Brown ale: the most underrated style ever?

Yup, BAs are a small sliver of the beer consumer market.

Cheers!

 

True, that is the unambiguous meaning. But that is not recognized/honored in popular ordinary language usage. Rightly or wrongly it is the ordinary language usage that is used and understood by most of the users of this site.

It's similar to "gouging." Technically price gouging only happens with raising prices for such scarce necessities of life as food and water during a disaster while they are in short supply. However, in the popular ordinary languge usage "gouging" has come to mean prices for discretionary choices and/or luxury items that one thinks are priced too high.

 

Shh, keep it down in here. I don't want people buying up all the Bell's Best Brown next fall!

(I really wish that was a year round beer, but I get that it makes it "special" to be a seasonal release)

I appreciate a well made beer of any style, don't really care about hype.

 

This has already happened with Trillium's hoppy imperial brown ale Deciduous in 2016. Tree House's Bear is pretty cloudy/opaque too. I'm sure other breweries have done the same. Definitely not the most appealing cloudy beer, but the appearance doesn't make the beer.

 

Just recently getting into the style as I used to follow the mentality of so many craft newbies, that if it isn't over 10% or sour then who cares?

Seriously though, some of my new favorites have been the brown ales that just sit on shelves. For example, if anyone here happens to love coconuts and brown ales, then pick up some Kona Koko Brown while you still can. Huge notes of coconut and that nutty goodness of brown ales all in one easy to find,affordable, and low ABV package.

 

Thank you, and yes, I thought so, too.

 

I was just reading about that the other day. I will pick it up if I see it. I love their Pipeline Porter, so I have no doubt they could make a good brown ale.

 

As a few folks have mentioned above, I think "underappreciated" might be a good way of thinking about these kinds of styles. Of course, we could always speak in terms of "underrepresented" styles, but that might just reflect how some styles are underappreciated.

Regardless, I'd like to see more Doppelbocks from Germany on store shelves, and see more North American brewers try their hand at this style (without turning it into just another hop bomb, even though I like hops myself). Same goes for Scotch ales.

 

Bells best is good. Many others are too sweet. I will try any beer but I don't see Browns too often, I don't seek them out either.

Enjoy

 

If you have access to UPSLOPE brews, I think their brown ale may be the best beer they make (for my taste). Avery Ellie's (as previously mentioned) is also solid. For me, browns are a fun 'mix six' choice, although I rarely ever buy a whole 6 of 'em. Just part of the diversity-loves-company in my fridge policy. Love good brown ales, but can't drink more than one at any given time.

 

Love brown ales. They just don't make enough good ones to have variety.

Sierra Nevada Tumbler was my jam. ohhhhhhhhh.

And then they killed it (in six pack form). Sad face.

 

Brown Ales....I love a good one. Most of them aren't that good. I think brewers need to do a better job with these.

Agree with others that Scotch Ales (similar to Brown in that many aren't good) and Dopplebocks (most are excellent) are underrated.

 

Good call on the Upslope, @eppCOS !!!!
Great flavor, but what I really love its body/feel.

Been a while since I've had one- gonna hafta snag one this weekend.

 

I love a good brown...and I would love to see a brown 'renaissance' where more brewers would take on this style...oh wait a minute...they're all making IPA's right now.
Smuttynose
Red Hare Watership Down
Bell's Best Brown

 

Indeed!

 

Definitely agree on upslope. It's probably my favorite non imperial brown ale. I also enjoyed their pale ale, but I saw they replaced it with the Citra pale ale.

 

I would wager a good number of folks--NOT ALL--will chime in and say they love a brown ale but a good number of these same folks --again NOT ALL--I really suspect just don't buy many. Kind of like when Stone announced they were discontinuing their smoked porter--lot of nostalgia and folks waxing about how much they will miss it--but it just didn't sell.

A good brown ale is just that--good but with some many great things out there, just don't buy it. I mean a well made lager or pilsner, saison, IPA........

 

I was thinking of this thread by @HorseheadsHopHead when I saw this one - I thought it was "revitalized," actually (I responded on that one, interesting to read my thoughts). Though I now have officially been around here long enough that I understand the nature of the research @zid did into other similar threads.

Don't we then fall back into the Porter versus Stout debate, again?

(not that I don't have my own thoughts on that)

I agree that I was a bit confused by the re-branding of DFH Indian Brown. I'm not saying it was a standard brown to begin with, but still....

Looking back at more post mentioned/linked above, it states something similar to what @cavedave mentioned in this thread. I'm not exactly sure what I was saying about "weaker porters" though.

Anyhow, I wish more breweries would offer a little bolder offering that showcased what "brown malts" bring to the table (toastiness or nuttiness). And in my opinion they might therefore benefit from less or at least more neutral flavored hops. I do not enjoy the brown ales that are essentially mediocre but slightly darker pale ales (that is an intended oxymoron), or the similarly quoted equivalent (to me) of Newcastle.

Here's to hoping there is new world for moderately bold brown ales, but I won't hold my breath .

 

Have you tried Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale? I think this beer will ‘scratch your itch’.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/141/184/

Cheers!

 

I did review it, but on an apparently old bottle and it didn't work for me. But reading the review, it looks like a future Throwback Thurdsday candidate . I did have Ellie's Brown again recently, and am on the lookout for six-packs with good dates, as I do need it in the fridge more often.

Side note: did you know that if you simply add "?ba=screen_name" to a beer profile's URL you can see that BA's review? I think if you further add "#review" it will jump you down the screen to the review and save the scrolling