Beer of the Weekend #419: Samuel Adams Winter Lager
The beer tonight is yet another seasonal from Beantown (they do not end!): Samuel Adams Winter Lager, brewed by the Boston Brewing Company from Boston, Massachusetts.
Serving type: 12-ounce bottle. The “enjoy before month notched” is “MAY.”
Appearance: Poured into a flute. The color is ruddy copper. A finger of eggshell-colored head dissipated fairly quickly to leave a very thin skim and a bubbly ring around the edge.
Smell: Caramel, toffee, brown sugar, cherry licorice, apple, a little dark fruit (perhaps raspberry or fig), and grassy hops.
Taste: The malts give way to a much more generalized beer bitterness. They begin to emerge after it has warmed a bit, though. Toasted malts, caramel, toffee, brown sugar — which are punctuated with an average bite for the aftertaste. The apple, cherry licorice, and other fruity flavors come in late.
Drinkability: A solid brew. Upon first impression, it is not too festive or wintery but it is tasty drinking. It will do the job.
Fun facts about SAWL:
-Style: BA classifies it as “Bock.”
-Price: No clue.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 5.6 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: The beer’s webpage says to “Compliment the ginger and spice of Thai food and help subdue the heat with a malty and spicy Winter Lager.”
-IBU: 22.
-Color: 25 SRM.
-Calories: 193 per 12-ounce bottle.
-First brewed in 1989, SAWL is only available November through January.
The Quiet Man’s grade: B-.
Serving type: 12-ounce bottle. The “enjoy before month notched” is “MAY.”
Appearance: Poured into a flute. The color is ruddy copper. A finger of eggshell-colored head dissipated fairly quickly to leave a very thin skim and a bubbly ring around the edge.
Smell: Caramel, toffee, brown sugar, cherry licorice, apple, a little dark fruit (perhaps raspberry or fig), and grassy hops.
Taste: The malts give way to a much more generalized beer bitterness. They begin to emerge after it has warmed a bit, though. Toasted malts, caramel, toffee, brown sugar — which are punctuated with an average bite for the aftertaste. The apple, cherry licorice, and other fruity flavors come in late.
Drinkability: A solid brew. Upon first impression, it is not too festive or wintery but it is tasty drinking. It will do the job.
Fun facts about SAWL:
-Style: BA classifies it as “Bock.”
-Price: No clue.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 5.6 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: The beer’s webpage says to “Compliment the ginger and spice of Thai food and help subdue the heat with a malty and spicy Winter Lager.”
-IBU: 22.
-Color: 25 SRM.
-Calories: 193 per 12-ounce bottle.
-First brewed in 1989, SAWL is only available November through January.
The Quiet Man’s grade: B-.
