Railway City Iron Spike - Amber Ale - Railway City Brewing Company

mrmanning

Ontario (Canada)

3.43/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Decants from the growler, a very dark mahogany liquid with deep ruby around the edges. Billowing, off white, fluffy cap appears and lasts. The nose is dark fruit and cookie dough, with burnt sugars and caramel with a nice spice contingent. Tastes of sweet doughy malts, floral spices, bubblegum, and banana. Creamy, medium bodied. This beats all of the other "amber" beers available in this area, hands down. An amber with flavour, body and character. Well done.

Serving type: growler

06-06-2008 17:52:30 | More by mrmanning

pootz

Ontario (Canada)

3.43/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Growler from the brewery:

Pours a clear dark amber-red with a modest white cap.

Aroma: plumb-apricot with some toastiness and grassy tones.

Medium body, light sweet toasty caramel malt profile, fruity esters and some hop resins in a light drying finish.

Uncomplicated straight forward session amber.

Serving type: growler

05-28-2010 02:05:45 | More by pootz

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.25/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Plastic bottle fresh, enjoyed a the brewery. The boldest taste of their three starting beers. A crowning head, a bit of lace. Nicely carbonated and the mst colour of their three. Like a mild red ale in colour and taste. A richer malted taste. Average or less mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2008 02:58:10 | More by northyorksammy

kwjd

Ontario (Canada)

3.2/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Had this on tap at The Rebel House in Toronto. Pours a clear amber colour with very thin off-white head. The head dissipates rather quickly without any lacing. Smells of sweet caramel malt. Flavour has a bit of an odd aftertaste, but it is mostly sweet and inoffensive. Thin mouthfeel.

Serving type: on-tap

02-14-2011 20:16:21 | More by kwjd

thehyperduck

Ontario (Canada)

3.1/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

500 mL bottle from the brewery; best before Jan 7 2013. I believe they stopped brewing this a few weeks ago, which may explain why there were only two bottles left. I'll take into account the fact that it probably isn't particularly fresh during the course of this review.

Pours a lovely ruby-amber colour; deep in hue but still clear, topped with one finger of fizzy, off-white head that is in a hurry to go somewhere else. Pretty flat looking, but considering the age of this beer I wasn't expecting much different. Mild aroma with notes of butterscotch, pears, plums, raisins, and maybe some other orchard fruits - enjoyable enough, not really what I expect from an amber.

The malt backbone is light and doughy, with some weak caramel sweetness. This leads into the more prominent orchard fruit flavours, of which plums, grape and green apple skin are the easiest to distinguish. Floral, somewhat fruity aftertaste. Light-bodied and kind of watery, with minimal carbonation for a smooth, slick feel going down the gullet. Easy to drink quickly, if nothing else.

Not bad, but I have a feeling the fruity, funky vibes I am getting from this stuff are less purposeful features than mere products of oxidation. It doesn't taste awful, but it's clearly past its prime. As it stands though, I have to believe that they made the right choice when they made this Amber seasonal and stuck with the Copper Ale as their year-round session ale offering. That stuff makes for a solid quaff, but even without the oxidation, I can't envision the amber being a particularly memorable brew to begin with.

Final Grade: 3.1, a manageable C+. I'll reserve my final judgment on Railway City's Amber Ale until next fall, when I'll (hopefully) be able to get my hands on a fresher bottle. This particular example was noticeably off, with far more of an apple juice vibe than was probably intended - but since it's not technically expired, and I picked it up at the actual brewery itself, I feel it's a justifiably reviewable example. Might be worth a try next September or October, but if this bottle is any indication I wouldn't risk it later in the season.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 21:02:06 | More by thehyperduck