Lightfoot Lager
Walking Man Brewing Co.

Poured from a growler that djbreezy picked up from the brewery. Pours a light yellow with a nice head that leaves a bit of lacing on the glass. There are some grass and earth aromas on the nose if you check closely. The taste is mild sure, but a nice movement of wheat and some light sweetness, along with the signature Walking Man mouthfeel make this an enjoyable session beer. Perfect for some XBox playing on a rainy Portland Sunday.

On tap in a 4 oz sampler glass at the Walking Man pub.

appearance - clear and yellow, some retention on the edges of the glass, spotty drawling lacing

smell - not a very fragrant nose but there are some hops and malt hanging out

taste - noble hops with faint malts, some lingering bitterness

mouthfeel - excellent carbonation, smooth mouthfeel like most of Walking Man's beers

drinkability - great session beer, light and pleasant, really enjoyed this one...even brought home a growler with me

From the brewery:
Our take on a German Helles. Northwest malt combined with noble Czech hops. Balanced and highly quaffable.

Regrettably, Walking Man served me a tired pint of their Lightfoot Lager and I just couldn’t find a light at the end of its tunneling bitterness. This helles style lager should have been exactly the spry refreshing beverage anyone might crave after a summer’s day out hiking in the gorge. Instead it sat sullenly in the glass, refusing to yield head or lace. The vibrant carbonation one might expect from the style was entirely absent, and the aroma was too faint to register. I enjoyed the polished clarity on this bright yellow beer, but could’ve done without the drab bitterness that lingered so heavily on my tongue after drinking it.

Try as I might to find the vital core of this beer, I couldn’t imagine that even a fresh pour would yield any excitement. 4.2% ABV.

Appearance – This one was crystal clear orange in color with a smallish head due to some dumbass visiting skyhand that opened up the growler the night before and didn’t put the cap back on correctly. I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt.

Smell – The big, sultry grain came out nicely at the nose. There’s a balancing sweetness to this one and a good hop balance to differentiate it from its German brethren.

Taste – The American grain here is very tasty, which is saying a helluva lot. There’s a pretty big hop flavor to this one as well. It’s typical Walking Man with solid citrus notes and maybe even a bit of pine.

Mouthfeel – This Lager is a bit shy of medium-bodied and feels very balanced in the mouth. There’s a stiff bitter finish to this one as well.

Drinkability – This is a very smooth and tasty example of the style. I’ll try to re-rate this with a fresher sample the next time I get a chance to go down to the brewery.

Comments – Thanks to skyhand for saving a couple pints of this for me to taste.