Wolaver's Brown Ale

Clear dark amber body with a small tan head. Sweet molassas and malty aroma. Sweet nutty and malty flavor.

12 oz bottle with a twist off cap. This is my first Wolavers and now I see it is made by otter creek. On the label it says it is certified organic. I’m not one to be high-spirited about healthier environment causes. Twist the cap off and you are faced with a musty aroma. After that fades, it turns into a sort of chocolate smell but it is not real strong. The look of this beer is darker than the typical pale yellow beer, it is more brown colored like dark cream soda or light root beer. Has just a girdle ring of bubbles on the inside edge on top if the beer, no head. No apparent bubbles of carbonation are visible within this transparent brown brew. I’m impressed with the flavor of this; it is kind of chocolaty, nice friendly addressable taste. An ever so slight beer bitterness on the sides of the tongue but it don’t seem to be oppressive, it is rather well controlled. There is a mild fast bitterness that build on the back of the throat after each drink. The finish does seem to have an odd industrial back of the throat taste that sticks for a while, rather contrary for a organic brew. Good medium tingly carbonation. Overall not bad, chocolaty in taste and aroma, but that odd finish is something I’ve got to deal with. Better than Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale and Saranac brown ale. Somewhat on par with the rest of the decent brown ales I’ve had such as Green Flash Nut Brown Ale, Brooklyn Brown Ale, Bells Best Brown Ale. Hoewever, this is not even close to East End Brewing’s Fat Gary as far as taste and satisfaction go.

Bottle: Pours a light brown / amber color with little head. Aroma is clean and malty. Taste is also malty and earthy, with just a bit of toastiness. Finishes clean, but with a hint of bitter.

12oz bottle-pours a creamy light tan head with dark bronze color. Aroma is malty. Taste is caramel malt, some hops. OK carbonation.

Clear orange to chestnut; orange-yellowish head, nearly gone in secs. Spicey nose, dark malts, even molasses. Bit empty, molasses and some wood, but sweetish. Slightly syrupy MF, ends a bit empty all the same. Certainly not a bad beer - in this style it’s very hard to get more going up convincingly. With roasted meat, as Garrett O. suggests.

Bottled on 9/28/05, Batch #1790. Pours with a lightly sour whiff. Guess that’s where the cherry is supposed to come in. Pour is a straight brown, again, very clear for a beer with organic pretensions (guess it has to be heavily filtered if it’s not pasteurized). This is a basic session beer, and it plays that part pretty well. A bit of tartness over some sweet roasty malts, even a bit of peat. Crisp and bubbly, sweet and calming. Picked up at Wild Oat in Hinsdale, IL.

I am not a big fan of this brewer. This one I have had only once. Sampled from a 12 oz brown bottle this beer pours a clear chestnut color with a medium sized light tan head. The aroma is sour malts with a hint of chocolate. The flavor is sour tang and lightly roasty malts. The finish is tangy with a hint of chocolate.

2004 draught @ CasaBlanca in Harvard Square. Deep ruddy brown color, with auburn and ruby highlights. Not completely clear, some transluscent haze to it. No head, quite bubbly. Aroma of moderately sweet plums, sweet toffee, some slight notes of roast and of course, caramel. Flavor is more of the same. Very sweet. The caramel is sticky and wraps around the tongue. Lightly toasty notes mix with earthy graininess. Ripe berries and lots of plum and figs. Caramel sweetness seems to abate some on the finish. An ever so slight bitterness appears on the finish in place of some of the caramel malt, but it is still no match for the sweet, lightly sticky body. Medium body, some wateriness on the end. Well-made and flavorful, but it just gets very boring by the end of the pint. Too much sweet plum-like fruit and caramel. Needs more yeast apparency (of which it has none). Some tart cherry or black currant notes, which it mentions in the description, would add good balance.

Bottle pours a clear light red/brown witha medium sized of-white head. Aroma is of dark malts, grain a bit of brown sugar and carmel. Flavor is of burnt sugar, damp wood, wheat bread and very easy on the hops. In fact..did they use any? Feel is a bit thin and the finish is light and clean with lingering grassy biter. Agree with tigg "Pleasant but simple"