Indian Wells Brewing Company's Orange Blossom Amber

This brewery has surprised me quite a bit. I was intrigued by the Anatomy of a Murder-esque label on their Lobotomy Bock, which turned out to be a damn good beer, with an imperceptible 10% ABV. Crazy. Same for the Amnesia IPA, just less alcohol. So it was good to find this one on the shelf, even if the label is kinda lame.

Pours a deep amber with definite orange a hue. Moderate light tan head, but I'm afraid I quick-chilled this one too long so it's more subdued that it would normally be. Great bready malt smell, with a hint of citrus. Not overpowering, like many breweries would try to do (I'm looking at you, Sam Adams), but just right. You know it's not there, but it's an amber first and foremost. Not some syrup-laden goo that has no discernible beer taste.

Well, it's a bit too tangy. Tangy(tm), even. Aftertaste has a solid malt flavor to it, and the hops are indistinct, keeping the bitterness low. Too low for an amber.

I hope it's just that it was too cold. I'll come back to this post when I try one that wasn't cooled off in a rush in the freezer, and I hope the orange taste calms down some.

UPDATE: Well, after a second bottle it's still more Tang-like than I'd like, but it's better than the first one I had. Decent beer, but like most fruit beers it's just too much of a good thing.

Stegmaier Brewing Company's All Malt Amber Lager

Never heard of it. The label looks like an old-school yankee brewery, a hold over from when the big three really took over and some older breweries managed to hold on just well enough to stay in business.

Great head for an amber, especially an amber lager. I'm looking forward to the all-malt part of this, but it admittedly makes it smell kind of flat. Great deep amber color, but oddly clear like a lot of heavily filtered lagers. Very malty for a lager though.

Wow. Surprising bitterness for an all-malt, and certainly for a lager. Bready and malty like an amber should be with a good bitter pop to it that lingers for a bit but finishes clean overall. Very good beer, especially for the style. One that I'll pick up if I ever see it offered in Texas. I just hope I remember it.