Something at work was bugging me, so when I got home, I was ready for a beer. That’s when I saw the growler my sister brought me a month or so ago from Downtown Grill & Brewery in Knoxville, TN. She called when she was at the brewery to see what I wanted and this and the IPA sounded like good fall brews.
Location: Poured into a large Sam Adams Perfect pint glass at my home in Bloomington, IL.
Numbers: 5.6% ABV, ~170 Calories
Appearance & Aroma: It’s brownish in color with ruby-red highlights, and it’s very clear. It has a big, pillowy, creamy, cream-colored head on it that had great retention and lacing. The aroma is a mix of caramel and nuttiness with an earthy hoppiness.
Taste & Feel: The body is light-medium and the mouthfeel is somewhat creamy from the big head on it. There’s a lightly sweet caramel maltiness up front. The maltiness gets a little richer in the middle, with some nutty flavors in the background. In the finish, an earthy, somewhat spicy, hop flavor comes in, but the maltiness and nuttiness prevails. The malty nuttiness and earthy-spicy bitterness lingers for a couple minutes in the aftertaste.
Food Pairing: This has some caramel and nutty flavors, and is somewhat light and creamy, which I think would pair great with dry rubbed BBQ ribs.
Overall Impression: I enjoyed the maltiness in this beer, which was complemented by the light creaminess. The hoppiness added more flavor than balance to the beer, but it wasn’t bad. Overall, I thought this was a decent beer, with a good flavor and maltiness for a cold winter day.
My Rating: 
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