Traditional Lager
Matt Brewing Company / Saranac Brewery

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pulled from a variety 12-pack and poured into a standard shaker glass. The lager appears a crystal clear medium apricot color with around a finger of bone white foam. Smells and tastes of bread, lightly toasted grains, a hint of grassy bitter hops and a dose of caramelized malt. Somewhat thin bodied, but amply carbonated for it's style. Worth a try.

Saranac Traditional Lager is a clear, very sparkling golden beer that's topped with a thin white that stays put the whole way through and leaves nice sip lines on the glass. It has a creamy, fruity, herbal aroma with notes of grass, flowers and earth. It is slightly sweet smelling. It has a medium-light body that's soft and foamy with a clean, dry finish. It has a fresh, bright flavor that's slightly sweet and, again, grassy and flowery. It is mellow and incredibly sessionable.

First things first. This is an American Amber/Red Lager?? I think not. Sounds like we need a style investigation here.

Pours a clear gold. Very small white head that goes away very quickly. Nose is slight metal with a nose of grain. Typical lager characteristics really. Flavor is bitter and the typical lager earthiness. Nothing really unique going on here. Feel has a good carbonation to it. Liquid feels decent too. Overall it is drinkable, sure. I think if it were much colder it would be even better. This leans much towards a macro style than anything with real character.

Crystal clear and pale straw yellow, this beer had a bright white head that fell fast and produced just a little lace. The aroma was sweet malt and spicy hops with mild fruity esters. Low bitterness, with the flavour echoing the aroma. The flavour stayed strong through the finish too. Light body that stayed just short of thin, with a moderate carbonation that stayed fairly crisp. Solid texture overall. This one really held together and I thought it was pretty good.

This beer is definitely mis-classified, this is definitely a Macro style lager. Anyway, here it goes.

This poured a standard Lager yellow, but it had some nice foamy head, quite nice. Smell was corny, some malt, no hops. Same with the flavor, full of corn and some sweetness. It is however rather refreshing and easy to drink. This is a good example of what a Macro Lager should taste like, definitely beats the pisswater offerings of most other Macros.

A- Comes out a light orange hue. I wish I had poured more aggresively because the head on this one was a quarter finger at best- but even with a bad pour, it dissapeared on my instantly and didn't leave any lacing.

S- Some sweet fruity overtones, mostly a Manderin orange type. These are overlayed on a smell of very light breadiness, more akin to wonderbread than hearty whole wheat.

T- Again the blend of fruit and grain that is found in the nose. I could use some more bitterness from this offering along with less sweetness, but the taste is good anyway. Something that is entirely enjoyable, if simple on the tongue.

M- Light and quaffable. The carbonation is great on the onset, but quickly dissapears and doesn't give the beer any bite which I'm craving.

D- This is a great session beer, not amazing or suprising really, just likable.

12 oz. bottle into a pint glass.
A: Golden color, plenty of carbonation visible. Good amount of head but it recedes rapidly with little lacing.
S: Smells beery with a faint whiff of hops. Not too complex.
T: Also beery but almost hoppy. Interesting aftertaste that fades out of bitterness and into something pleasantly fruity. Certainly not unenjoyable, and it seems to grow on me with subsequent gulps.
M: Lightish, but not weak. There’s some maltiness that weighs in.
D: This beer is pretty refreshing. I could have a couple easily if I’m just looking to have a few beers. If I’m feeling like exploring beers or trying something intense, though, I’m going elsewhere.

A: Poured into a pilsner glass. A pale honey colored body rests under a 1/2-finger white head. Lots of bubbles rise and continue to refortify the head all the way down the glass. Nice look -- reminds me of how beers look at the end of the old American macro lager beer commercials. Some foam clings to the side of the glass, but there's no real lacing.

S: Sweet and grainy. Apple juice comes to mind, but it's pretty faint, and the dominant smell is cereal-type grains.

T: Light, as expected. Cereal grains again, along with something mildly sweet that lingers on the aftertaste. That sweetness isn't cloying, however, and it seems to go away somewhat after drinking it for awhile. There is just a hint of bitterness in the finish that comes across as slightly metallic at times, lemony at other times.

M: Well-carbonated, which keeps the finish pretty clean and with some crispness that offsets any lingering sweetness. Light in body, as expected, perhaps just a tad bit thin.

D: This goes down pretty easy. Perfect "lawnmower beer" for a hot day.

Notes: Saranac seems to have a bunch of different lagers, and this one is clearly labeled differently than some others I've had in past years. So I'm guessing this is not the same as the clear bottles that were simply labeled "Lager" or the "Adirondack Lager." While this isn't a terribly flavorful beer, I didn't find it objectionable at all -- we are talking lager, here, so I wouldn't expect a lot of complicated flavors or a full body. I think it compares favorably to Yuengling's "traditional lager" and would recommend it as a transition beer for BMC drinkers or for anyone who's looking for a light, refreshing beer on a hot summer's day.

I'm a bit confused here, because I'm not entirely sure if the Saranac "Traditional Lager" I'm drinking right now is the same as the "Saranac Lager" that is posted on BA, of if this is the actual Traditional Lager from the Matt Brewing Co. that is available for review on BA. I'm assuming it's this one, despite the fact that I wouldn't classify this as a Red Lager at all, and despite the fact that only 2 other people have reviewed it. Oh well, so it goes.

Pours a light golden amber color with a full white head which recedes after a short while. No real lace to speak of here. A nice looking beer, but I wouldn't say there's anything remarkable about it. Smells sweet and fruity with light apply and strawbeery scents. But again, nothing too special about the aroma. Taste follows suit with everything else so far. Malty with some light fruit esthers, no hops to speak of, and a faint beery-alcohol finish. A lawnmower beer, to be sure, but that's about it. And, honestly, I can think of a number of other beers I'd rather sit back with after a hot day in the sun than this one. Not a bad beer, but not a great one either. I'll likely avoid this in the future simply because it just doesn't do anything for me. Might go well with fish or a light lemon chicken dish.

I got this beer in a mixed pack
Color is golden, with white foam head that fades fast and leaves some lacing.
Smell's sweet and somewhat malty.
The taste is sweet and malty/grainy, no bite or bitterness.
It is not too carbonated and goes down easy.
I could drink massive amounts of this beer and less than 5% abv allows me to do so.
It says on the bottle neck, "Look for an extremely mellow taste. Refreshingly smooth glass after glass!"
A better beer at a similar price is hard to find and I will surely be buying and enjoying much more of this beer for a long time to come.

A-Reddish body with a nice fluffy white head that went away fast.Some lacing on the glass and bubbles coming up from the bottem of the pint glass.

S-Hoppy smell and maybe rice?It almost smells like a Budweiser.I cant smell the malt in it.

T-Some bitterness in the aftertaste.I taste the malt in it,hops are faint.

M-Beer is thin but its refreshing,the mouthful good.The taste is also clean.

D-I could drink this all day.its very refreshing and for the price of a case of variety you can prob get this beer real cheap in a 6er.I reccomend to anyone.