Flatiron
Fourpure Brewing Co.

Oct. 2019: On tap at Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger, as Fourpure Flatiron American Red. Reddish amber colour, moderate head, slightly off-white. Aroma of amber malts and red berries. Fruity flavour of hops and red berries, not too sweet, nice and well balanced bitterness.

Clean and classic amber ale. Definitely more on the malt than the hops. Some esters presence. Balanced all right but could benefit from somehow more character.

 

 

 

Poured with a decent size head that soon dissipated leaving a fine lace in its wake. The smell is inviting, with the hope of the hop-smack and a intriguing burnt note there too. The taste is mellow but varied, with aforementioned hops balanced well by darker malts and a sour undercurrent. The mouthfeel is a little thin so the beer does not linger as one would hope. A pleasant session beer that with tweaks could be a winner.

 

Very hazy. Gentle effervescence. Narrow but frothy head which lasts.
Strong citrus hops and pine.
Earthy. Bitter. Orange peel. Some toffee malt and tannin.
Quite smooth. Light tingly on my tongue.
Initially not impressed but finally warmed to this offering.

 

Pours deep murky red into a tulip from a can. The beige head is two-three fingers high, somewhere between sparse and creamy with medium silky bubbles. There's a good degree of lacing left behind after it recedes to surface froth.

The aroma is very metallic and I suspect being in a can has caused some detrimental effect on the aroma, because all I'm getting is a coppery nose. At first it seemed like it was meant to be this way considering the name is 'Flatiron' but I'm not sure a beer should smell like a steel girder on a hot day; as I geologist I find myself approving, but I don't think many would agree.

The flavour is thankfully not as affected, but it's still there. There is a metallic tang, but underneath I can deduce a base of sour red berries, resiny blood orange, red grapefruit, burnt caramel, sour bread, pine resin, rust, peat, and diesel hops. It's quite an array of flavours, a lot of which you wouldn't really expect to be present in a beer...or anything edible for that matter. I'm quite confused yet the name certainly fits.

Mouthfeel is medium, carbonation is minimal and it's quite smooth and oily in the mouth.

I don't really know how to rate this beer; I could have a dud but I can't be sure. The flavours are there, but it's as if someone has mixed a nice red ale with the contents of a hot water bottle; a bit polymer. I'll rate objectively based on the amber flavours, but this was definately a beer worthy of the name 'Flatiron'.