Ybor Gold Amber Lager - Florida Beer Company

nsmartell

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I enjoyed this beer from the comfort of my own living room. From the 12oz bottle to a standard pint glass.

Appearance: Pours a straw yellow with a shade of amber. Small white head that disappears quickly.

Smell: Sweet malts and not much else going on here.

Taste: Malty with some hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Light bodied with low carbonation.

Drinkability: Quite drinkable. Would not kick this beer out of bed for eating crackers.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2008 11:54:43 | More by nsmartell

ElGordo

Oregon

3.75/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I've never had a beer from Florida, so I figured I'd give one a try. Poured from the 12oz bottle into a stange. Body is a pretty golden color, topped by a small, fizzy white head. Aroma of pilsner malt and lightly spicy hops (a hint of Saaz?).
Palate is sweet malt up front, with a touch of honey and the faintest hint of butter Ritz cracker(?). A flash of mild bitterness from the hops emerges mid-palate, disappearing into the background again amid the light malty sweetness, which actually dries out on the finish.
Body is light and airy, very refreshing and fitting for a warm-weather beer. I have to say, even in December, this is a nice, refreshing, thirst-quenching ale that's perfect for the Florida climate.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2008 03:57:52 | More by ElGordo

PhillyStyle

Georgia

2.58/5  rDev -22.1%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Poured from a 12oz bottle:

A: Poured a clear light golden color with a slightly less than two finger white head that dissipated rapidly. The head was moderately thick and left some decent lacing. Slight carbonation could be seen rising to the top of the glass.

S: Not much of an aroma, a little hops, that is really it.

T: Taste is average at best, if that. It had a light hoppy flavor, but it was somewhat watered down.

M/D: The beer had a medium body with maybe a little too much carbonation. Overall, the beer is really not that good and I did not finish the second one that I ordered.

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2008 18:15:04 | More by PhillyStyle

brentk56

North Carolina

3.15/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Pours a clear medium amber color with a rather modest head that neither retains nor laces very well

Smell: A hint of crackery malt

Taste: Cracker malt up front, that turns slightly grainy both mid-palate and after the swallow; lager twang on the finish

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body with moderate carbonation

Drinkability: Easy to drink, I guess, if this is your thing, but very forgetable

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2008 02:24:17 | More by brentk56

Portertime

Florida

3.93/5  rDev +18.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This os the Florida Beer Company's flagship brew. I used visit Ybor city for concerts and "guava-ween", their version of MArdi Gras. I had this one nicely chilled in a pub glass. Poured exactly what it says on the bottle: a gold amber color. Smell was malty and a little citrus hops. Tastes was farily well balanced with mild malt and hop character. Fizzy on the tongue but has a crisp, clean finish.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2008 15:46:59 | More by Portertime

GRPunk

Michigan

3.45/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On-tap poured into a pint glass.

A- It had a solid gold color. My first glass had virually no head, but the second one had a good 2 finger head to it. It sported medium carbonation.

S- The aroma was little muted. I could tell there were nice cracker-like and hoppy scents hidden in there, but they struggled to make it through. The strongest scents were fruity.

T- It had more flavor than the aroma would suggest. It had a nice bread-like taste paired with some decent hop bitterness.

M- Medium carbonation and a light hop bite. Dry/tart finish.

D- It was a good drinker. Light enough to enjoy in the muggy weather, but solid enough that you're not going to mistake it for a macro-lager.

Serving type: on-tap

02-20-2008 21:49:59 | More by GRPunk

HardcoreKeith

Florida

4.13/5  rDev +24.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Gold color with small dissipating head. Smells faintly of hops and malt. The taste was quite excellent, reminding me highly of Sam Adams. Crisp and delicious with noticible hop bitterness. I'm very glad that at least one really good brew is coming out of Florida.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2008 18:44:48 | More by HardcoreKeith

franksnbeans

Ohio

3.28/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours golden with minimal white head that dies immediatly. Smells grainy and, like water. Taste is mildly refreshing with grain and water and a hint of something that might be malt. Smooth and thin in the mouth. If you dont need taste and want something that can go down quick and easy, this could do it.

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2007 04:58:47 | More by franksnbeans

GreenWBush

Oregon

3.48/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Not amber. Good lace retention, though. Pale gold.

Nose is toasted grains, butterscotch, uhh…I’m trying to think of something where there isn’t anything. Not too different from the nose of the pale ale.

Taste is actually pretty good, surprising me since I haven’t been too impressed by this brewery. No off-flavors, and nice grain outro. True-to-type, despite the appearance.

Good smooth nice MF. Prickly outro.

Serving type: bottle

08-21-2007 03:26:33 | More by GreenWBush

BrewSomerville

Ontario (Canada)

3.35/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Aroma is a little faint (might just be me). But at first I detected a little bit of a malty-sweet smell followed by some floral hoppy aromas. I might have smelled something like apple in there too.

The colour is a golden copper with a little tinge of amber (not enough amber to justify the name in my opinion). It produced a small white head that did not last long. No lace to be found at all.

The flavour was not bold in any way. It is fairly balanced, but I'd have to say that the malt comes out on the top. The hops are hardly even noticeable which directly opposes what the label claims that it tastes like. There was a bit of a metallic taste. There is some caramel in there too.

Mouthfeel is good for a lager in my opinion. I'ts medium bodied. Avg carbonation...maybe even a little less aggressively carbonated than an average lager.

Overall, I think it would be a great gateway Beer for someone just getting into the world of craft Beers.

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2007 03:45:10 | More by BrewSomerville

smcolw

Massachusetts

2.8/5  rDev -15.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Crystal clear; only a shade darker than straw. Okay head for a lager, with a good lace ring.

Neutral malt aroma that is inviting but uninvigorating. Very little hop.

Relatively light flavor. This is a dry beer with a touch of hop bitterness. Good body for a lager; high carbonation. A step up from the lawn-mower crowd; great for a hot day.

Overall, an easy beer to consume. Not really a top notch offering--something of a mix between the macrobrewed and the microbrewed. This is a great stepping stone for the Bud and Miller drinkers who think microbeers are too strong.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2007 00:26:31 | More by smcolw

Drew966

Florida

2.7/5  rDev -18.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Ybor Gold Amber Lager pours a light copper color with a thin white head from a brown twelve ounce bottle. I can smell a touch of malt in the aroma but that's about it. Flavorwise, I'm most struck by the caramel malt of this beer, there are some hops, but this is just a mediocre beer, it's not well balanced and not very enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2007 01:23:08 | More by Drew966

SkeeterHawk

Texas

3.88/5  rDev +17.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance. Pours really clear with a small head of tight white bubbles that fell pretty quickly. The beer itself is a golden orange color that is very still after the head falls

Aroma. This beer smells sweet and clean with a caramel apple aroma that dominates. There is also a defined vanilla aroma here that enhances its dessert like sweetness.

Taste. The flavor is clean and doesn't have the vanilla that I got in the nose. The sweetness is the key player here with a pretty generous helping of hops to give the finish and balance of the flavor a floral component. This enhances the honey like sweetness to make it seem more heavy nodied than it is.

Opinion. This is a pretty decent beer. I think that the malt is a bit too in charge and that the additions were too little too late. Other than this, the lagering gave the beer a clean palate. I would drink this again, but I hope that it would be a bit more...flavorful I guess.

Serving type: bottle

03-07-2007 06:57:44 | More by SkeeterHawk

jettjon

Florida

3.5/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

From a 12 oz bottle from the Ybor multipack, "June" notched on the freshness date, though quite alarmingly, only "03, 04, and 05" were listed for years. I'm assuming "2007."

Into the pint glass, pours a yellow-orange somewhat hazy color with few bubbles. A vigorous pour yields a 1-finger head with pretty good retention and minor lacing. Fades down to a spotty cap. Nose is bready/yeasty and a bit hoppy. Tastes of semi-sweet malt fading to a sweet, fairly bland finish. Mouth is wet and refreshing with mild carbonation. Drinkability is pretty good; it’s easy going and agreeable.

Overall: Decent but hardly a standout. Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

01-21-2007 18:39:32 | More by jettjon

treehugger02010

Pennsylvania

3.05/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

I got this brew at a wedding in Tampa, Fl. It poured a nice amber color, that was rather translucent. There was not much head to speak of, and what was, retented fast. The lacing that sould have been left was absence. On top of this, there was no aroma, reminisecent of a macro lager. The taste had hints of hops and a tinge of malt undertones. The mouthfeel was the best, being sort of smooth. A fair beer. Don't drink and review.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2007 05:16:08 | More by treehugger02010

jwc215

New Jersey

3.15/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Has a freshness label, but nothing marked.

Poured light orangish gold with a very quickly disappearing white head that became a thin patchy foam.

Some grassiness was present - somewhat similar to a pilsener aroma.

The taste was of thin grassiness and a touch of mild hops. Some malt present, but more could be used to lend it more balance and body, imo. A slight metallic touch was noticeable.

It was pretty watery, fairly refreshing and smooth for the most part. The water did mask some of the mild flavors.

Not a great example of the style. But, not bad as a quick thirst-quencher on a hot day or to wash down some food with.

Serving type: bottle

08-11-2006 18:16:42 | More by jwc215

cjgator3

Florida

3.25/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4

Bought from a mix pack of Ybor Gold brews and this was one of the 5 beers featured. Pours a slightly hazy pale orange color with a quickly dissapearing white head. Aroma is malt, biscuits, grass and hops. Taste is light and crisp with malt dominating the taste followed by a quick hop bitterness towards the end. Just not too much going on here. Will not be purchasing this again unless I find it on tap somewhere.

Serving type: bottle

07-17-2006 22:36:10 | More by cjgator3

Byeast

Florida

3.95/5  rDev +19.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

This american amber poured just that , a golden amber/orange hue with a small and quickly dissipating white head. Smell is mainly of the malts, toasty ,vienna/munich malt and also a fair amount of hop scent , quite nice. Taste is also malty. Some distinct hop bitterness to balance. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a slight crispness to the carbonation. I found this to be very tasty and drinkable american amber lager , brewed in the german lager style. I'll have to try and get a keg from the brewery here in FL!

Serving type: bottle

04-19-2006 03:12:44 | More by Byeast

garymuchow

Minnesota

2.93/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

The aroma really doesn't have much of a presence. Hints of malt with a touch of graininess and sweetness and no definitive hop quality. As warms the malt dominates.
Dark gold pushing amber with a very short lived shallow head that eventually just leaves a ring.
Malt really doesn't make much of a presence at first, but in time it shows a slight sweetness. Then as it warms it takes on a heaviness of a not so pleasing flavor. Other flavor comes from the bitterness that appears in middle with a strengthening through the finish. Dryness matches the bitterness, except at th end in which it is much longer and really rather dry.
Fullness from carbonation makes it a bit filling. Somewhat soft, otherwise on the light side.
This beer leaves me wanting. I'm just not a fan of the balancing. My first bottle the bitterness was excessive. The second time that wasn't so, but the malt had a grainy flavor that I didn't like.

Serving type: bottle

03-29-2006 05:00:49 | More by garymuchow

ommegangpbr

New York

3.53/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I tend not to really dig red or amber lagers or ales. This one doesn't have elements of the style that tend to rub me the wrong way so I rather enjoyed it.
Pours a clear, pale honey color. Bright in appearance, scent and flavor. Lightly floral and champagney in scent and flavor. The bitterness that I don't like in reds is toned down here but keeps a certain tangyness. On the bready side... a milder rye bread kind of thing, perhaps (I tend not to like strong flavored rye breads, either).
Easy drinkin all in all.

Serving type: bottle

02-28-2006 05:55:31 | More by ommegangpbr

Backer2004

North Carolina

3.98/5  rDev +20.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Received this in a Beer of the Month club and enjoyed every one fully. Interesting story about the history of the brewery, its transformation from Cuban cigar factory, and its storied past. Great label that includes a chart of its color, taste, and body (considered above average in darkness, maltiness, and body). A bit lighter for a nut brown. Would definitely be interested in trying more Florida Beer Company brews.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2006 03:47:49 | More by Backer2004

Gueuzedude

Arizona

3.38/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a brilliantly clear copper color and is topped by a thin pale cream colored head. The aroma has a nice toasted biscuit malt note, a bit of sweetness that seems a bit fruity (which is atypical of a lager), in fact it smells a bit like grapes in the finish. The taste has a light malty sweetness to it up front, which continues through to the finish and is in fact the dominant note of this beer. There is a nice light bitterness in the finish as well that lingers for a bit. The beer also has a nice toasted malt taste to it and a bit of thin astringency to it. This is a really easy drinking, light and simplistic.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2005 04:22:03 | More by Gueuzedude

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.33/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A pretty good bee considering the style. Pours a nice clear golden-copper color with a little more carbonation than expected. Somewhat fizzy head that faded to a film. Holds nice aromas of barley malt, caramel, apples, bread, and a pleasant yeast souring. Tastes are similar, throw in sweet wort-like flavors with a nice dosage of bittering and flavoring hops (the American way). Feels light to medium on the palate, waters a bit in the finish leaving an abrupt hop residual flavor. A pretty good beer, although a but raw or green.

Serving type: bottle

09-01-2005 13:31:04 | More by BEERchitect

Shaw

Florida

3.78/5  rDev +14.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A pretty golden color with a very light head that vanishes in my glass. The smell is of malt and a teeny bit of hops. The taste is well balanced. It is crisp with just a hint of bitterness in the aftertaste. There is plenty of flavor in this beer.

The body is good with just the right amount of substance.

I have usually discounted Ybor beers, even though they are just about the only "local" craft beer available here. This is a great alternative to macro lagers and a good session beer for drinking on a hot, humid Florida day. Give this beer to beer drinkers who only drink BMC products. I bet they'll like it.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2005 05:38:02 | More by Shaw

frazbri

Ohio

3.43/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Pours a clear copper / gold body, with short head and decent lacing. Aroma of bread and honey with faint hop nose. Sweet and bready with a little honey sweetness and a small dose of bitterness. Medium - light body and carbonation, relatively dry finish.

After a couple days on the gulf coast, I needed to find a real beer. This was my choice. (frankly it was this or Yuengling) I wouldn't call this spectacular, but Ybor was damn refreshing. I'd take this over your everyday fizzy yellow lagers any day.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2005 00:50:11 | More by frazbri