell is mildly smoky dark malts, hints of creamy coffee and molasses, taste is nice roast/smoke up front, mild coffee, chocolate, and caramel, hints of maple syrup as it warms, feel is light and very creamy. An delightfully quaffable smokey and mildly sweet treat, pairs well with a roaring fire on a cold day.

Yo, there are few beers that are so flawlessly executed like this one. Pours a dark brown. It's a mahogany. Subtle ham, oak, and maple on the nose. It's frothy with warm campfire smoke balanced with baked Christmas maple ham meaty goodness and some malty breadiness, like honey whole wheat bread, none of that wonderbread enriched white bread crap. If this loses points anywhere, it's from the fact that it is way too easy to drink. At 7%, this could become a deadly beverage. It scratches the smoke, meaty, and maple itch all the while presented in a tight lager package.

Latest batch - gotta knock it down a peg. The smoke is much more muted and the beer suffers greatly for it. We'll see how the next batch of this is. Talking the 10/02/2020 batch here.


Prost, Oxbow!