Winter Bash
Straub Brewery

Over all a nice and surprising better than I expected. I've had Straub beers before and they have come a long way since the days they were a crappy cheep beer that I drank in college.

So when I picked up the Winter Bash I was pleasantly surprised by the nice citrus taste and tasty mouth feel. Its not the best beer I've ever had but it's certainly in the top 10,000. The ABV is nice and light and that's a nice departure from a lot of the Winter lagers I've had.

 

 

Poured from the 12oz bottle into a Straub pilsner glass. Look is pretty clear deep golden, almost burnt orange color. Fizzy white head falls off to nothing...no cap, no lacing, no head whatsoever. Smell is strong citrus fruits and not much more. Taste is citrus and sweet up front with a pithy bitterness that comes in the middle. Finishes tart and fruity with more of a raspberry flavor lingering around for the next sip. Feel is light bodied with some zip from the carbonation. Overall, I go way back with Straub beer. I remember when all you could get was their American lager, so I love seeing them branching out and trying new styles. This beer isn't too bad, but not really one I'd seek out in the winter months. It's tasty and refreshing, easy to drink, but I'd love to get it fresh in mid summer instead.

 

I was casting about for a beer for today & I realized that I had a number of bottles in the queue that had required either/or/both an Add and/or a pic that I had submitted but not checked back upon. It turned out, in the case of this one, that all was in readiness! Cool.

From the Bottle: "1872"; "Peter Straub Signature Brews"; "A Blend of Seasonal Fruit Flavors"; "Fiercely Independent".

Sadly, they still employ those screwed-up screw-off caps, depriving me of even the opportunity to Pop! the cap. 8=( No matter, I simply took out my frustration in the form of an aggro pour. The resulting finger of foamy, soapy, rocky, bone-white head quickly dissipated away to wisps, further saddening me. I perked up at its Golden-Amber (SRM = > 5, < 7) color with NE-quality clarity, causing The Gelt Gang of Mammon, Midas & Croesus to drop by for a visit. Nose was VERY fruity, fruit punch fruity & I suddenly began to despair that I perhaps should have mulled this one, or at least warmed it in a crock pot or double-boiler. I have done that several times with beer & the result has always been fabulous! We have had a comparatively mild Winter this year & while it is windy & chilly, it is not outright cold, so I did not feel as guilty as might have were snow falling as I typed this. Mouthfeel was a bit thin, on the watery side of tartness, methought. The raspberries were prevalent, but when combined with the citrus fruits, it tasted like liquefied breakfast cereal, like Fruity Pebbles. Hmm. I was really starting to regret not having warmed this one up. I think that doing so might have really improved it for me. Finish was tart & semi-dry. Not bad, in terms of its umbrella style, but for me it needed tweaking of the recipe. YMMV.