Mo' Kölsch
Ithaca Beer Company

 

 

 

not a true kolsch but they tried mosaic hops
a bit too sweet but a very likable ale
still a good beer

This beer is certainly sweeter than the average Kölsch - there are notes of mead honey as well as some faint berry flavors - which obscures some of the more traditional notes, to a mixed results. Also, thick on the body for the style.

I am a big Mosiac hop fan and this one hits the spot.

I really enjoyed the flavor and taste in this Kolsch. More “IPA” like with the fruity flavors of Rhe hops used but I found this beer outstanding for the style.

L: Clear light yellow with a steady stream of bubbles, a solid white head with very long retention, and a moderate amount of lacing.

S: Very Mosaic-forward. Blueberry, pineapple, honeydew melon, earth, cracker, hay.

T: A delicate balance between hop flavor and malt balance. Crisp, clean, cracker malt with hints of hay; blueberry, pineapple, honeydew melon, and earth from the hops. Hints of white grape and dry white wine from the yeast. Clean, crisp, and lightly dry overall, hints of fruitiness with a great beery body.

F: Medium-light. Well-carbonated. Lightly dry. Clean. Crisp. Refreshing.

O: Amazing. Hugely refreshing, a well-made Kolsch and a perfect showcase of Mosaic hops.

 

 

I am curious (Yellow & Blue) to try a German-style beer that utilizes southern hemisphere hops. It may be out of a bottle, but it will serve to satiate my inherent curiosity.

From the Bottle: "German style Ale with Mosaic hops"; "The Spirit of the Finger Lakes".

I Pop!ped the cap & began a slow, gentle pour into the awaiting glass. Unbidden, it formed just under two fingers of dense, foamy, rocky, bone-white head with decent retention that left behind modestlacing as it fell. Color was a beautiful Golden-Amber (SRM = > 5, < 7) with NE-quality clarity, prompting a visit from The Gelt Gang of Midas, Croesus
& Mammon, all hoping for a taste. Nose was sweet with a pronounced fruitiness that included peaches as well as tropical characteristics, like mango, papaya & guava. This was certainly pleasant enough, but well outside of the style boundaries. Mouthfeel was medium. The taste was more tropical than peachy, but it had an overall jammy quality, very fruity & sweet, pleasant, but not really what is called for in a Kölsch. The biscuit/toasty maltiness kept the sweetness from getting out of hand, but it was still out of spec for the style. Finish remained fruity, putting it in the sweet to semi-sweet range. It was a nice diversion, but not a good representation of the style.

 

3.04/5: There are some interesting flavors present, but it doesn't fully come together as a cohesive whole

 

Poured from the bottle into a stange glass.

Dark gold bodied, and quite clear, with minimal carbonation presented. Soapy simple white head, with a bit of a bubbled collar, and even a thin top.

Honey like sensing malts on first whiff of the nose, almost touches a bit of biscuit and graham cracker like sweetness. A bit of juicy hop like quality a bit as well but doesn't provide much of a flavor profile. Relatively respectible aroma, but not very Kölsch like.

Palate seems to make some better roads and play. Juiced bodied slightly, with much more honey and hop bitterness than expected. Slightly thick and rich with large fruity hop and clean finish on the aftertaste. Flirts with IPA flavors but without large amounts of astringency or bitterness. Some faint touches of lime round out.

Not so much a good kolsch, but more so a good take on a non standard hop and style flip with added mosaic making for a tasty beer.

Poured into half pint glass: color is straw, head is brighter white with small bubbles, presents 1/4 inch thick and then dissipates to a ring along the glass .

Smell is quite fruity, peach and i guess some berry and stone fruit like character, subtle malt toastiness.

With the taste the fruitiness softens some, especially as it warms, but still noticeable, clean malt, no off flavors and moderate bitterness.

Mouthfeel is crisp, moderate carbonation, lingering light sweetness.

Overall a interesting riff on the style - the aromas from the hops upfront are quite unique and the rest of the brew finishes like a kolsch but maybe just a bit dry/carbonated.

It's a light and refreshing beer with a bright flavor. Pretty hoppy, honestly.

Bottle date Nov 18??? - which I take as BB November of 2018, as the ??? do not look like a year:
Ithaca states this version is intentionally replacing traditional German hops for newer world varieties. As such, this might not come across as a traditional Kolsch (listed on their site simply as a German Style Ale, which might be in deference to Koln or the style or both).

Pours a nice, solid gold. An aggressive pour causes a fairly large (three fingers easily) of fluffy white head. This head doesn't fade too fast, but the laconic stream of bubbles visible through the clear body don't look like it can sustain it for too long. Lacing is in splotchy patterns early.

Nose is a dry cereal grain malt combined with a fresh cut grass hop note. I didn't expect that nose from Mosaic, and it might be the Glacier aspect of "wood" that is having an influence. The pungent "green" hop notes are getting in the way of being able to describe other notes that I can sense but not distinguish. Warmth opens this up to the orange-centric flavors I also start to get.

Taste starts light but not watery, with a grassy hop note being forward. There is a little grassy white wine component, but the grass to peppery greens note sort of plow this under a tad. A mildly subdued prickly carbonation adds to the "peppery" impression. Coming out the other side of this is a little more fruity note, but one still shrouded in the grassiness. The fruit is orange to tangerine pith, maybe some unripe peach. Warmth brings this forward a bit, battling the vegetal opening notes a bit. In back, a clementine orange-like to perhaps a light indistinct tropical aspect is added. Slight bitter film builds up as the I drink through the beer.

This somewhat of a mashup of beers just didn't work for me too well. The bitter side was a bit dominant early, and the fruity hop notes countered this, but not in an overly harmonious way for my palate.