Subsidiaries
4.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 4
Texture 6
Overall 4.5
Mild malt aroma. Brown. Flavor is sweet with malt, and very little hops. Medium bodied. I like the caramel bock better.
Tried
on 11 Apr 2004
at 16:40
7.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Pours the deepest red with a thin ring of light tan bubbles. Toasty, woody aroma. Flavor is surprisingly complex with layers of bread (more precisely, toast) mingling with tangy wood, toffee, and just a hint of raisin. My second beer of the style, and this one is doing quite a bit more for me than the Old Hat Alt Beer. Too bad Schmaltz's Alt is apparently no longer produced.
Tried
on 22 Mar 2004
at 14:45
7.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 8
Bottled. I had this draft at the brewery last year, but this bottle leaves a better impression on me. Thin, transitory head. Darker than style, almost coppery. The malt is even a little toasty. There's a firm hop bitterness, just a little bit peppery. A very fine American pilsener. Can be slammed as a lawnmower beer or sipped slowly to enjoy its complexity (and yes, they have changed the label from "Pils" to "Pilsner.")
Tried
from Bottle
on 12 Nov 2003
at 08:04
6.4/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Bottled. Brown with garnet highlights, maybe too dark for this style. A surprising smoky quality, but also a taste of adjunct appears to be involved.
Tried
from Bottle
on 11 Nov 2003
at 09:09
6.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Pours clear copper with a thin off-white head. Aroma is sweet, bready malts. Very sweet-drinking, with an almost harsh, tangy aftertaste mingling with bittering hops. Perhaps a bit underfermented.
Tried
on 13 Oct 2003
at 23:03
6.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7
All the standard qualities I expect for the style are there, but definitely subdued. Some banana and citrus aroma. Flavor is slightly sweet, not much wheat. A little thiner than I like for the style. Refreshing, good.
Tried
on 24 Aug 2003
at 09:02
4.1/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 4
Flavor 4
Texture 4
Overall 4.5
Another below-average Trader Joe''s beer. I am glad these were available as 77 cent singles. This is easily the uglist APA I have ever seen. It pours a dark yellow with a medium thick off-white head. Some effervescence but the strange coloring really threw me. Aroma is lightly hopped not unlike a regular Lager. Flavor is really bland and uninspired. Chicago deserves a better tribute beer.
Tried
on 11 Jan 2003
at 17:52
5.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 4
Overall 6
Amber with fast fading head.Light malt nose.Taste starts sweet, fades to mild hops with a touch of ....spruce?
Tried
on 18 Dec 2002
at 18:45
6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 6
Cloudy amber,lasting off white head. Small intense bead. Light fruit malt nose.Exceptionally light malt profile. Underflavored
Tried
on 13 Dec 2002
at 12:33
2.9/10
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Appearance 2
Aroma 5
Flavor 2
Texture 2
Overall 2.5
Cloudy amber gold with small white head.Yeasty fatty nose and taste with some citrus overtones. a poor effort
Tried
on 27 Nov 2002
at 09:54