Bottle at level 42, thanks to Colin. It pours clear gold with a thick white head. The aroma is fresh, bready malts, grain, cereal, mild sweetness and a hint of citrus peel. The taste is soft, sweet, buttered white bread, general fruitiness, cereal and graininess. Medium body and moderate, foamy carbonation. Pretty alright, but I was hoping from a bit more from these guys.

Bottle shared in London - thanks to Cloon. Pours totally clear gold with a creamy, white head. The nose has pale crackers, ripening lemon. Light to medium sweet flavour with more crackers, cereal, light lemon, pale grains. Light bodied with average carbonation. Sugary finish, with creamy malts, lemon meringue, cereal. So so.

Bottle split at Level 42, from Khioskh, 16/08/16. Orange golden with a moderate off white cap. Nose is caramel, bready malts, straw, toasted grain, orange peel. Taste comprises tangerine, bready malts, straw, toasted grain, vanilla. Medium bodied, fine carbonation, semi drying close. Decent enough for style.

Can from Beer Gonzo. Pours a misty gold, medium receding white head. Nice sweet aroma. Taste is smooth, sweet, reminiscent of a sweet Bavarian helles. Sweet fruity notes emerge more as it warms. Verges towards overly sweet, but just about remains in the moreish, drinkably flavoursome camp. I liked this.

Pale golden with a white head. Notes of hay, light citrus, grass, green hops and lager hops.

Can at mikkeller and friends. Pours golden. Sort of cellar aroma. Sweet and smooth brew with some vegetables.

Sampled from can at Kingsnight Avoidance Tasting. Sweet malts, grainy, popcorn, cardboard. Light sweet, light bitter. Oily feel, under medium body. Light carbonation.

50cl can shared at Kings Night Avoidance Tasting. No head. Clear golden pour. Easy drinking

Can shared at Kingsnight tasting thanks to Zer0. Clear light golden with short lasting white head. Lots of pils malts, grassy, a bit of lime, paper and wood, a bit of wet chalk. Light sweet and bitter. Under medium bodied with a bit slick carbonation.

Though situated in Iowa, apparently Toppling Goliath’s most ’common’ beer is this California common, or steam beer. From a 50 cl can. Medium thick, regular, fairly loose head, off-white in colour and dissipating quickly, with eventually only a very thin rim of loose bubbles retaining along the edge of the glass, and in the very end, nothing at all of even that thin rim remains; lightly misty warm golden blonde colour, with slow fizz - in fact, quieter than expected based on typical style properties, but of course this can is four months old and I can imagine this being ’spritzier’ when younger. Turns more equally clouded and ’deeper’ peachy straw blonde with deposit. Aroma has the ’clean’ lager-like characteristics expected from the style while still harboring the equally expected ale-like traits: I get green apple, a lot of sourish grains and soggy sandwiches, chamomille, sourdough, a lot of unripe peach and ripe gooseberry, freshly cut grass, starfruit, dust, dry hay, moldy lemon, a hint of toast, something faintly sulfuric (struck match) and even a slight but unmistakable whiff of DMS (cooked cauliflower), something I am comparatively sensitive to. Crisp, notably fruity onset, strikingly sourish with strong reminiscence of unripe prunes, redcurrant and even a thin but refreshing lime-like acidity, paired with more subtle sweetish accents (pear, apricot); carbo is refined but effective and more effervescent than expected based on looks. A supple, lean pale and bready malt sweetishness sits underneath and carries the sourish berry flavors onwards to the finish, where they are met with a stronger breadiness created by the yeast, as in an unfiltered pale lager; a floral, slightly earthy, notably subtle hoppiness dries a little bit in the end, but does not at all provide the assertive bitterness I’ve encountered in the scarce other examples of this specific, historically-based style I had so far; in fact, it is still that sourish effect which provides more dryness than the hops. The sourishness is unexpected, even a bit lemony at times, to the point where I am beginning to ask myself if this can could be mildly infected, especially since the one I had at the American beer tasting in Bruges last week wasn’t nearly as sour (but then, perhaps more bland in that sense as well...). Apart from that, it does have that ’hybrid’ character between generic ale and generic lager, and is certainly refreshing, but by no means as great as I expected it to be based on this brewery’s reputation - which, has not truly convinced me so far, though I must admit PseudoSue and (to a slightly lesser extent) Golden Nugget are top quality IPAs. But then, I have not had Kentucky Brunch or Morning Delight - yet...