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Beer Tasting, Round 7: Amber Ale Showdown!
May. 6th, 2022 08:12 amIt's time for Round 7 in my Beer Tasting 2022 project. This round I'm making my Amber Ale Showdown. Two ambers have done surprisingly well in earlier rounds, leaping to the top of my list. That means it's time to put them head to head. Only one can be the best. *ding* *ding* 🍻
The two early finalists are Fat Time and Alaskan. I previously tasted Fat Tire against Kilt Lifter. It wasn't exactly a head-to-head matchup as while both are ambers, Kilt Lifter is purposefully a stronger style. Still, Fat Tire impressed me all by itself. Its slightly sour, hoppy taste I thought might be off-putting actually shone when enjoyed with flavorful food.
Likewise, Alaskan surprised me when I tasted it against Anderson Valley Boont. Going into that round I favored Anderson Valley to win based on previous experience, but in the head-to-head Alaskan showed that it integrated the elements of its flavor profile better.
So, which one's the champ? Again, it was an upset. Going into Round 7 I thought Alaskan would win. That sour, hoppy aftertaste of Fat Tire isn't my thing, even though it is relatively mild. I thought Alaskan's smoother flavor would win. But again that bit of sour proved to be a differentiating feature when enjoying both beers with dinner. Even enjoying them unaccompanied the sour bite was fine because it was just mild enough. Thus Fat Tire is the leader so far of Beer Tasting 2022!
The two early finalists are Fat Time and Alaskan. I previously tasted Fat Tire against Kilt Lifter. It wasn't exactly a head-to-head matchup as while both are ambers, Kilt Lifter is purposefully a stronger style. Still, Fat Tire impressed me all by itself. Its slightly sour, hoppy taste I thought might be off-putting actually shone when enjoyed with flavorful food.
Likewise, Alaskan surprised me when I tasted it against Anderson Valley Boont. Going into that round I favored Anderson Valley to win based on previous experience, but in the head-to-head Alaskan showed that it integrated the elements of its flavor profile better.
So, which one's the champ? Again, it was an upset. Going into Round 7 I thought Alaskan would win. That sour, hoppy aftertaste of Fat Tire isn't my thing, even though it is relatively mild. I thought Alaskan's smoother flavor would win. But again that bit of sour proved to be a differentiating feature when enjoying both beers with dinner. Even enjoying them unaccompanied the sour bite was fine because it was just mild enough. Thus Fat Tire is the leader so far of Beer Tasting 2022!
