Photon
The Actual Brewing Co.

 

Pours dark gold. Short, foamy, off white head fades fast.

Smells bready, light curb, sweet and earthy hops.

Tastes malt, grassy, light grain and earthy hops. Followed by light toasted malt. Finish is dry with citrus peel and malt. Lighter medium body and fizzy medium carbonation.

Surprisingly dry throughout. Excellent taste

Can, no visible date. DFH Tulip.

A ( 3.5 ): Pours a clear dark gold with less than 1 finger of white head that quickly recedes to a thin foam island in the center that lasts a little while. Ample carbonation in small-bubble streams flow upward. Not as actively carbonated as most lagers I’ve had. No real lacing to speak of. I’m would give them an extra .5 for cool-looking cans, but unfortunately there is no date on it, so only a .25 bump.
S ( 3.25 ): Sweet. Very white bread, with a corny kind of sweetness. Nothing off-putting, nothing chemical, nothing inappropriate, just very bready and sweet. No hops to speak of. Very mild aroma, really struggle to smell anything, frankly.

T ( 4.5 ): Tastes like good beer, only lighter. This does not taste like Miller Lite. No sir, it tastes like someone took Dortmunder Gold and literally added distilled water to it. It arrives bready, just like on the nose, but without the sweetness – it is quite dry. Then it transitions to a very clean, very light maltiness, and kapow! A big hit of bittering noble hops. Not a session IPA, but it is by far the hoppiest light beer I have ever had. Hands down the most refreshing beer I have ever had, regardless of style. Maybe a touch less flavor on the palate than my old light beer standby, Amstel Light or Sam Adams light, but with more lingering hoppiness.

M ( 4.5 ): Light-bodied, with active but not excessive carbonation. Highly attenuated, not slick at all. Like I said, the most refreshing beer I have ever had. A little carbonation bite mixes in with the hops at the very end to give this a little kick.

O ( 4.25 ): For 96 calories, this is incredible. If you only ever drink one light beer, this should be it. I could literally drink these all day long. Very well done. I am going to seek out more from this brewery.

I tried this in the Actual Brewing taproom in Columbus. The beer pours a bright pale gold with a white head that doesn't last long. The aroma is a balanced blend of noble hops and roasted malt. The flavor is clean, with malt and hops well balanced. Neither overpowers the other. Mouthfeel is light and thin as you would expect for a light lager. I found it extremely drinkable, far better than any macro brew made to the same style. I can understand where fans of pale ales, IPAs, and other styles would find this lacking in that it's not a hop-forward beer at all, but if you imagine this as a competitor to the big names advertising at sporting events and on television, I think you'll agree that this is a far preferable beer to those. If you're in the mood for a balanced, easy-drinking lager, you could do far worse than this.