Groundhog Altbier
Straub Brewery

 

 

Different. A little too sweet but very drinkable. Growing on me! My wife loves it!

 

I find this Altbier has a full-bodied, malty taste (though not sickly sweet) that keeps me sipping steadily. As with all of Straub's output (in my opinion), Groundhog Altbier strikes me as a slightly better than middle of the road drinking experience. It has its own, uniquely good qualities but isn't necessarily as good as craft Altbiers I've had. The label on this is hilarious, with a groundhog standing sentinel in a subtle white halo, against a picturesque winter forest. I enjoyed these most from a bottle because I like looking at the label so much, though out of a glass it's nice to appreciate its darker amber color. Above all, I like that it's a local beer in a distinct, flavorful style that plays well with the cruel, late winter that seems to drag on and on.

 

 

 

Picked this up on Groundhog Day for Groundhog Day tasting...

Poured into a narrow pint glass: color is amber, head is light tan with fine to small bubbles, nice lingering top of at least 1/4 inch and some lacing on the glass.

Smell is subtly fruity with hints of munich like flavors, toast, caramel and some bready and earthy hops.

Taste is more neutral grain, likely some adjunct component but the toast and caramel malts are a good backstop plus the ale yeast provides the subtle fruitiness noticeable in the aroma. Hops are earthy, grassy.

Mouthfeel is pretty crisp and drying, with a lingering drying quality on the tongue.

Overall a good altbier, a little adjunct quality and dry mouthfeel but still a solid focus on toasted/light caramel malt and fruity ale yeast.

Today is a big day for us Pennsylvanians! It is Groundhog Day (H, 02 Feb 2017) & Bill Murray is headed to Punxsutawney, along with Andie MacDowell & Chris Elliot to cover the event for WPXI-TV in Pixburgh. Locally, Octorara Orphie is standing by in southern Lancaster County, where I reside & Gus the Groundhog is busy hawking lottery tickets. I well remember the first time that I saw "Groundhog Day" - it was in Ventura, CA & I was on my first date with the beauteous Linda Lou. I had a colleague at one point from Punxy named Tonya & she enjoyed being called "PunxaTonya". The Grey Lodge in Philly is doing Hawai'ian shirts and special beers to mark the occasion, to be followed by a puppet show recreation (!) later in the day for those unable to make the live viewing. Like I said, it's a big day! How am I going to celebrate? Well, I am beginning with an annual brew from St. Mary's in PA's Northern Tier.

From the bottle: "2017 Altbier"; "The perfect warmer against the winter cold, copper in color with a pronounced malt flavor, brewed with German-style hops for a firm, bitter edge, and fermented with authentic German Ale yeast."; "In Pennsylvania, a groundhog has been predicting the weather for almost as many years as Straub has been brewing! Our founder[,] Peter Straub[,] began brewing in 1872 in the German settlement of St. Mary's, PA. Enjoy this Groundhog Altbier in honor of our rich histories!" For the record, Groundhog Day was established in 1887 by Clymer H. Freas of the local newspaper, the Punxsutawney Spirit.

The Weather Channel is reporting that there is light snow in Punxy, so I am going to make it rain beer into my glass, following the Pop! of the cap. I actually saw a brief pseudo-cascade as the result of my pour so I backed off to watch in fascination as it formed three-plus fingers of dense, rocky, PunxaTawny (sorry) head with great retention. Color was Brown to Dark Brown (SRM = > 22, < 27) with NE-quality clarity and NO shadows! Nose was rich and malty, just as advertised. Mouthfeel was medium. The taste, while sweet and malty, was not as cloying as the nose had led me to expect. Instead, it was held in check by a grassy/hay-like bitterness from the hops as well as a nuttiness form either/both the yeast & the malt. Finish was closer to semi-dry than to semi-sweet & it would make a nice accompaniment to a cold morning up on Gobbler's Knob.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poured into a perfect pint.

3.75 A: Clear copper color. Two fingers of creamy/frothy beige head. Retention is about average and a half finger of lacing is left.

3.5 S: Dry, dusty graininess with grassy and earthy notes. Caramel meshes well with toastiness.

3.0 T: While I wasn't sure if there were adjuncts in here based on the nose, the taste is a dead giveaway. Grainy, grassy, earthy, and bready. Again caramel and toastiness with a light nuttiness.

3.5 M: Lighter medium to medium body. Good moderate carbonation. Lightly creamy and smooth enough.

3.25 D: It's not such a bad beer, but it's not a good one either.

 

 

Ba#290. Straub is slowly stepping up thier game. Although this beer still reeks of corn adjunct and skunk. Seems very similar to thier retired Peter Straub Special Dark lager. It's a step up.