Beer of the Weekend #233: Angry Amber Ale
This LV project is blowing up in my face. I have enough material for 2,000 words (I think) but need to shoehorn it into 800. It’s no biggie; I guess I went a little over the top on research. Be it delusions of grandeur or thoroughness, I have more than I can use, which is better than the opposite.
ANYWAY. I took a trip up to the Worth Brewing Company way up in Northwood on Wednesday (for the project — hint, hint). I talked to the co-owner, drank a couple samples, and brought back some pics, notes, and a pint glass. On Thursday I visited the Hub City Brewing Company in Stanley (in the middle of the country just east of Oelwein). I talked to the owner and brewer, drank some samples, took a tour of the facilities, and bought a pint glass. Why do I buy pint glasses? Because I guess my obsession with beerware has become extreme. Pint glasses with logos look sexy. They are my version of the Breckenridge and Vail sweatshirts the rich kids at City High wore to school after winter break, announcing to everyone where they had gone over vacation.
Before heading to Hub City, I stopped at the Hy-Vee in Waverly and bought tonight’s beer: Angry Amber Ale, brewed by the Angry Cedar Brewing Company of Waverly, Iowa.
Angry Cedar stuff is sold exclusively in Waverly, so I needed to get a couple bottles before heading back to IC. And boy, are they bottles.
Serving type: One one-liter bottle. Yeah — a liter of beer. Thank God it has a swing cap, because I may not finish it all tonight. There is a batch number on a barcode label, maybe, but nothing discernable as a freshness date.
Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. The color is a light amber/rust color; it developed a chill haze straight from the bottle. A pretty pathetic head developed — minor bubbles and some lacing — and dissipated to leave a bubbly ring and a little film of foam at the top.
Smell: The aroma is sweet and malty. Lots of sweet caramel, toffee, and some chocolate. It also has some lightly toasted notes. Reminds me a little of the Red Trolley Ale I drank at Dodger Stadium — plastic cup and all — but it lacks the level of roasted and chocolate qualities.
Taste: It is a little off. It’s pretty watery and the flavors are concentrated and very sweet, which makes it taste like soda syrup mixed with too much water. The sweet caramel dominates and puckers the cheeks. It gets better as it warms, becoming more of a genuine amber/red, and it leaves a nice bitter aftertaste, but it still has a ways to go.
Drinkability: There are obviously some quality and/or packaging issues the brewer needs to address (I am willing to bet it leaves the brewery in perfect condition, but degrades due to the bottling or capping choice), but the foundation is there for a pretty good beer.
Fun facts about Angry Amber Ale:
-Style: BA classifies it as an American Amber/Red Ale.
-Price: $7.49/growler at the Hy-Vee on 4th Street SW in Waverly, Iowa.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 4.5 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: The BA recommendations are pretty thin (as always). Sharp cheeses (Blue, Cheddar), beef, poultry, and fish.
-There is not much information on the beer. The Angry Cedar website is still under construction, so I assume it will have some kind of web presence soon.
-However there is a little bottle nerdiness on the label, including this cool text:
-The Angry Cedar motto is, “When life gives you water, make beer.” Cool motto, but I think they need to work on the beer.
The Quiet Man’s grade: D+.
ANYWAY. I took a trip up to the Worth Brewing Company way up in Northwood on Wednesday (for the project — hint, hint). I talked to the co-owner, drank a couple samples, and brought back some pics, notes, and a pint glass. On Thursday I visited the Hub City Brewing Company in Stanley (in the middle of the country just east of Oelwein). I talked to the owner and brewer, drank some samples, took a tour of the facilities, and bought a pint glass. Why do I buy pint glasses? Because I guess my obsession with beerware has become extreme. Pint glasses with logos look sexy. They are my version of the Breckenridge and Vail sweatshirts the rich kids at City High wore to school after winter break, announcing to everyone where they had gone over vacation.
Before heading to Hub City, I stopped at the Hy-Vee in Waverly and bought tonight’s beer: Angry Amber Ale, brewed by the Angry Cedar Brewing Company of Waverly, Iowa.
Angry Cedar stuff is sold exclusively in Waverly, so I needed to get a couple bottles before heading back to IC. And boy, are they bottles.
Serving type: One one-liter bottle. Yeah — a liter of beer. Thank God it has a swing cap, because I may not finish it all tonight. There is a batch number on a barcode label, maybe, but nothing discernable as a freshness date.
Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. The color is a light amber/rust color; it developed a chill haze straight from the bottle. A pretty pathetic head developed — minor bubbles and some lacing — and dissipated to leave a bubbly ring and a little film of foam at the top.
Smell: The aroma is sweet and malty. Lots of sweet caramel, toffee, and some chocolate. It also has some lightly toasted notes. Reminds me a little of the Red Trolley Ale I drank at Dodger Stadium — plastic cup and all — but it lacks the level of roasted and chocolate qualities.
Taste: It is a little off. It’s pretty watery and the flavors are concentrated and very sweet, which makes it taste like soda syrup mixed with too much water. The sweet caramel dominates and puckers the cheeks. It gets better as it warms, becoming more of a genuine amber/red, and it leaves a nice bitter aftertaste, but it still has a ways to go.
Drinkability: There are obviously some quality and/or packaging issues the brewer needs to address (I am willing to bet it leaves the brewery in perfect condition, but degrades due to the bottling or capping choice), but the foundation is there for a pretty good beer.
Fun facts about Angry Amber Ale:
-Style: BA classifies it as an American Amber/Red Ale.
-Price: $7.49/growler at the Hy-Vee on 4th Street SW in Waverly, Iowa.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 4.5 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: The BA recommendations are pretty thin (as always). Sharp cheeses (Blue, Cheddar), beef, poultry, and fish.
-There is not much information on the beer. The Angry Cedar website is still under construction, so I assume it will have some kind of web presence soon.
-However there is a little bottle nerdiness on the label, including this cool text:
In early June 2008, many Iowa cities near the Cedar River were overcome with a volume of floodwater never before seen or anticipated. Waverly was devastated, as were our neighbors upstream and down.
But we Iowans are a resilient bunch. The survival of a batch of homebrewed beer in a house full of destroyed belongings was all the proof we needed to know that God still loves us and wants us to be happy. It also provides enough motivation to open a brewery to make the proverbial ‘lemonade.’ When life gives us water, we make beer.
So let’s tip one for those who endured the flood, for those who are still recovering, and for those around the nation who experience disaster. May they find safety, security, and high ground to build their next house!
-The Angry Cedar motto is, “When life gives you water, make beer.” Cool motto, but I think they need to work on the beer.
The Quiet Man’s grade: D+.
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