Steamy Cream
Whitstran Brewing Company

I was given a couple of bottles of Steamy Cream as a gift. Poured in to a pint glass.

Pours a shiny gold color and is clear. A tiny bubbly head forms and is gone in a flash, leaving the beer looking a bit flat. There are some bubbles rising in the beer.

Smell si a sweet fruity aroma of apples and a soft perfume scent.

Taste is also sweet and fruity. Apple flavor mostly, with a mild bitterness and a sharp acerbic finish.

Mouthfeel is thin crisp and light. There is a dry presence as well.

Dinkable but unremarkable. It could have a bit more body.

Steamy Cream's name makes good use of both American hybrid beer styles - cream ale and steam beer, the latter of course is a legally protected registered trademark of the etc., etc.... Whitstran puts a new twist on the style with the inclusion of wheat. I'm not keen on the wheat as it tends to put an edge on a beer whose primary virtue is a lack of edges. Though Steamy Cream is listed at just 14 IBU, the Goldings-derived bittering is given greater plumage with wheat on the bill.

Though Whitstran tags this as a California Common, its appearance more closely approximates a cream ale with its yellow-gold color and slight chill haze. Robust carbonation sustains a film of head composed of tiny white bubbles. Though not consistent with either implied style, Steamy still enjoys good drinkability and graceful appearances. It makes for an especially pleasing summer ale or after-work session beer.

I was poured a four ounce sample from the tap at the brewery tasting room in Prosser, WA.

A: It poured a clear bright yellow with a modest white head with limited lacing.

S: Very faint and hard to detect aromas that included sweet malts and light white spices.

T: There was a slight roasted malt flavor, white yeasty bread taste and a hint of spices driven by hops.

M: Light body with clean crisp zesty finish.

D: There is little to get excited about but little to deter one from this brew. It's an easy beer to consume but lack character that would lead it to the front of the pack.