A Year of Craft Beer, Vol. 111, Stoudts Karnival Kolsch

Hey everyone!  Happy weekend to you all and happy birthday to the one that I wrote the letter to the other day if you remember from my blog 2 days ago about signs.  The signs were right!  

So tonight's addition to Stoudts Week I am reviewing their Karnival Kolsch and first let me say that I am happy that there are no clowns on the label!  The only clown that I ever liked was Emmet Kelly.  Maybe this will ring a bell:

I have only had a few Kolsch's in my time.  Mostly all at Brauhaus Schmitz in Philly.  It's a pale straw colored beer of German origin which can have mild to "assertive" hop character and can be "grape-y" from the malts and be generally dry.  Paraphrasing Beer Advocate there.  This beer is just that.  Light bodied as well.

This one is fairly east to review which allows me more time to get to drinking!

It poured a clear and pale straw colour with a nice two finger head which dissipated fairly quick to a ring around the glass that leaves a cool "puffy graffiti art" sort of lacing on the glass before settling back to the ring.

The aroma is of pale sweet malts and faint apple.

The taste is a little more complex.  It starts off sweet, but it's never really sweet because of the thin nature of the body.  As you sip, your nose picks up honey in the aroma and as the beer moves across your tongue the earthy hops tantalize the sides and back of your tongue.  Some VERY faint white grape or apple may be present and then the beer finishes dry and mild hoppy with some peppery lingering.  NICE!

The mouthfeel is thin and mildly dry with some playful carbonation.  

Overall I would say that this is an excellent representation of the style AND an exceedingly good choice of a beer for the warmer weather.  This would also be a great crossover beer for someone who needs be weaned off of that total crap called lager from those big breweries!  4 out of 5!

So do it!  But that person that you know all-too-well who denies liking craft beer a sixer of this.  Tell them that they are going to die not knowing what beer really is!

Have a great weekend and HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

-Wiss