The public house is one of England’s gifts to the world. Public houses, or pubs, are traditionally cozy places, usually unique to their geographic location, where people gather for friendly conversation over a couple of drinks. The regulars are passionate and very loyal to their pub.  They know the bartenders, the publican, and the other regulars. Pubs are often the focal point of the community, especially smaller towns, taking a prominence similar to that of a church in some communities. Pubs are often controlled by breweries, so while they serve anything from spirits to soft drinks, beer remains the prominent drink of choice. The clients can spend quite a bit of time in their favorite pub, so the breweries began to craft beers that are smooth, lower in alcohol content, easy drinking and could please the masses. One such variety was born from grains that were roasted brown, affording a sweet yet roasted flavor. It came to be known as brown ale. This issue will review five brews, ranging from the most popular, standard brown ale to a more creative, crossover craft beer. Each one shares the trademark characteristics, but remains unique in its own subtle ways.


They Say: 
Well, this beer must be so widely known and consumed that they apparently didn’t feel the need to write up a true description of their famous beer. Their web site does contain phrases like “smooth, never bitter,” and “full flavored, yet easy to drink.”  I guess that will do.

I Say:
We start our tastings with a legend—Newcastle Brown Ale. This is the most popular brown ale in the world, and it is the standard by which all others are measured. It stakes claim to being the best-selling bottled beer in the UK, as well as all of Europe. It has a link to English pub lifestyle so strong, that it is nicknamed the “dog.” This comes from men using the excuse, “I’m going to walk the dog,” or “I’m going to see a man about a dog,” which really meant they were going to the pub. Newcastle boasts a gorgeous, reddish-brown body under a light golden head. It should be sweet, mildly hopped, with a creamy mouth and smooth finish. It should be one of the easiest drinking beers you can have, and has long been one of my favorite brews. Unfortunately, that was not my most recent experience with the fabled beer. I sampled two bottles of Newcastle for this article from two different stores, and each one was flat-out spoiled. Spoiled by light exposure, and spoiled by heat. It just has to be hotter than 65 or 70 degrees Fahrenheit to damage the beer’s flavor.  Long shipping overseas, trucking across country, sitting in warehouses, and then the time on the store shelf all leaves the beer vulnerable to mishandling. Inconsistency in the quality of imports is always an issue, but Newcastle’s use of clear bottles only compounds the problem. You see, nothing is more damaging to beer than sunlight, and clear bottles not only allow all of that gorgeous reddish-brown beer shine through, but also allows all of those UVs to be soaked up, too. Nevertheless, this beer is still the king of all brown ales, and I encourage you to try it, but I would find a pub that serves the beer on tap, cleans their lines often and goes through a lot of it. That’s the best way to assure that you’re getting the best quality import you can.


They Say:
“Clear, sweety taste, with carameliness and slight hop bitterness.”
 (I love their use of the English language.)

I Say:
So, I went to a second import for the next brown ale, from a Czech brewery called Klaster. You might expect that finding a good brown ale from a Czech brewery would be like finding a good Irish whiskey coming out of Russia, but they have done it.  Unlike the Newcastle, you’ll find this beer in a green bottle—much better for keeping out the pesky sunlight. I am pretty sure that the bottles that I sampled from were pretty true to the taste that was intended. This brew shared the characteristics you would expect from a traditional brown ale.  The pour revealed a lighter, reddish body with a medium full, off-white head. The scent was light and fresh with a slightly caramel odor. It felt light on the tongue with a crisp, yet smooth bite. Klaster Dark tastes sweet, light and somewhat fruity. It finishes with a mild, almost “appley” (to use their nomenclature) aftertaste. I think a bit more pronounced hops flavor would have made this a perfect beer, but it’s light, sweet and fruity taste makes it very drinkable.


They Say:
“It’s chocolate brown in color with a creamy texture. A malty beer with just enough hop presence to keep it from being too sweet. The aroma mostly comes from the malt with a hint of spice added by the hops. Moose Drool is brewed with pale, caramel, chocolate, and whole black malts; and Kent Goldings, Liberty, and Willamette hops. It has an original gravity of 13 degrees Plato, and is 4.2% alcohol by weight, 5.3% by volume.”

I Say:
If you’re looking for a fantastic, please-the-masses pub brown ale, this is the one. It pours like a manly beer, with its deep brownish-red, semi-opaque body and medium to full amber head. It has a very sweet, almost sugary aroma and a velvety, creamy mouth. The taste is also predominantly sweet, but balanced off with a tart hint of hops. The beer is easy to consume, very drinkable and has very little aftertaste.


They Say:
“100% Wisconsin malt of six different varieties impart the natural toasted color to this bottle conditioned unfiltered ale. Clean hazelnut notes result from these carefully chosen barley malts.”

I Say:
This hometown craft beer is lighter in color and mouth than typical brown ales. It hails from one of my all-time favorite breweries.  It has a light amber body and an off-white, medium-bodied head. The roasted malts in Fat Squirrel give off a nutty aroma, which plays into its toasted caramel flavor. The beer is well hopped, but not overdone. I would classify it as crisp compared to traditional brown ales. The finish is a bit tart, and the roasted flavor lingers on the tongue. I love the complex flavor of this beer.  The brew master’s German training is evident by the lighter, crisper and hoppier characteristics of this one. I would almost say it shares some similarities to a German Koelsch.


They Say:
“A cross between a Scotch Ale, an IPA, and an American Brown, this beer is well-hopped and malty at the same time. It is brewed with Aromatic barley and caramelized brown sugar. Notes of molasses, coffee, ginger, raisinettes, chocolate.”

I Say:
Not a traditional brown ale by any means, but very good all the same. Their description of the beer is right on. At a glance, a less experienced beer drinker might look at that and think, “Hey, I like raisinettes, coffee and chocolate!  I will love this beer!” But let me warn you. The fine print is in the first part of their statement. A Scotch Ale typically indicates a higher alcohol content, and an IPA will have a very pronounced hoppiness.

The pour of this beer reveals a more clear, medium red body, with a medium to light head that holds well. The beer puts out a tart, piney aroma, with just a hint of sweet caramel. The scent also warns you of the alcohol tinge that this beer has. It has a surprisingly creamy mouth for the higher alcohol content (7.5%). The taste has a sharp bite of hops and alcohol, but is balanced off with the roasted caramel flavor, characteristic of brown ales.  The Indian Brown Ale is delicious, but definitely reserved for those will appreciate a complex, multi-faceted beer—not for the casual beer drinker.