American Summer
Banner Beer Company

 

 

 

 

Cloudy. Straw. Hay. Relaxed. Fruity. Drinkable.

 

 

 

 

 

Poured from a 12oz can into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a light yellow color, with a short white head that fades quickly and leaves a thin lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains light caramelized malts, some citrus and some hops.

T: The taste starts out bready with a hearty but not too heavy malt character. Then some caramel and citrus sweetness comes in. The hops presence is very mild and does not provide much balance. The after-taste is slightly bready.

M: Crisp and a little smooth but a bit watery, light-to-medium body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

O: A little tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, very mild kick, decent representation of style, there are definitely several other beers in the style that I would choose first.

Appearance: gold in color, 1/3 inch head, clear, high carbonation

Smell: herbs and citrus hops

Taste: herbs, light citrus--lemon and orange, pilsner malt

Mouthfeel: light bodied, medium carbonation, sweet with slight bitterness

Overall: Above average flavorful, herbal, blonde ale. I could session these. Of the three Banner beers I have had, I would rank this in the middle--far below the rye, far above the American ale.

Very disappointing product and I'm very fortunate to have purchased only one can at Julio's. No body whatsoever and minimal, if any, real taste. Granted it's only 3.7% ABV but that's no excuse for such a lack luster product. Glad to see Banner marketing in cans but hope they'll do a better job with this product next summer.

 

 

 

 

 

This reminds me of taking a PBR, loading it with hops then cutting it 50/50 with tap water. Thin with weak flavor. Unappealing color. Virtually no head. Smell was the best part as it smelled like a beer which is the least you can hope for. Yet, compared with Banner's other curret offerings the Ame rican Summer might as well be Pliny or Heady.