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Out of the Bottle: Prohibition

My grandfather's 1930's glass.




As Summer comes to a close, it's time for my last summertime beer. A few weeks back, I brewed a pseudo Classic American Pilsner using a Kölsch yeast. After a fair amount of waiting, the beer is ready to usher Summer out.

The beer looks pretty good out of the bottle. Clarity is nice for bottle-conditioned beer and there's a generous white cap. The beer also leaves a fair amount of lace behind. The beer's body is dry and has the right amount of fizz. For those into numbers, the Final Gravity came in at 1.008, for an alcohol content of 5.8% ABV.

The line on Cluster hops is that their aroma is pungent, plus the flavor can be a little rough. I agree on both counts. Since I tempered them with Tettnanger, the aroma also has some spice. However, once I wrapped my head around the unique Cluster experience, I found myself liking the beer more and more. The malt comes through with a dry straw-like flavor. The corn can be sensed, but is very subdued. If I do another one of these, I'll dial back the hops to create better balance. Overall, this was a fun experiment that is quite drinkable.

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