Serviceable pre-prohibition style cream ale (in a can) claims to be staple in Rhode Island during the Sixties. A bit thin, its spritzy citric-spiced grassy hops creep alongside smooth pale-lagered Vienna and caramel malts. Mild lemony orange twist and light vanilla creaming veiled by phenol complacency. White-breaded spine nearly goes limp. But it’s summertime sessionable when chilled.
Fine canned version streamlines baked-breaded sourdough malting with resinous hop bittering, coarse grain-husked minerality and wafting cologne musk. Herbal snips and vegetal wisps glide through the salt-watered briskness as well. Serve to anyone intrigued by Heineken’s pungent hop bitterness or to less aggressive Dortmunder lager imbibers. Betters any marketed cream ale.
On tap at Mews (and available in cans), polite moderate-bodied cream ale makes for an easygoing, approachable session beer. Dry wood-toned hop spicing creases honeyed citric easement above crowded biscuit malt bottom. Baked bread, wheat toast and baguette illusions provide restrained alacrity.
Approachable moderate-bodied session ale. Light caramelized creaming and doughy baked breading contrast subtly perfumed grassy hop bittering. Lemony grapefruit splurge picks up mild herbal tea nuance above wispy ethanol pungency, finishing with a zesty citric-spiced zip.
Buttery cream ale seems fire brewed as flighty bittersweet cereal grains and toasted barleymalts reach charred hop bitterness, increasing filling nature of otherwise inconspicuous middleweight. Orange tang and butterscotch sweetness induce Scotch-tinged finish.
Brisk water flow saturates smooth pumpernickel foundation. Sweet fruited malt caress, orange rind bittering, marble rye reminder, and dry nuttiness knock back light creaminess to compromised finish.
Worthy light-bodied amber-clouded delight with solid head retention, smooth barley-hop confluence, and clean mocha-caramel malting. Arguably the best cream ale on the market for a short time. Brewery defunct: 2002.
Thick and chewy buttered malt creaminess differentiates Warthog from most crisp, clean, lighter-bodied Canadian brews. Smooth brown-sugared grain-toasted chocolate nuttiness lasts for the duration, gaining dry barleywine illusion along the way. Will appeal to less discriminating brown ale and light porter fans.
Brewed by Stark Mill for New Hampshire-based Milly’s Tavern. Overly foamy cloudy white-headed cream ale retains lime-y carbonation, uncharacteristic lagered yeast lightness, and unspecific tartness. Besides, creaminess lacks.
Friendly yellow-cleared cask-conditioned light-body too mainstream and soapy despite zesty lemon tagline. Aromatic wheat straw wisp penetrates pallid corn-sugared cotton candy sweetness, mild perfumed fruitiness, and illuminating coriander seduction to soft biscuit-y recession. Closer to a white ale, but labeled a cream ale.
Protracted citric hop simmer given subtle lemon fizz, floral peach-pear ebb, and quince hint. Washed-out faint bitterness and soft water flow lighten dry wheat-grass chaff to doughy finish. Despite lack of reputed creaminess, no negative traits disrupt this undistinguished middleweight.