Friar Storm Smoked
Benchtop Brewing Company
- From:
- Benchtop Brewing Company
- Virginia, United States
- Style:
- Vienna Lager
- ABV:
- 5.1%
- Score:
- +9 ratings needed
- Avg:
- 3.08 | pDev: 0%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 1
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Aug 20, 2023
- Added:
- Aug 20, 2023
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 0
NO SCORE
-
-
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews.
Reviewed by teromous from Virginia
3.08/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
3.08/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
The label on the can for this beer states "Friar Storm Foeder Aged Mexican Style Vienna Lager" and there is a stamp near the social media icons (where a date would normally be) that says "SMOKED." As far as I can tell that's the only way to differentiate between the normal version and the smoked one.
Appearance: It has a body that is a medium shade of gold. There is a nice opalescence to the beer and it looks very clear with only the slightest bit of haze. It has a short fluffy white head with medium sized bubbles and it keeps decent head retention. The head does eventually fade out to a fluffy ring and a light film over the surface. It doesn't appear to leave any lacing.
Aroma: There is a light nondescript malt aroma with a touch of lager aroma and a light hint of spicy hop notes. The aroma is pretty muted.
Taste: There is a light smokey wood flavor that comes through up front. It's like being near a BBQ pit and a light breeze of pit smoke brushes past the nose, only it's on the palate. The middle of the palate is a light bit of herbal hops and a lot more of that smoke flavor. The smoke flavor is nice but there isn't much else to the beer.
Mouthfeel: It is light bodied and easy to drink. There is a mild bitterness which seems to come mostly from the hops but it feels like the smoke character adds just a touch of bitterness as well which is good.
Overall: It's a pretty good beer but it's not quite there. There is no smoke aroma which is a bit odd, but the aroma as a whole is pretty muted altogether anyway. The smoke flavor of the beer is nice and it feels like it has the right amount of smoke for a lighter beer like this, but the malt character is not present enough to stand up to the smoke so it only ever tastes like a monotone smoke beer rather than a smoked Vienna Lager. It is an easy beer to drink which is great. I would recommend it to people who enjoy smoked beers but it probably won't appeal to those who are looking for that key malt flavor that Vienna Lagers have. I could drink it again from time to time.
Aug 20, 2023Appearance: It has a body that is a medium shade of gold. There is a nice opalescence to the beer and it looks very clear with only the slightest bit of haze. It has a short fluffy white head with medium sized bubbles and it keeps decent head retention. The head does eventually fade out to a fluffy ring and a light film over the surface. It doesn't appear to leave any lacing.
Aroma: There is a light nondescript malt aroma with a touch of lager aroma and a light hint of spicy hop notes. The aroma is pretty muted.
Taste: There is a light smokey wood flavor that comes through up front. It's like being near a BBQ pit and a light breeze of pit smoke brushes past the nose, only it's on the palate. The middle of the palate is a light bit of herbal hops and a lot more of that smoke flavor. The smoke flavor is nice but there isn't much else to the beer.
Mouthfeel: It is light bodied and easy to drink. There is a mild bitterness which seems to come mostly from the hops but it feels like the smoke character adds just a touch of bitterness as well which is good.
Overall: It's a pretty good beer but it's not quite there. There is no smoke aroma which is a bit odd, but the aroma as a whole is pretty muted altogether anyway. The smoke flavor of the beer is nice and it feels like it has the right amount of smoke for a lighter beer like this, but the malt character is not present enough to stand up to the smoke so it only ever tastes like a monotone smoke beer rather than a smoked Vienna Lager. It is an easy beer to drink which is great. I would recommend it to people who enjoy smoked beers but it probably won't appeal to those who are looking for that key malt flavor that Vienna Lagers have. I could drink it again from time to time.
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