Banana Bread Bock
Tupps Brewery

Picked this up at Porter's in Van Horn, Texas when I was out that way not too long ago as I passed through there on my way back from the left coast. Never had anything from Tupps before and this was a nice first impression from them as it was easy to drink, low in alcohol, and nicely balanced as the banana was mellow and present throughout!

This poured a nice, nut brown with a good clarity and brightness to it as it was topped off with a massive, tan head that quickly and unevenly settled down. Only a bit of spotty lacing stayed behind as most of the suds slid down the side of my pint glass after each sip. Loads of banana and bread loaf in the nose as the taste had some chestnut, crab apple, pear, and plum in to go with the large bits of dark sediment that were swirling around after every sip. Plenty balanced and lacking in carbonation, there was a faint hint of caramel underneath everything although this never felt sticky or heavy.

The amount of alcohol in this was spot-on as I only felt a slight warming as I was finishing this up. Dated 3/4 on the bottom of the can, this held up decently over the last five months although I drank most of these fresh while on the road. This was a fun beer that would be fitting year-round or with something spongy for dessert. Glad to have something fun from the Lone State State as this easily fit that bill!

 

Poured from a can into a pint glass
Appearance – The beer pours a light brown color with a small head of off white foam. The head fades rather fast leaving a very light level of lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell – The aroma is big of a banana bread smell mixed with notes of caramel and a biscuit like smell. Along with these aromas comes notes of molasses and walnut as well as some smells of cola and toffee. Overall, rather sweet and quite nice smalling.
Taste – The taste starts out with a lightly roasted malt bready malt flavor mixed with brown sugar, caramel and toffee. At the same time there is a decent showing of a banana and light nutty flavor, both of which grow stronger as the taste advances forward. At the same time the roastiness gets a bit lighter all while there is an increase in some flavors of molasses. Toward the end of the taste profile, there is a spike in the nut, leaving one with a moderately sweet and quite respectable banana nut bread flavor to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel – The body of the brew is medium in thickness with a carbonation level that is lower, with the feel overall accentuating nicely the banana bread flavors and making it a rather easy sipper.
Overall – A rather fun brew to try. While I wouldn’t likely go back to it all the frequently, it does seem to be a nice one to potentially occasion from time to time.