Buena Vista Brown
Yonkers Brewing Co.

 

Served on tap in a shanty pint-style glass at the Yonkers Brewing Co., Yonkers, NY.
A: Pours a clear brown, color with a one finger, wheat head, and rings of spidery lacing.
S: Aromas of coffee, honey, and macadamia nuts.
T: Sweet with flavors of coffee and nuts, but very minimal chocolate/mocha note. Very solid bitterness adds to the picture nicely.
M: Medium bodied (although on the light side thereof) with moderate effervescence.
O: A delicious and relative light American Brown Ale. Enjoyed it and would have brought it home.

I'm pleased to be 3d reviewer of this brown. I never usually wish for beers to push higher in ABV, but in the case of recent browns, higher has been better, so too w Yonkers.

a) An unhazed, dark cola brown body with garnet edges, that sports a modest beige head. OK retention and scant lacing.
s) Nose brings me vanilla and toffee first, caramel, and then coffee and dark chocolate.
t) Taste is rich, and deserves to be tasted against any great strong brown. Big dark rich malt, that evokes northern european coffee houses with dark bodied cakes, toffee, roasted grains, coffee and dark chocolate. Hops are earthy and balance the sweetness, and it finishes with more roast coffee, and wet fall air.
f) Feel is crisp, mid weight, carbonation with good prickly finish.
o) As nice as it is, (and went great with Madagascar chocolate 80%), one is enough. A well executed beer.

A clear brown with garnet highlights and a light beige head. Decent retention and nice lacing. A light covering remains. No real activity in the glass.

Nose has coffee and bakers chocolate. Mild notes of toffee and caramel, brown bread. Roasted grains. Clean American yeast.

Taste has everything I love in a great brown ale. Full broad malt development. Dark bread and toffee. Roasted grains. Notes of coffee and chocolate. Hops are fully American weekly a sharp bitterness settling back to a fuggles type earthiness. Coffee and dark chocolate lingering.

Feel is crisp and refreshing. Medium weight. Good carbonation with velvet like texture.

A great brown ale. Super sessionable, delicious, hoppy and satisfying.

Can to mug.
The appearance was a semi-dark brown color with a subtle transparency about it. Light rust color along the sides, Finger's worth of white foamy head dissipated at a moderate pace. Some leggy lace ran down the glassware nicely.
The aroma had a wonderful blend of milk chocolate, earthy belt leather, smooth grassy hops with a touch of sweetness and then a sly bitter root-like to sweet anise-like character. Super subtle coffee bean on the back end.
The flavor was moderately sweet pulling the bitterness down just a little bit with a dry roasty sort of sweetness. Milk chocolate seemed more like cocoa powder and ended up meddling with the aftertaste, but it was a very nicely done aftertaste.
The mouthfeel was about medium bodied with a fair sessionability about it. Carbonation felt fine. ABV felt on par. Nice dry roasty to toasty and cocoa powder to a hint of coffee in the finish.
Overall, as an American brown ale, I can see it. Hops are pulled down a bit more than expected but still the coffee and cocoa powder quality really breaks this beer out to make this a well done beer.