Mead Honey Lager
Bodacious Berries, Fruits And Brews / Big Barn Brewery

cool can on this one, i guess my first beer from these guys although i thought i had dabbled before now, i guess not. this is pale and very frothy headed, holds over two inches of airy white foam in my glass, which may partially be explained by the fact that it was a chilled mug, courtesy of my neighbor last night. lots of bubbles too, this looks like i want it to. i am surprised this doesnt have better ratings, the lager is pretty clean and the honey flavor is obvious, its floral and the yeast tastes good, not sure what folks havent liked, maybe this has improved over time. it smells and tastes like wildflower honey, hints of dandelion and clover, early spring vibes here, simple but fresh grain base, slightly european thing to the yeast which gives it some depth, but pretty straightforward, nothing odd about it at all, certainly nothing off. some crackery dry breadiness to the malt in the flavor, and any residual sweetness seems to definitely come from the honey, which is raw and almost waxy in here, natural to me, boldly dosed, really defines this beer. its on the dry side overall though which keeps it real drinkable, what i want from a lager like this, and the high carbonation helps with that too. maybe a little big of mineral strangeness as it warms, but im not seeing the mediocrity that others obviously have, and i like it being a little rustic, its a farm brewery right? enjoyable stuff, definitely underrated in my opinion, and i am excited to pop a can of their mexican lager this afternoon. nice use of the honey here.

Poured from 22oz bomber into a tulip.

Appearance: yellow-golden hue with a light haze and three fingers of frothy ivory foam atop. I think it looks quite cromulent!

Smell: definitely a fair bit of corn to the aroma, which is stylistically appropriate enough, if not perhaps my favorite. There's also a bit of spicy hop character, which is not too bad.

Taste: welp, there is definitely honey flavor here, so at least it's what it says on the tin. The corny character from the aroma continues through to the flavor, though, which is not my favorite. Hop bitterness is moderate and appropriate to the style, but doesn't necessarily play well with the other things going on here. Altogether it's not my favorite.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a decent carbonation and creaminess.

Overall: this beer has a few things that are stylistically appropriate, but overall it doesn't super work for me. Not a drain pour, but perhaps not too far above it.

 

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a light to medium golden amber with a fine one finger white head with good retention and lacing. Aroma of pale grainy malt, honey, light grassy and mildly floral hops. Flavor follows with grainy malt, mild honey and sharp, grassy hops. Finishes with dry hay, grassy and grainy with some husky astringency that tastes like part malt and part hops. Medium bodied with light creaminess. The base flavor in this is closer to a kolsch, quite grainy and husky, but with a firmer lager body. Honey is evident, but well handled and balances out some of the rustic grain flavor. A little unbalanced and somewhat rough in the finish, but delivers on its name. An appropriate flavored honey lager from a farm themed brewery.