JoBoy's BrewPub German Altbier

Over the holiday break, I stopped in to JoBoy’s BrewPub for lunch with friends and I ordered a glass of the German Altbier. The beer pours a dark brown color with a bubbly tan head. The aroma consists of caramel, toasted malts, and biscuits. The taste is sweet with caramel, plenty of toasted flavors to dry and balance the sweetness, and a biscuity mouth feel. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. This was quite a dry beer, but it had good toasted flavor that wasn’t overly dry, balanced with just enough caramel sweetness.

Bullfrog Brewery Dip Sticke Altbier

Another growler I picked up at Bullfrog Brewery and returned home with was the Dip Sticke Altbier. The beer pours an amber color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma is sweet with malts, cherry, and yeast. The taste is smooth and malty, sweet, a nice cherry accent, and a slightly dry finish with some bitter hops. The caramel backbone of this beer plays well with hints of chocolate and mocha. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. Overall, this was a delicious beer that was sweet, yet not too sweet, and I believe is a forerunner for best of the category.

Iron Hill Alt Bier on Cask

Another beer I had on my recent trip to Iron Hill in Lancaster was their Alt Bier on cask. The beer has a dark reddish amber color with a creamy thick head. The aroma is malty and sweet with caramel accents. The taste is sweet, malty and creamy with a bitter hop accent on finish. The alcohol content is 4.5% ABV. I thought that the Alt Bier was very delicious, especially on cask as it brought added a creaminess to the beer. In addition, a faint oak accent was also detectable.