38 State Brown Ale
38 State Brewing Company

one of the lightest brown ales i have ever seen. nobody who looked at a pint would call it brown. its copper at best, perfectly clear, small white head, and absolutely no brown. i do get a little pinch of chocolate malt in the nose and in the flavor, and its fresh and tasty, but man, this is safe and scaled back. i like the ramped up presence of the crystal malts, gives it a sweetness and a little body where i feared it wouldnt have any. minimal hops as well, it seems overly simple for what it is, but i see its appeal, especially in warmer weather, and even if the recipe is a little lackluster, the execution is solid. more of an amber or something, i just missed the malt flavor and depth of a traditional brown ale, and its not even english style, so there is no appreciable yeast character to it either. not under flavored in the end though, and extremely clean and drinkable. a so so first impression from these guys, but fortunately their other beer was a bit more adventurous across the board.