Why we're here...

Beer culture is coming of age. At any store, restaurant, bar, or friend's house you can now find at least a few good brews. In fact, there seem to be so many new beers, breweries and bars it's difficult to separate the good, the bad, and the mediocre.

If you're going spend $10 on one beer, what should you buy? If you're going to drive 2 hours to check out a brewery, what's worth your time? If you're going to plan a Friday night, what has a good selection and friendly atmosphere? We're here to help you answer these questions.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Downtown Brown

Downtown Brown is and English Brown Ale made by the Lost Coast Brewery in Eureka, California. Lost Coast, production wise, is the 33rd largest brewer in the US out of more than 1,500. The brewery was founded in 1990 and is owned and operated by two women. Their beers have annually win awards, including Downtown Brown which has won awards every year since 1993.

Brown ales are English in origin and come in three sub-categories; mild, southern English and northern English. Brown Ales were the standard ale of the 18th century before the invention and popularity of pale ales. They were usually low in alcohol, 3.3-4.5%. They were just referred to as ales, until the 19th century when Mann brewery of London marketed an ale as Brown Ale which can still be bought today. Downtown Brown would be considered a northern English brown ale because of its higher ABV.

I bought this at BevMo. It has an ABV of 5.0%.

The beer pours a chocolate brown with an off-white head that leaves little to no lacings. The aroma is subtle with sweet, roasted caramel, notes of brown sugar and earthy hops. The taste has the roasted, sweet malts upfront followed by a nice mix of coco, caramel, that brown sugar taste, and earthy hops.The finish is sweet and smooth. It's medium bodied with light carbonation.

This is a good beer. It has a little more complexity than other brown ales I've had, but no big flavors that many folks look for in beers. Its a good beer to buy in packs as its easy to drink, good flavor and not high on the ABV. Next football day, grab a pack. I suggest you Try It.

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