Beer style of the week; Autumn Ale

Week 33

First, to be clear, there is no officially recognized beer style designated as “Autumn” Ale. There are, however groups of ales that successfully, if loosely, convey the spirit of the demi-season bridging summer to fall. Heck, there is even debate about the defined difference between autumn and fall, but let’s forget all that and go with our simplistic explanation. Fall begins later when signs of frost begin and the leaves have fallen (fall) to the ground. You want a more bracing and substantial brew to warm your insides, and more importantly, it give me more styles to write about.

The Autumn Ale might slide a bit into the English Brown Ale style, if you don’t mind an extra dose of hops, a bit more roasted malt and the resulting kick of alcohol. Or, if you prefer to accept another brewer’s interpretation of what kind of ale best conveys the sense of Autumn, maybe a slightly amped up American Amber or Red Ale will fit the bill.

Whatever style the brewer borrows from, the Autumn Ale should have a solid malt body with a deep amber, or auburn to brown ale color, a substantial off-white to beige head, an assertive (not aggressive) hop profile and a bit more robust than the style it’s born from.

You know it’s time to locate your favorite sweater, windbreaker, lawn rake, and college football schedule when the first sightings of Autumn Ale hit the packies.

While Autumn Ale seems to be an American hybrid of some traditional English ale styles, we can find some of those originals still fit nicely into the theme of the season. Samuel Smith’s Nut Brown Ale comes immediately to mind as ale to enjoy in Autumn weather, although maybe it lacks a bit of the warming alcoholic kick I thought might be needed to create a new sub style.

Autumn Ales

Sierra Nevada Tumbler – Chico, California – 5.5% ABV12 oz. dark brown bottle. No freshness date. Marvelous dark auburn, brown leathery color with a medium-sized beige head on top. Loads of sticky lacing clings to the glass throughout.The aroma is mostly malt-driven, with dry grain, caramel malt and farina wheat smells. There is a bit of fruit and citrus peel to the hop aroma.The flavors are under-whelming. I expected a strong, sweet malty taste with a solid hop blend for support, but was a little disappointed. It sort of reminds me of a New Castle Ale, except with a bit more of a hop and alcohol kick.The body has an unexpected spritzy effervescence. I would like a little more solid, rich malty body in an autumn ale. Something to stand up to creamy, thick autumn stews, perhaps.

New England Autumns

Geary’s Autumn Ale – D.L. Geary’s Brewing – Portland, Maine – 5.8% ABV

This Autumn Ale is in a class of its own. Sort of a cross breed of Hampshire Special - sans the piney effect, and Pale Ale.It pours a wonderful teak color with a thin tan head. A nice blend of roasted malt and hops make up the initial burst of aroma. The aroma fades rather quickly. The full-bodied toasty malt is lightly sweet, with hints of caramel and dark coffee, and in the Geary's fashion, a little on the raw-edged side. Bitter citrusy hops mingle with a mild metallic tang and a slightly peppery spiciness. The flavors tend to balance towards the end and this brew just glides down the throat in a rich, almost buttery, velvety textured liquid. Oh my!

Long Trail Harvest – Long Trail Brewing Co. Bridgewater Corners, Vermont – 4.6% ABV

12oz brown bottle. Freshness date on label.
It pours a tan/cordovan with a smallish off-white head and some patchy and trailing lace.
The aroma is mostly of sweet malt and brown bread.
It's not as malty as one would expect after reading on the label about all the malts used in the brewing.
There's a light caramel sweetness and a taste of fresh marble rye, along with the essence of brown bread.
A sweet lime-like bitterness is matched by a taste of hard water and faint metallic tang.
This is a flavorful brew despite the fact that it is low in alcohol.
Nice stuff to quell spicy chili.

Pretty Things – St. Boltoph’s Town (Not listed as an Autumn Ale, but a damn good one anyway!) 5.9% ABV22oz brown bottle. Bottled on date stamped on cap top label. (Batch 10)

Served in a standard pint glass. Pours a dark brownish amber mahogany color with a solid 2" beige head and lots of webby lacing. Smells of roasted barley, barn, and resinous and citrusy hops blend nicely together. A whiff mixed fruit soaked in mellow rum floats in the background.

Brown Malty backbone with a touch of toffee. Evenly matched hoppy balance. A light taste of prunes with a hint of tobacco.

This is an amped up Brown Ale. It can easily slide into an Autumn or Fall Ale style profile. There's more malt, hops and alcoholic punch to this wonderfully crafted ale, than you find in your standard English Brown Ale.

Just a lovely ale for a cool evening! Very nice!

Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale – Portsmouth, New Hampshire – 6.5% ABV

On Tap served in a standard pint glass

It pours a burnt, orange-hued tan leather color with a medium-sized beige head and a fair amount of webby lacing.

A pleasant aroma of roasty brown malt rises at first pour. A light tea-light follows and lingers throughout. Mild resinous hops and a touch of alcohol fuminess round out the aromas.

The flavors match the smells to near perfection, with the exception being, a hint of a metallic tang noticed in the aftertaste.

This is a very fluid liquidy brew. The alcohol is fairly well disguised, so don’t just sit there enjoying one after the other and thinking to yourself, “man, these are tasty suckers, I can drink these all day long!”

Now, where’d I leave my favorite sweatshirt?

Next week; Oktoberfest (It’s on right now! – Sept 17 – Oct 3)

Quote: “And young and old come forth to play
On a sunshine holiday,
Till the live-long daylight fail;
Then to the spicy nut-brown ale” – John Milton – 1608 - 1674

Beer Style of the Week – Brown Ales – Week 8

Brown Ale was adopted and raised in the English countryside in the late sixteen hundreds to the gentile, yet proud Mild Ale family. He was a fire-roasted malt, and therefore required special care by dedicated brewers of the day. And he was very special indeed! Smooth and silky with a hint of smoke, sometimes nutty, and tad chocolaty, he was less hoppy than his Pale cousins and leaner than the Porters he ran with on occasions. He started his own family in the early 1700s. Continuing in his tradition of being Mild, he clung to his deep-routed belief that his family be brewed with 100% fire-roasted brown malts. Years passed as Brown’s offspring grew up and sought a life of their own. One married into the Hoppy family. They in turn adopted cute little Pale Malts into the hoppy brood. One was welcomed into the family of Porters. Alas, one of Brown’s offspring landed on hard times and fell into the hands of poorer and sometimes unscrupulous brewers. No longer fire-roasted, cheap malts added and sometimes dyed to look brown, it was a sad affair. In a short period of time cheap hybrids and offshoots of the fabled Browns became quite acceptable to the thirsty masses. Folks on a budget could have cared less. Any beer would do. The pure bred Browns were relegated to just a few loyalists of the day. But, as the old saying goes, what goes around comes around again. This is most true if you happen to be a worthy beer style.

The Brown Ale style (and that is varied) seems to be making a steady comeback in the hearts and minds of easy-drinking beer-lovers everywhere. Hail Brown!

Browns from the land of Origin

Newcastle Brown Ale from Scottish and Newcastle Brewery in Edinburgh, Scotland may be the Brown Ale that comes immediately to mind. At 4.7% ABV, it leans towards its Mild Ale roots.

Samuel Smith’s Old Brewery Nut Brown Ale – Tadcaster, England – 5% ABV

It pours a shiny nutmeg brown color with a fast-fading off-white head along with some webby lacing.

I love the nutty, earthy aroma at first pour. Sweet malty and tea-like smells mingle with a light whiff of fruit cup and bread dough. A very distant smell of cut green wood is noticed.

The flavors are incredibly uniform and tasty without any off tastes or weighted flavor profiles. Nicely balanced!

The nutty malty sweetness is tempered with tea-like, light citrus and a faint pear-like fruitiness. Mild alcohol fuminess peeks through in perfect harmony.

The mouthfeel is slick, not oily. A little buttery, not thick.

Delectable liquid brew!

Belgian Brown

Corsendonk Pater Abbey Brown from Oud-Turnhout, Belgium is a stronger Belgian-style variation of the Brown Ale. Bigger, bolder and sweeter than the English versions, this Brown supplies a fairly strong alcoholic punch. 7.5% ABV

Brown’s New England Ancestors

Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Brown Ale – Portsmouth, NH – 6.7% ABV

Is a nice Americanized Brown Ale with a bit more of an alcohol profile that your English version, yet true to form, has distinctive Brown roots. Quite good!

Shipyard Brewers Brown Ale – Portland, Maine – 5.4% ABV

The brown shoe polish color is true to the style. A foamy beige head rises fast and holds over the top. Fairly good retaining lace throughout.

Sweet malt and fruit bread smells, blend with a bit of citrusy and tea-like aromas. A faint whiff of peaty whiskey is perceived.

The earthy, peaty malt taste is upfront. A doughy wheat bread taste is followed with tea-like and fruit cup flavors. A little limey citrus and distant whiskey taste are ever present.

It's a fairly deceptively dry body, with just enough smoothness to make it gulpable.

Tell anyone in the UK that they are drinking an original brown ale and they won't bat an eye lash. Except for the slightly elevated alcoholic kick, there is no discernible difference.

Easy to Find in New England

Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale – Milton, Delaware – 7.2% ABV

Now this is what a strong Brown Ale should taste like! I've always been partial to Brown Ales, but lately it seems, they're getting harder to find. Now this one comes along and raises the bar - so to speak - as to what the style can and should be (even if this particular one is substantially more potent - nearly a hoppy Baltic Porter, but a bit more sweet and subdued.

It pours a dark cordovan brown with a nice firm tan head on top. Lots of sticky lace clings to the side of the glass. The aroma is strongly of rich chocolate malt, coffee, floral hops and mildly of alcohol. The ample sweet malt body is rich in dark chocolate; crème brulee burnt top, fresh bread and faint touch of licorice. Grapefruit, mild lime and hint of metallic tang provide a nice bitter counter-balance to the malt. A pleasant warming alcohol seems to bring all together.

Browns are extremely versatile when pairing with all kinds of foods. For mild browns, consider creamy cheeses, or Swedish Meatballs, or sweet ribs. A nice Nut Brown will quell the heat of Spicy Chili. Stronger Browns go well with Hot Turkey and Gravy sandwiches and can be used in preparing Beef Stews. Try the Corsendonk Brown to make Beef Carbonade, the traditional dish of Belgium. Good stuff, Brown Ale!

So the Brown Ale is back and in many traditional and exciting new ways! The next time you pour yourself a Brown ale, give the glass a knowing nod and a friendly wink. Don’t worry, everyone in the room will understand.

Cheers!

Quote: “Life isn’t all beer and skittles; but beer and skittles, or something better of the same sort, must form a good part of every Englishman’s education.” – Thomas Hughes, English Lawyer/Writer (1822-1897)

Long Trail - Harvest

Long Trail - Harvest Brown Ale Bridgewater Corners, VT 4.6% abv
12oz brown bottle. Fresh date on label.
It pours a tan/cordovan with a smallish off-white head and some patchy and trailing lace.
The aroma is mostly of sweet malt and brown bread.
It's not as malty as one would expect after reading on the label about all the malts used in the brewing.
There's a light caramel sweetness and a taste of fresh marble rye, along with the essence of brown bread.
A sweet lime-like bitterness is matched by a taste of hard water and faint metallic tang.
This is a flavorful brew despite the fact that it is low in alcohol.
Nice stuff to quell spicy chili.

Nogne O - Brown Ale

Nogne O Brown Ale- Gamle Rygene Kraftstasjon - Grimstd, Norway - 4.5% abv
1 PT .9oz dark brown bottle. No freshness date.

Pours an overly dark, almost Porter-like dark black coffee color with a thin, but creamy beige color, along with some patchy and trailing lacing.
A mild damp woody aroma fades fast. With some concentration, a whiff of dried chocolate malt escapes.

Tastes of strong coffee, toffee and scorched malt are upfront. Minor flavors of sweet grapefruit and a metallic bite lie beneath.

Oddly, for such a low abv brew, a light alcoholic fuminess is noticed.

A nice brew, just somehow floating about as a Brown Ale. Too dark for a brown, too mild for a Porter, perhaps it's a Dark Brown Ale?