I know I promised a series of Oktoberfest beer reviews, and many of those are still coming. For now I will expand the series to include any other seasonal fall release that I see fit. Why? Because I can, and because Sierra Nevada has entered the fray with their fall beer, and how can any true beer lover pass up a new entry from Sierra Nevada?
Sierra Nevada Tumbler, as awesome as you would expect.
On that note, yesterday I opened up a bottle of Sierra Nevada Tumbler Autumn Brown Ale. It was an appropriate day for this brew; the air was laden with the feel of fall. Temps were in the mid 60s with a wind that made it feel cooler. The Fightin’ Wolverines were playing, and it was nice to watch Shoelace save Rich Rodriguez’ job for one more week. And best of all, the beer was delicious.
Did I expect anything less from Sierra Nevada? No, but it is nice to have high expectations realized. The roasted malt flavor was robust enough to qualify as a legitimate fall beer, but never overpowered the hops which were present for the finish. The beer poured a very appealing orangey, ambery color. As this is a seasonal, I have to say I will be picking up another six pack soon; it was too good not to have at least one more time. I found this to be a very drinkable beer; a top notch brown ale. Better than Bell’s Best Brown, maybe even better than Newcastle. More research may be needed to confirm this.
I’m glad that Sierra Nevada has added Tumbler and Summerfest to their already impressive repertoire. The macro-craft brew capital of the United States has been Boston for as long as Sam Adams has been around. But if Sierra Nevada keeps this up they will surpass Sam and the distinction of best macro-craft will be Chico, CA. Sam gets his shot next time, when I review Samuel Adams Oktoberfest. I will also be at Corner Brewery’s Oktoberfest celebration later this month, and hope to have a couple new local brews to write about as well. Auf wiedershen!