Beer of the Weekend #483: La Crosse Amber Lager
The beer tonight is something I picked up last Friday but did not get to drink this weekend: La Crosse Amber Lager, brewed by the City Brewery of La Crosse, Wisconsin.
To me, La Crosse Amber Lager is quite a novelty because I have always associated the La Crosse brand with La Crosse Lager. Back during the heady days at Apartment 12, Bobblehead, Mervgotti, and I drank a lot of La Crosse Lager. Not only was it super cheap (wink, wink), it was tasty. Unfortunately, the recipe changed a number of years ago and it is no longer what it used to be. (It is still drinkable, though.) When I saw La Crosse Amber Lager I could not believe it; the thought of the La Crosse brand branching out to ambers blew my mind. I suppose it would be akin to Pabst releasing a PBR or Schlitz brand amber.
Serving type: 12-ounce can. No freshness date.
Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. The color is clean, clear, ruddy amber (as promised). A finger of off-white foam left a spotted skim and ring around the edge.
Smell: Caramel, a little toffee, lightly toasted malts, and musty adjunct grains.
Taste: It kind of tastes like a bohemian pilsner with a couple ingredients added. The mouthfeel is very bready and imparts the flavor of pale and lightly toasted malts. Overall it is relatively sweet, though it does offer a nice crispness at the end. Sweet caramel, toffee, apple, and a little strawberry licorice.
Drinkability: As part of La Crosse’s Session Series, it is a very sessionable beer. It will not blow anybody socks off but it is a tasty brew that would fit nicely into a cooler for camping.
Fun facts about LCAL:
-Style: It is classified on BA as “American Amber/Red Ale.”
-Price: $6.49/sixer at John’s Grocery in Iowa City.
-Alcohol content: The ABV is not stated on the can, but the person who created the beer’s BA profile (the first reviewer) “guessed” 4.5 percent ABV.
The Quiet Man’s grade: C+.
To me, La Crosse Amber Lager is quite a novelty because I have always associated the La Crosse brand with La Crosse Lager. Back during the heady days at Apartment 12, Bobblehead, Mervgotti, and I drank a lot of La Crosse Lager. Not only was it super cheap (wink, wink), it was tasty. Unfortunately, the recipe changed a number of years ago and it is no longer what it used to be. (It is still drinkable, though.) When I saw La Crosse Amber Lager I could not believe it; the thought of the La Crosse brand branching out to ambers blew my mind. I suppose it would be akin to Pabst releasing a PBR or Schlitz brand amber.
Serving type: 12-ounce can. No freshness date.
Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. The color is clean, clear, ruddy amber (as promised). A finger of off-white foam left a spotted skim and ring around the edge.
Smell: Caramel, a little toffee, lightly toasted malts, and musty adjunct grains.
Taste: It kind of tastes like a bohemian pilsner with a couple ingredients added. The mouthfeel is very bready and imparts the flavor of pale and lightly toasted malts. Overall it is relatively sweet, though it does offer a nice crispness at the end. Sweet caramel, toffee, apple, and a little strawberry licorice.
Drinkability: As part of La Crosse’s Session Series, it is a very sessionable beer. It will not blow anybody socks off but it is a tasty brew that would fit nicely into a cooler for camping.
Fun facts about LCAL:
-Style: It is classified on BA as “American Amber/Red Ale.”
-Price: $6.49/sixer at John’s Grocery in Iowa City.
-Alcohol content: The ABV is not stated on the can, but the person who created the beer’s BA profile (the first reviewer) “guessed” 4.5 percent ABV.
The Quiet Man’s grade: C+.
