East Lake Amber
Fitzsimmons Brewing Co

Hazy red-gold in colour with a huge overflowing head. Sweet malt nose with some floral notes. Light-medium malt body, a little bite at the end which I thought was alcohol but was probably the added rye. Balanced mouthfeel, a spicy amber ale.

Appearance - Pours a dark copper with two fingers of bubbly white head.

Smell - earthy, leafy, and musty hops, apple, bready malts, hint of caramel, and earthy yeast.

Taste - earthy, leafy, and musty hops upfront. The apple, bready malts, and hint of caramel follow suit. The earthy yeast rounds out the brew.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Finishes sticky with all elements lingering.

Overall - A brew that falls flat on all marks of the style. I believe this brew needs to go back to the drawing board to make it a standout in this category. What a shame since it had promise upon pouring it.

 

I really enjoyed their Blonde Ale, so I'm looking forward to trying this, their other "flagship" brew. Same 473ml can, just a different colour, and name, obviously.

Pours out a a very pleasant hue of deep red copper and with a very generous bone-white head. The head sticks around too, in the form of some lacing and then a foam top. Beer looks great in my tankard-style glass.

First whiff reveals lots of fresh baked bread, and a certain yeastiness, again, akin to dough ready to be baked. There is also a certain spiciness here, and after that the roasted malt starts showing up, and it's very appetising. A very nice toasty malt profile. Finally some floral earthy hoppiness character arrives, finely balanced with the malt. Very nice. Nothing outre: just well done, and everything in its right proportion.

Mouthfeel is a TAD thin, imo. I expected it to be a little more meaty, but it's a very minor complaint in what is a sessionable, easy drinking amber. It's straight up roasted, bready malts on the first sip. Basically exactly what I imagine when I think of an amber ale. That's impressive. Faint candy/sugary notes, a little caramel and yes, MAYBE a little hit of the rye they used to brew this beer. It's somewhere there in the aftertaste--not strong. Finishes tending dry, and the hops are definitely detectable on the back of the tongue. A symmetrical brew. Balance and drinkability I'm sure were their bywords, and this delivers.

I prefer their blonde ale, simply on a personal level. For those who want a solid, well made and well-balanced amber ale--I would not hesitate to recommend this to them.

473ml can - so dubbed after an unimaginatively named body of water in the brewer's home town.

This beer pours a hazy, dark bronzed amber colour, with three fingers of puffy, finely foamy, and somewhat creamy beige head, which leaves some decent coral reef atoll lace around the glass as it slowly but surely abates.

It smells of semi-sweet, bready and doughy caramel malt, a bit of biscuity toffee squares, some muddled stewed pome fruitiness, brown sugar, and very tame earthy, musty, and floral hop bitters. The taste is gritty and grainy caramel malt, a lesser banal toffee sweetness, more reduced brown sugar syrup, bruised apples, and some plain weedy, herbal, and musky floral hoppiness.

The carbonation is average in its palate-supporting frothiness, the body a so-so medium weight, and mostly smooth, but for a bit of edgy biscuity character (I know, it's weird to me too) making a minor fuss here. It finishes off-dry, the malt pretty much running the lingering show.

Overall - yeah, I'm not really getting the purported rye component in this one, just a simple, biscuity and malty amber ale, something that is a major step up from Rickard's, but not in the same league as the more robust versions milling about in our bailiwick. Obviously made to appeal to a bigger market than yours truly, and there ain't nothin' wrong with that.

Overall, this is an approachable, relatively unassuming amber ale. The flavor is all malt - I simply found it to be a bit to light on the palate for my preferences. It's muted caramel and biscuit flavor didn't present the "warmth" promised on the can. That said, this is a well made beer that will probably appeal to the majority who try it.