4.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 4
Flavor 4
Texture 6
Overall 4
Nice pour, but disappointing in every other aspect — not because of what’s there, but because of what’s not. Hazy yellow pour with white head. Thin malt aroma, thin malt flavor and thin body. There’s some wheat in there and a touch of lemon, but that’s about it. Short finish.
Tried
on 16 Aug 2006
at 22:05
5.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
A refreshing enough ale, but nothing here to propel it beyond that. Hazy amber pour with off-white head. More malt than hop in the aroma. The flavor was sweet — caramel. Slightly bitter in the finish. Thin to medium body. Nicely carbonated.
Tried
on 16 Aug 2006
at 19:16
6.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
Light brown pour with small head. Sweet, malty aroma with hints of caramel, molasses. The flavor, too, leaned toward the sweet side — toffee, caramel, chocolate. Medium body. Smooth finish. I liked this refreshing beer.
Tried
on 15 Aug 2006
at 19:29
4.9/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 5
Texture 4
Overall 4.5
Bomber consumed on 8/5/06.
Fuzzy white head is medium in size, but after the initial flurry of head-bolstering, forced carbonation dies off, thus so for the head. No lacing, no sediment, pasteurized.Grassy, soggy, mossy hops are no where near what I would call anything such as crisp, snappy, lively, or biting. And ya’ need one of those in a Bohemian pils. Just seems like an afterthought of predictable, modestly aromatic hallertauer. More herbal/wet grass than saaz, to me, it seems, though apparently not so. But it just sort of gets cozy with the nose, very fuzzy and warm-toned, again, not at all what a Bohemian pils should be. Of course, it gets no help from the malt, which is sugary, not overly so, but still too much so. It sweetens the already flagging hoppiness and further kills any crispness. And then the yeast. Poor guys, they arent even alive. Hardly much resemblance to a real, live czech pils yeast, though no doubt Harpoon claims/will claim that is what they use. Just like in the saison, there’s barely any yeast character and it just comes off dead and nutty.
By now, I hardly even need to taste the beer, and in doing so am not surprised to find the same, dull, somewhat sweetish honey malts, bland dough, wet grass, herbs, some hay and a fizzy carbonation. No alcohol perceived. Medium body.
Call me biased against Harpoon (I’m not, IMHO), but anyone who thinks this beer is crisp is kidding themselves.
Fuzzy white head is medium in size, but after the initial flurry of head-bolstering, forced carbonation dies off, thus so for the head. No lacing, no sediment, pasteurized.Grassy, soggy, mossy hops are no where near what I would call anything such as crisp, snappy, lively, or biting. And ya’ need one of those in a Bohemian pils. Just seems like an afterthought of predictable, modestly aromatic hallertauer. More herbal/wet grass than saaz, to me, it seems, though apparently not so. But it just sort of gets cozy with the nose, very fuzzy and warm-toned, again, not at all what a Bohemian pils should be. Of course, it gets no help from the malt, which is sugary, not overly so, but still too much so. It sweetens the already flagging hoppiness and further kills any crispness. And then the yeast. Poor guys, they arent even alive. Hardly much resemblance to a real, live czech pils yeast, though no doubt Harpoon claims/will claim that is what they use. Just like in the saison, there’s barely any yeast character and it just comes off dead and nutty.
By now, I hardly even need to taste the beer, and in doing so am not surprised to find the same, dull, somewhat sweetish honey malts, bland dough, wet grass, herbs, some hay and a fizzy carbonation. No alcohol perceived. Medium body.
Call me biased against Harpoon (I’m not, IMHO), but anyone who thinks this beer is crisp is kidding themselves.
Tried
on 08 Aug 2006
at 15:55
5.4/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 5
Texture 4
Overall 5.5
From Immy’s Tasting. Hazy light amber color with a thin off-white head. Sweet honey-like aroma. Sweet fruity flavor, somewhat watery.
Tried
on 22 Jul 2006
at 20:46
5.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
Bottle. Dark golden color. White foamy head. Light aroma, and nice flavor, a little sweet.
Tried
from Bottle
on 18 Jul 2006
at 16:47
4.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 3
Texture 8
Overall 4
Amber pour. Aroma and flavor heavy on the cinnamon and nutmeg. Didn’t think there was much else here. What malts and hops there are seem well disguised by the spice, though there is lots of sweetness. The flavor is moderately to heavily sweet and lightly bitter. It finishes sweet and full of Christmas spice. Thin body and moderate to low carbonation make for a smooth mouthfeel. If you love cinnamon and nutmeg, this is one you will like. For me, cloying sweet and over spiced. Not enjoyable.
Tried
on 16 Jul 2006
at 13:39
5/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 6
Flavor 5
Texture 4
Overall 5
Clear straw color with no head and barely any lace - aroma of lemon rind, coriander and an odd smell that reminds me of that smell that hits my nostrils when I open a bottle of vitamins - saison my ass - tastes like some kind of pale lager - thin and watery - a bit of lemon and a very mild (too mild) spiciness - a touch of wildflower (lavender mostly), but you have to try really hard to pick it up - very weak malt sweetness in the finish - I really like saisons, and this beer is downright insulting to saison lovers.
Tried
from Bottle
on 12 Jul 2006
at 20:38
6.5/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 5
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 7
Pours a hazy gold into a shaker. Fluffy white micro head with good staying power. Musky basement and earth notes. Upfront metallic malt with a sharp bitter hop finish. Not a whole lot of hefe going on...mostly a keller...yeast is not there, but refreshing non-the-less.
Tried
on 20 Jun 2006
at 19:13
6.9/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Aroma is nice of grapefruit, pine and floral hops. Color is a dingy amber with a foamy head that laces. Flavor is really nice, a bit sharper than some IPA’s but really a nice blend of crisp hops (pine and grapefruit) and malt for a little bit of body. Only knock is that it is just a bit on the watery side.
Tried
on 14 Jun 2006
at 21:39