I come back to California for a few weeks but the miserable weather seems to follow me home. So I find myself still in the mood for darker, roastier beer rather than a dry and hoppy one. But so long as I'm back on the West Coast I'll sample something from out here, and so I stumble upon Downtown Brown. Downtown is a nut brown ale, and not being all that familiar with the genre, I'll just give my first impressions.
The beer has a fairly light mouthfeel, but still manages to pull off a fairly complex taste. it's very nutty and carmelly, and has only barely a hint of hops. This is the kind of beer that you want to go for if you're in the mood for something darker, but for whatever reason a stout sounds like just a little bit more than you're ready for. It's also missing the much stronger bite and the thicker feel of an amber ale (i.e. Fat Tire), which makes for easy drinkability. So even if it doesn't ever register as one of my big favorites, I imagine I'll be picking it up again in the future just because it will fit just about any occasion.
Downtown Brown is brewed by Lost Coast Brewery in Eureka, CA. Lost Coast is also well known for their Great White Ale, though from the looks of it, Downtown has actually won more awards.
1 comment:
I will follow up with Great White post later. It is a very common purchase for me.
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