Musty coriander-jasmine waft, blurred herbaceous accents and honeyed clove pinch nearly lost amongst sunny fruited vibe. Lemon-soured red grapefruit, green apple, mandarin orange, peach and banana glint latches onto concealed wheat portal. Just as lightweight politeness gets ponderous, doughy yeast subtlety and peppery hop zip enliven agile floral citric finish of off-dry sediment-dotted pale-hazed .
All posts by John Fortunato
LOST COAST 8-BALL STOUT
Robust, black-hued, cocoa-headed dry stout with sweet ‘n’ sour dark chocolate concentration given transitory oatmeal dalliance and spritzy hop flow gently backed by contagious mocha mildness, fleeting sticky maple stint, and prim nutmeat thickness. A chocolate pudding substitute.
LOST COAST DOWNTOWN BROWN ALE
Well-balanced amber-hued ale renders chalky mocha opening that subjugates casual coffee-burnt sourness, gentle caramel creaminess, and soft water aridity. Though chocolate-roasted sweetness lingers, overall lighter-bodied appeal, coupled with muted fruity hop tartness, seem closer to red ale styling.
LOST COAST APRICOT WHEAT ALE
Compact honey-glazed apricot lacquering fronts copper-hazed fruit beer. Sweet peach pie theme deepened by polite corn-dried cracked wheat graining. Lemony sugar-caned raspberry-blueberry tang adds to capacious hop-fizzed fructose juiciness.
(LOST COAST) ALLEY CAT AMBER ALE
Pleasantly mild brown ale-like mocha-nut ambiance consumes sharp-grained honey malting. Decent alternative for amateurs scared of richer, creamier porters, but a tad watery.
LONGXIANG PILSENER
Considering Asian auspices, extremely flavorful and surprisingly fruity. Goes down smooth with softly carbonated sweet water flow. Roasted barleymalts engage orange-red fruiting to relaxing rice finish. Serve with Chinese food (if you could still find it).
LONG TRAIL TRIPLE BAG STRONG ALE
Heavier malted version of Long Trail’s Double Bag boasts woozy 8.2% alcohol buzz, wafting red-wined bourbon-port notes, and creamy liqueur warmth. Sinewy honey-sugared mocha malts enrich fruity bouquet and perfumed spices intensifying lovely slow sipper. Bruised banana-orange sweetness saturates vanilla-doused cinnamon-clove spiciness, usurping leafy bark-twig singe. Tangy peach, tangerine, red grape, and black cherry illusions dovetail white grape sourness, adding further fruitage.
LONG TRAIL POLLENATOR ALE
With a dab of honey on the horizon, sugary water-based ale is easily imbibed. Carbolic lime spritz enhances citrus flow and bitter-grained hop-doused finish, but distinction lacks.
LONG TRAIL KOLSCH ALE
Fizzy cloudy-hued blonde layers citric zest above creamy malt richness and wheat biscuit bottom. Moderate hops complete the score. Not as distinct as it should be.
LONG TRAIL INDIA PALE ALE
Crisp, clean, mellow-fruited IPA much less bitter than its style presumes. Scant orange-soured apricot-tangerine tang, acidic grapefruit-lemon rind souring and unripe white peach tartness cut through mild grassy-hopped bittering and resinous pine slither to musty cereal-grained finish that subdues up-front assets and brings about tinny aftertaste.
LONG TRAIL HEFEWEIZEN
Mild citric-spiced summer seasonal places banana leaf waft above lemony hop fizz. Thrifty cereal-grained cracked wheat spine fortifies starchy plantain gambit, green banana continuance, and floral coriander-clove easement. Cotton candied finish picks up distant apple-pear nuance to counter impeding lemon sourness.
LONG TRAIL DOUBLE BAG DOUBLE ALT ALE
Gripping German stickebier (defined as a heavily malted ‘secret brew’) brings toasted white breading and caramelized mineral grain compression to raw-honeyed orange souring. Metallic whim dessicates ancillary dark cherry, raisin, fig, plum and plantain illusions. Sugar-wafered citric-floral spicing softens slack toasted nuttiness. Mild hop bitterness overrun by acidic alkaloid astringency that sometimes encumbers protracted flavor profile. And despite its unassuming nature, 7.2% alcohol flow makes for woozy boozing.