Abstruse puffy-headed gold-hazed Belgian-styled medium body belies sweet-tart summer ale fruiting with wintry pine hop peppering. Initial dry white grape souring supplements banana breaded lemon pie illusions. Ensued candi-sugared vanilla midst preps tropical pineapple-papaya-peach latency and gaunt apricot-orange misting. On tap, white-peppered citric fruiting secured top spot above funky Belgian candied yeast and creamy caramelized crystal malting.
Monthly Archives: January 2009
RIVER HORSE SUMMER BLONDE ALE
Initial sourdough promise nicely enhances honeyed Graham cracker sweetness, mild yellow fruit tang, and clove-spiced remnant, settling into demure butterscotch linger.
RIVER HORSE SPECIAL ALE
Though never as ‘thick-skinned’ as hippo its named after, this astringent maple-malted brown ale fortifies bittersweet powdered chocolate assertion with creamy caramel-butterscotch-molasses link, wood-smoked barley thread, and herbal spices. Prickly hops carbonate sour prune dryness leading to candied yeast finish.
RIVER HORSE ROEBLING BOCK
Sweet candied bock with dominant barley roast, buttery pale malting, and receding dry nuttiness. Carbolic hops fade as toasted graining battles back coarse astringency. Label claims ‘lager beer’ under bock ‘title,’ and it’s much closer to the former with its lively hops and bittersweet grains. Plus, mocha presence too light for bock class.
RIVER HORSE LAGER
Obliging malted chocolate nose and toasted almond tease reinforce wheat-cracked pale oats sweetness for lithe opening. Roasted barley backdrop underlines tobacco-leafed lemon-spiced orange pith midst and unripe apricot quip, concealing mild acidity and corruptive oxidation.
RIVER HORSE HOP HAZARD PALE ALE
Robust dry-hopped pale body contrasts sweet mocha and roasted barley against mild grassy-floral hop bitterness. Honeyed malt finish perforates mineral water lightness.
RIVER HORSE DARK HARVEST ALE
Named after Greek hippo promptly displayed on label, acceptable, if not exceptional, ruddish-hazed autumnal ale stimulates mocha richness with lively hop spicing, scaling back light crystalline sugar malting. Smoothed-over mineral grains embed wispy chocolate hints.
RIVER HORSE CREAM ALE
Despite bubbly effervescence, citrus-tinged spiciness, creamy malt elegance, and pleasant grain finish, pale reddish-hued ale remains unassuming. Easy to drink, but in need of extra umphh! Beer’s been retired since ’08.
RIVER HORSE BELGIAN FROSTBITE WINTER ALE
Ambiguous ruby amber solstice seasonal (better brewed under 2011-initiated ‘Belgian Freeze’ tag) receives maple-sugared roasted caramel facade aided promptly by heady alcoholic acidity, moldy orange souring, and earthy oak-dried black cherry finish. Drawback: lack of specific ‘Belgian’ eccentricities and unwanted tinniness.
(RIVA) VONDEL FLEMISH BROWN ALE
Rich burgundy-like 8.5% alcohol-fueled puffy-headed brown ale clusters buttery whiskey-dabbed caramel sweetness alongside sour-doughed floral-hopped nosing, pouring like a root beer float (leaving yeast sediment in its wake). Tart apple dances on tongue before exquisite barleywine influence adds further depth and complexity.
(RIVA) LUCIFER GOLDEN ALE
Frosty white-headed froth and strong alcohol whiff introduce otherwise becalmed moderate-bodied ale. Various spicy adjuncts prickle lemon-soured grapefruit tongue. Yellow-fruited hop bitterness gains prominence over slim pale malt backbone. Love that strong alcoholic finish, too.
(RIVA) DENTERGEMS WIT
Weak soft-bodied blonde wheat ale (a.k.a. Riva Blanche Belgian Ale) with bland lemon tea entry, interceptive citric acidity, and tepid soapy finish. Dull lemon-hopped fizzing barely rises above sour yeast sash.