Peak Color
Grow Brewing Company

 

Not quite clear, and a bit too amber, when poured. However, it becomes almost gem clear and much brighter after several minutes. The ruttieness completely disappears and it becomes more like burnished gold to light amber. The 1.5” head slowly withdraws to a thin blanket, leaving a combination of patchy and spotty lace on the Spaten dimpled mug. Aside from the initial pour and head, there is no noticeable carbonation.

The aroma has a strong dose of fresh herbal hops, which gives it a fresh opening against the toasted malt. The Millard effect is pronounced.

The aromas map onto the flavors remarkably close. The herbal spice and toasted malt are strong, with well balanced sweetness up front and bitterness in the finish. The finish is moderately strong and seemingly endless.

A medium body with a smooth hard texture. Alcohol is as expected. Residual sugar builds on the lips while light carbonation adds a fizzy touch.

My first impression is that this is more suitable as a Marzen, however, the longer it is in the glass, the more it seems to drift towards Festbier. Still, it tastes like liquid Autumn, which is definitely more of a Marzen quality, and it is less clean than a Festbier. Grow Brewing Co. is a relatively new brewer in NY’s Finger Lakes, and this beer is evidence of good things to come.

This one pours a relatively dark golden brown color, with a small head, and lots of lacing.

This smells like caramel malt, a little bit of some sort of stale aroma, and grassiness.

This is kind of stale and too sweet. I usually like this brewery a decent amount more than I like this beer, but I don’t love this specific take on one of my favorite styles. It’s just too heavy, too sweet, and with just a weird stale sickly finish.

This is medium bodied, slick, and not super drinkable.

I expected a lot more out of this one.