Feature Beer Friday! - Abita Amber

Time for another Louisiana brew after featuring the Parish Canebrake about a month ago, the flagship brew from Abita (facebook - twitter), their Amber.  For starters, the Abita Amber is a lager as opposed to an Amber Ale, and it's generally characterized as  Vienna-style lager, which is a German/Austrian style that would be considered very similar to an American Amber Lager except a tendency toward the noble hops of Europe.  This is without much doubt the best selling Louisiana beer and many many people's "gateway beer" as they move from the macrobrews into the infinite world of craft beer.  

Reviewers: Eric Ducote (BR Beer Scene), Jay Ducote (Bite And Booze), and Jeremy Spikes (Whiskeybomb.com).

 

Serving: 12 ounce bottle.

Appearance: "Amber color, small head with no retention," is what I wrote down and there wasn't much else to say here.

Aroma:   Straightforward with a single malt note, this one scored in the middle of the field for the aroma, not bad but nothing special either. 

Taste:  "Caramel, malts of biscuit," was Jay's comment on the taste, and it was also described as "clean and crisp but boring."

Mouthfeel: It's crisp, it's clean, but no real substance here... all mid-range scores.  

Overall: It's a gateway beer, and I think it does a good job of being a gateway beer and bringing more people into the world of craft beer.  It's inoffensive, no bold flavors or crazy experimentation, but it's a lot better than the BMC products of the world.  If the options are Abita Amber, Bud Light, Bud, and Michelob Ultra, give me an Abita Amber.

Overall Rating:56.67

My Rating:51