Mainstream Czech-styled session lager remains just a tad stronger than pale-bodied competition. Easygoing hop-toasted bread crusting and dewy rye persistence sedately affected by superfine sugar-glassed sweetness. Caramel nuttiness cannot overcome bland phenol spicing.

Stylistically shifty amber lager ‘brewed with grapes’ proves to be rather obtuse as advertised grape influence takes a backseat to brisk fruited malting of ancillary autumnal Octoberfest. Seasonal apple-peach-pumpkin-pied gourd spicing usurps barley-toasted almond pasting and leafy hop resin above metallic phenol whim, creating creamy frothed opening. But musty grape-stemmed earthiness, dinky red-yellow-green grape speck, and thin mineral-grained Scotch lick lose out to sterile Band-Aid astringency, leaving unrealized finish to flounder.

On tap, hardy crystal-malted dry-hopped golden-tanned lager packs quite a wallop, retaining rich wheat graining and loud citric-peeled bitterness contrasting soft clean-watered crisping. Caramelized Munich malt toasting, lemony orange-dried tangerine tang, and minor floral eccentricity create well-balanced flurry. “A sessionable year round Oktoberfest,” indeed. ’14 re-tasting: dewy Vienna malts anchored musty ESB-like peat moss and fig-dried orange compote.

Smudgy flavor profile drifts off to nebulous dry-hopped phenol-spiced floral fruited waywardness. Tepid caramel malting, petty grape-skinned orange-soured tangerine-apricot tang and muddled coffee-stained Blackstrap molasses drear sink mild session beer dedicated to vinyl recordings of yore.

On tap, wayward ruddy magenta amber lager offers herbal dried fruiting to cereal-grained toasted malting. Orange-dried cherry-fig-date conflux perks up diminutive almond-buttered chestnut roast. Puzzling flavor mix is as freaky as beer’s circus-inspired moniker. In bottle, ubiquitous gin-soaked caraway-seeded honeyed wheat tapestry provides funky promenade for bodacious limestone-salted lemon-bruised grapefruit bittering and stewed prune souring, upping its rating.

Blatant phenol acerbity drains light-bodied easy-drinkin’ amber ale. Slender sweet-corned cereal graining, barren honey-roasted malt whimper, and desolate almond paste divergence weaken latent sour orange tang.

Greece’s supposed “national beer” (brewed in Virginia). Clear sunny medium body amiably contrasts wheat-cracked toasted barley against lemony white grape sourness and bright citric tang. Mildly creamy despite astringency when warmed.

Sweet-scented lager offers dominant honey coughdrop essence for refreshing carbolic change-up. Creamy malted barley-oats spruce up ashy mouthfeel to sweet caramel finish. But light water texture and dank grain indulgence ruin its combustion. Still, preferable to Sleeman’s Honey Ale.

Silken foamy-headed amber-yellowed lager unites buttery mocha and sweet barley with lingered hop-fueled nuttiness. Soft creaminess envelops crisp Montana water flow. Closer to a smooth brown ale taste-wise, especially since it’s more complex than most lagers.

Crystalline soft-watered copper-hued moderate body not up to snuff in bottled format. Czech pilsner yeast lacks thrust as rye-wheat frontage falters, lemony floral-hopped grapefruit-orange souring evaporates and tangy apple-peach-grape aspect never challenges. Bland peat malts dim honeyed tea dearth. On tap, busier grain-toasted red-orange fruiting engages caramel-vanilla sweetness to twiggy finish more sufficiently.

Premium Polish brew since 1525 features regal Scotch malt poignancy favorably comparable to neighboring German and Czech beers. Delicate silk flow, barley-wheat sweetness, honeyed yeast tenderness, and lively citric-floral hop zest merge for evenly textured pleasure.