Strong Amber
Lost Towns Brewing

Picked up a growler with some food. Price for 2 pints and the growler was super reasonable. Growler has a flip top which is an added plus.

A - Pours an inviting dark rum color. Little to none lacing which is the only knock here. Carbonation trickling to the surface and popping at the edges creating a beautiful ring for this proposal.

S - I like strongs. I like malt. This is an impressive balance of malt, smoke, slight booze, and hint of rum raisin. Nothing overpowering, but an incredibly seducing aroma which creates anticipation of how the gift of taste will be ultimately be unwrapped. Will it be thick and chewey, will it be thin and fiery? The anticipation mounts ...

T - My first reaction is one of clean. There is literally nothing off or out of character. This being my first Lost Towns I want to ask where they get their water from,
tastes so pure. The attenuation from this recipe must be super high. Next is my surprise with how subtle the malt is. With the booze one might expect it to be overpowering, though it’s not. Slight biscuit at the end with only that tiny bit of booze to wet the palate for the next mouthful.

M - Crisp and clean as mentioned above. So happy this doesn’t come off chewey or boozy. While it is labeled strong, it’s only 6.6 and not in the 8’s. This allows for medium bodied balance with a malt twinge coupled with that hint of booze. Goes incredibly well with the marinated steak tips on my plate.

D - I wasn’t sure what to expect from a strong amber especially with the 6.6 ABV. What I got was an exceptionally Reinheitsgebot-type balanced amber that has more malt balanced with slight biscuit finishing with the traditional strong style booze character. Dare I say there is Belgian candy sugar in here? I could make a case with a Belgian yeast we would now be having an impressive phenol conversation but on a different continent. So much flavor and character packed into a clean and well-balanced pour.

So looking forward to my next Lost Towns