Review - Sebago Brewing Company's Local Harvest
"Our Fall seasonal Local Harvest Ale is brewed with hops and barley grown in Maine with the clear water of Sebago Lake. Local Harvest Ale is mahogany in color and has an intense bouquet of citrus, pine and lemongrass which comes from hopping this beer four ways: In the mash, in the kettle, steeped and dry hopped. After your first sip you will taste the fresh wet hops and the finish flavor of oily hops on your tongue. You will desire yet another sip. This auburn Autumn classic is balanced with the careful addition of chocolate and caramel malts to create this extremely popular local beer. Please support Maine agriculture and enjoy the harvest!" -- Sebago Brewing
Pours a dark amber to copper color with a healthy off-white frothy head with good retention. Murky body with a very cloudy consistency. Lacing is wispy with decent grip. Carbonation levels are very low to non-existent. Initially a strong sticky malt presence caught our attention. The malt body had hints of a sugary syrup and molasses. The hop aroma was rather light and overpowered by strong malt body. The alcohol presence was rather dominant, but not overwhelming. Initial taste is intensely caramel with a slight bitter tinge, and the profile doesn't change much through the finish, save for the bitterness falling off a bit despite the lingering dryness. Light to medium in body, slightly watery with a soft carbonation mouth feel. Our mouth puckered from the tartness and our palate was left drying over a longer duration. Our mouths were destroyed by the hops. Buying locally and using locally grown ingredients interest us. It's not a requirement, but (as a brewer/brewery) knowing that the same people who buy your beer could be the same people helping to supply the ingredients - that's a great feeling. Sometimes it is not necessarily economical to purchase something at 2x to 3x times the price, which will increase the per unit price - but it's great to help support the local community. As I digress, we are slighly torn by fresh hop beers. In the name, we want a nice - crazy fresh hop aroma, but we have settled for less :) The hop bitterness was firmly represented in the taste/finish. It is a very interesting beer - malty - but not exciting.
Reviewed on December 21st, 2010.
