Sailor Down
Kalispell Brewing Co.

an interesting take on the style here, a little lighter in appearance than a lot of these, not super strong, but flavorful and good. some red showing through the lighter brown shade of this, not black and as built on roasted barley as is common, lots of middle range malt character in the flavor too from dry cocoa powder to baking chocolate to raisin, fig, and molasses, not particularly sweet in the finish though, and the fact that its been lagered is evident in the mouthfeel. it doesnt quite have the depth and sort of slow tempo i like in the best of these, but its got plenty going on, a dried fruit layer, an old world nuttiness, and some fermentation character. for being lighter in color, it still has plenty of body, its smooth and round and lively enough. a hint of smoke late, dried cherry, prune, maple syrup, and leather. unexpectedly different without the darker roast, but more of an all season baltic porter this way, did not seem out of place on a hot early summer evening. these guys have a good thing going, some creative beers on the menu and all quite well done.