American Brown Ale
Reuben's Brews

 

Handsome dark brown brew with ample beige foam in the Tripel Karmeliet tulip. Not much aroma, but nutty grain in the nose. Slushy and pleasant mouthfeel. Warm and roasted tasting with a mild bitter finish. Some dark bark and a hint of astringency in the aftertaste. Malty tasting at first sip, with a minimal sweetness. Overall this is kind of scratchy and xxx, but more complex than some Brown Ales. From the 16 oz can purchased at Elizabeth Station. Dated 02/22/24.

 

Extraordinarily effervescent, pouring with billowing, frothy, cumulonimbus-calvus-shaped, overflow-threatening head into my Modus Hoperandi pint-glass. Strings of fast, lithe effervescence likewise accent the surprisingly-light, red and buffed-oak color of this so-called brown. There's a good airy, even aerosolized-seeming orange-peel valence on the nose; and the mouthfeel is also light, lending an impressive palatability to the ale's primary textures: buoying, moreover, the malty, caramel-inflected, roasty and burny bitter flavors that reside at the heart of Reuben's American. A light layer of charred straw and smoky, parched oak seasons the brown, and there is a refreshing absence of heavily sweetness, maintaining a nicely-dry iteration of the style.

And, nevertheless, I was expecting to like this beer just a bit more. It's solid enough, sure; and it's a notably refreshing brown, in what can sometimes seem a sea of excessively saccharine and/or overly viscous attempts. But it doesn't have any one feature that truly shines, that really pushes this from "solid" to "spectacular"—which leaves it in the province of "still a good beer" and "would certainly drink again," but removes it from the loftier heights of "hankering for it," "seeking it out," or "evangelizing for it." Seeing as it was a Tavour-purchased (albeit fairly affordable) 22-ounce, I was hoping for a brown in that latter echelon.

 

 

 

Unpleasantly surprised by this one, as all other Reuben's beers have been good to great.

Fairly thin and higher carbonation than expected, almost sharp with CO2. Tangy and a touch metallic. I see in other reviews that this made with rye and spices? Neither of which I am particularly fond of. May revisit in the future.

 

 

 

On tap @ Roux, Fremont. Pours a clear cola brown w/ a 1/2-finger beige head.

Aroma is fruity and a touch sweet, malty.

Taste is brown sugar, molasses, root beer. Touch of chocolate. Nice bitter counterbalance. Drinkable.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied, reasonably crisp.

Overall a good interpretation of a style that's not among my favorites. Still, went pretty well with my very tasty crawfish/shrimp/andouille boil.

 

 

 

 

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a dark mahogany brown with ruby tints and a big three finger light brown head that kept building after pouring, great retention and lacing. Aroma of lightly toasted malt, cocoa, light citrus hops. Flavor is light toasted malt, citrus malt, sweet brown bread; finishes with cocoa, light toasted malt and mildly fruity citrus hop bitterness. Medium bodied. A very tasty take on the brown ale style, more hop forward than normal, but the hops are well balanced with the hops. There is an unusual light fruit forward spiciness that his reminiscent of rye detectable. Not sure if rye is used in this one, but is a favorite grain from this brewery. Rye or not, the flavor fits very nicely with the other flavors. Flavorful and unusual brown ale that I will buy again (and this not one of my favorite styles in general). This brewery really makes great beer.