Viable bottled kolsch (a.k.a. Commonwealth Kolsch) segues sweet ‘n sour orange-grapefruit tartness and white-peppered herbal hop pep into sourdough-breaded pilsner malting. Honeyed lemongrass tea flicker and light spicing relegated by orange-rotted lemondrop finish.
Worthily hybridized Hallertau-hopped kolsch utilizes lagered Vienna malts to redirect stylistic vinous grape esters and salty lemon-limed spicing. Light floral herbage scurries thru refreshing black-peppered citric crisping. Delightful pilsner or pale ale crossover.
Casual hybridized flagship offering combines soft-tongued Irish Red Ale-like caramel spicing with citric-soured German kolsch-related pale malting. In the backdrop, dark crystal sugaring contrasts mild lemon-orange tartness and dried fig-date nuances.
Infusing tangy grapefruit juice and bitter grapefruit rind into brewers’ Americanized hefeweizen, Backpack Wheat, totally alters flavor profile. Backpack’s lemony orange-peeled banana sweetness gets overrun by hefty grapefruit influence. Like a smoothly pale-lagered Kolsch, mild citrus hop bittering, delicate wheat-dried pilsner malting and wispy green grape esters provide easygoing flow.
On tap at One Mile House, resilient Brooklyn-Portland East Coast collaborative kolsch brings summery saison-like sour fruiting to spicy white-peppered herbage. Salty lemon-peeled grapefruit bittering created by oats-dried Mosaic hops picks up light pilsner-grained crystal malt sugaring. At the finish, zesty citrus intrigue takes command.
Sour citrus fruiting overrides fresh mineral-watered crisping and salty piquancy of easygoing summertime fodder. Moderated orange, tangerine, grapefruit and lemon tartness needs upgrading.
On tap at Burger Loft, fantastic light-bodied joy retains crisply soft-toned citric spritz above cracker-like pale wheat malt base and grassy hop musk. Brisk lemon-orange zest spreads across Bosc pear neutrality, juicy tangerine tang and mandarin orange tease in a simple, yet wholly effective, manner. Best Kolsch: 2015.
Sessionable pale-strawed dry body brings sour lemon-candied perk to sugary caramel sweetness, delicate lemony grapefruit tartness and soft grassy-hopped wheat base. Mild pilsner malting picks up light salted bittering.
Underdeveloped soft-toned ’14 summer seasonal in a can lacks appropriate Bavarian kolsch fruiting. Pleasant lemony orange mist picks up light peppery spicing, subtle hop bittering and mild corn syruping over biscuit-y sourdough base.
On tap at Shepherd & Knucklehead, caliginous grain-charred hybrid allows black patent malting and rye-smoked dark chocolate to override setback dried fruiting. Burnt toast acridity, cocoa powder dusting and mild coffee nuttiness reinforce mighty mocha influence.
Sour yellow-fruited Saaz hop astringency and meager white-breaded sourdough spine too thin for musty dry-bodied moderation. Murky lemony orange tartness picks up bubbly champagne grape esters and rotted green apple wisp over acrid straw-hay parch. Salty carbolic tingle underscores slim citric setting.
Middling kight-bodied summertime fodder splatters orange and grapefruit peel bittering across phenol hop-oiled astringency and soily earthen musk. Lemony midst picks up resilient fusel alcohol burn that may scare off softer palates.
