Cream Ale - Empire Brewing Company

mdfb79

New York

3.84/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.75

From 02/22/13 notes. Had this on tap at a bar right next door to Houston Hall in NYC; forget the name. Served in a pint glass.

a - Pours a murky medium orange color with one finger of white head and moderate carbonation evident.

s - Smells of citrus hops, fruity malts, tropical fruits, bready malts, toasted malts, floral hops. Nice and fruity, with lots of citrus.

t - Tastes of citrus hops, fruity malts, vanilla, roasted malts, burnt malts, and toasted malts. Less fruit here, but still quite nice.

m - Medium body and low carbonation. Body is super smooth creamy; really awesome mouthfeel. They nailed it for the style.

o - Overall a pretty solid cream ale. Nice citrus and fruit in the nose and very malty taste, with an amazing mouthfeel. Would have it again.

Serving type: on-tap

02-26-2013 17:54:49 | More by mdfb79

merc7186

New York

3.38/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I had this beer poured from a nitro tap into a pint glass.

I had this beer at the Ebenezer Ale House in Elma NYC.

A: Golden Straw/Light Amber hue, Think Creamy Off White Head, Great Lacing

S: Bready, Earthy, mild Malty

T: Bread, Malty, mild Hops

M: Great Carbonation, Medium Bodied, mildly Dry

Overall, a decent Cream Ale done justice by the nitro tap, decently blended

Serving type: nitro-tap

11-23-2011 01:42:54 | More by merc7186

soju6

Missouri

3.35/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Nitro-tap at Maggies On The River in Watertown, NY.

A: Served a golden color witha head that slowly fades to nice lacing.

S: Mild aroma of bread, eith some malt sweetness and bit of fresh grain.

T: Mild flavor of fresh grain, a muted sweetness and a trace of bitterness to a clean finish.

F: Fairly light body, smooth and creamy.

O: Very easy drinker, could pass for a good session beer. Nice for the style. A bit more flavor would have brought it home. Worth a try.

Serving type: nitro-tap

10-10-2011 18:59:28 | More by soju6

JizackFH

New York

3.4/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Had on nitro-tap at Rattle N Hum in New York, NY on 5/27/11.
Review taken from notes.

A - This beer pours a clear golden color. It has a small creamy white head on it. The head has decent retention, and it leaves some specs of lacing behind on the glass.

S - It smells of light grains and has a mild hop presence. Not much more than that.

T - It tastes of light grains and has a mild hop presence to it. There is a nice sweet backbone to it. The finish leaves some lingering bitterness on the palate.

M - This has a medium body and good carbonation. it goes down smooth, and has a creamy feel to it. There is some lingering bitterness in the finish.

O - This has decent drinkability. It is really creamy and it goes down quite easily. I think it being nitro-tapped really enhanced the creaminess. It isn't the most flavorful beer, but its pretty good for the style.

Serving type: nitro-tap

06-05-2011 11:31:59 | More by JizackFH

metter98

New York

3.58/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: The beer is clear yellow in color and poured with a thin creamy white head that slowly dissipated and left lacing down the edges of the glass. No signs of carbonation are visible.
S: There are aromas of bready malts in the nose.
T: The taste is very similar to the smell; the initial taste has some hints of sweetness and the finish has a light amount of bitterness.
M: It feels light-bodied and very creamy and smooth on the palate with a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is very easy to drink and is also very sessionable.

Serving type: nitro-tap

04-07-2011 01:54:47 | More by metter98

david18

New York

3.1/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

I had this at the new Taproom 307 in New York City, which will ultimately be one of the top beer bars in the area. I thought a cream ale is typically a lager brewed with ale yeast. Adding nitro would definitely enhance the cream effect, and it did. Unfortunately for me I missed the bite that one typically gets from CO2.

The beer pours with a typical waterfall cream effect and then settles into a cloudy light copper/dark straw color.

Aroma is somewhat bready, almost like an English ale. Not much hops to speak of.

Flavor is also bready, a little heavy on the palate and, again, not much hop or carbonation bite.

The beer is pretty drinkable but not really what I like. If you like cream ales or nitro beers you should try it.

Serving type: nitro-tap

03-30-2011 18:52:39 | More by david18

Hojaminbag

Colorado

3.85/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

After the standard nitro-waterfall effect that comes from the pour, the body of Empire Cream Ale settles into a clear yellow color with a creamy white head. The lacing is of course very good.

The aroma is bready and sweet, dominated by pilsner malt.

The flavor, like the aroma, is dominate by the malt. A wave of sweet malt is followed by the bready pilsner malt. One thing the flavor has that the aroma lacks is a pretty good kick from the hops, which I enjoy.

Mouthfeel is big and smooth from the nitrogen.

Empire made a pretty good cream ale with this one, it certainly did not take long to get through.

Serving type: nitro-tap

09-22-2010 20:06:56 | More by Hojaminbag

halo21

New York

4/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance: The golden, nitro fueled beer was poured into a pint glass on tap in the brewpub, releasing micro bubbles that cascaded to the top, forming a thick, heavy, creamy head, that lasted the whole pint, and then coated the bottom when done.

Smell: Very light smelling; mild sweet malts, with a little yeast.

Taste: Mild and sweet. To me, this is how an American cream ale should be. The flavor almost takes a back seat to the mouthfeel and drinkability of the beer. Not that they should forgo flavor, just in terms of the dominating characteristic. I think this beer has the perfect balance of flavors and size.

Mouthfeel:Creamy and big, but light. Almost like a meringue would be. Fills your mouth with this airy whipped texture.

Drinkability/Palitability:High; this is a session beer. One went down easy as can be; I can drink nitro beer one right after another. The CO2 does not set well with me.

Notes: This is a perfect example of an American Cream Ale to me. Where something like Genesee Cream Ale falls short, this brew covers; "mouthfeel THEN flavor", rather than "slightly more interesting mouthfeel than mainstream beers, with the same flavor." I really enjoyed this beer.

Serving type: nitro-tap

07-24-2010 22:55:07 | More by halo21

WesWes

New York

3.65/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

The beer pours a beautiful pale gold color with a creamy white head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has a light pilsner malt scent as well as some mild hop bitterness as well. It has a touch of malt sweetness. The taste is decent. Again, it has a light, easy drinking pilsner malt flavor as well as a good shot of hops. It seems as though it's a bit too hoppy for the style. The mouthfeel is fine. It's a low/medium bodied beer with adequate carbonation. This is an easy drinker. I can't help thinking that this is their Skinny Atlas Light brewed with ale yeast.

Serving type: on-tap

01-16-2010 11:27:08 | More by WesWes

tempest

Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On-tap at the brewpub for $5 a pint. Appeared to be served on nitro with a tall white head that slowly faded into a clear blonde body. This is a simple and well-made cream ale, a real throw-back session ale. It just has a light bready character with a touch of earthy salt and pepper. The aroma is a little dusty, but this is a respectable brew.

Serving type: nitro-tap

11-28-2009 06:00:47 | More by tempest

kkosmoski

New York

4.25/5  rDev +16.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

The nitro pour takes quite a long time to rise and settle into an extremely dense and silky white head. It looks more like a thick layer of homemade whipped cream on top of the beer rather than bubbly foam. Big clumps of lace stick to the sides of the glass on the way down. The beer color is a clear golden. Aroma is pretty faint and clean with notes of light biscuit and cereal grain. Flavor starts out with a light and delicate malt profile including biscuit and light bread. A slightly metallic bitterness pokes through midway, followed by light candi sugar and a soft grainy finish. Mouthfeel is medium with a smooth carbonation. The beer is easy to drink with a great delicate and pronounced malt profile, moderate alcohol content, and clean character.

To me, this beer characterizes what brew pubs are all about - experimenting with beer styles that are not run of the mill, and brewing them well. I wouldn't have expected that I could feel this way about a cream ale, but this beer is awesome. It is fresh, clean, well-brewed, and displays an amazing delicate malt character, not to mention the great nitro feel. This beer was nailed!

Serving type: nitro-tap

01-23-2009 02:27:52 | More by kkosmoski