Downtown Brown - Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe

basscram

Florida

5/5  rDev +35.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Pours into pint glass from bottle, dark brown, literally no head except what is at the end of the pour. Not fizzy. No lacing as it is taken in.

Smells like sweet like brown sugar. Not a strong smell but a soothing smell.

Tastes a little nutty, taste hits tip of my tongue and quickly goes down the gullet. I can take big swallows of this. Taste does linger on the tongue but not annoyingly.

I'm usually not into browns and turn my nose up at them BUT, I must say, this has me wondering what else do I taste in it and if so its good! I like this one. Maybe I've not tried and English brown like this one.

Serving type: bottle

06-17-2009 02:14:58 | More by basscram

Surefire

California

4.97/5  rDev +35.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This is my favorite brown beer. Lots of flavor: coffee, chocolate, malts... but without the harsh bitterness of similar ales.

A: Brown, no flaws. Minimal fizz.

S: Coffee, mocha, chocolate

T: Smooth, hints of coffee, mocha, chocolate, with a nice tangy aftertaste. Very smooth and well proportioned.

M: Excellent... medium to full body, with moderate creaminess feel.

D: Great drinkability for a full flavored brown beer.

Overall: Outstanding effort in the brown beer niche. A great brown to give to a novice... full of flavor without being harsh.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2008 04:51:14 | More by Surefire

SteelKettle

California

4.63/5  rDev +25.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: dark brown with a nice thick tan head with good retention
Smell: Malty kind of biscuit bread with coffee tones
Taste: very creamy malty and brown sugar
Mouthfeel: very smooth with slight carbonation and full bodied
Drinkability: very very drinkable enjoyed a lot

One of my favorite!!!

Serving type: bottle

09-15-2010 20:49:38 | More by SteelKettle

RBorsato

Virginia

4.55/5  rDev +23.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

2004 Tasting:
---
Diff from below: Full light brown head. Light coffee character all around. Still an excellent Brown !

Label States: "Smooth, medium bodied nut brown ale"

Per Lost Coast website: 1993 GABF - Bronze

'2613' lasered on bottle ('03' emb on bottom)
Tasted: 08/09/04

($1.61 / 12 oz bottle)


2002 Tasting:
---
Dark brown, almost black color with a light brown head. Nutty and light roasty malt aroma and taste. Tastes exactly like I thought it would from the aroma. Light bodied (close to medium).

Overall this beer has a very nice soft malt character and is extremely easy to drink. A great session beer!!

4.8% ABV (per a book that I have on Best American Beers).

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2002 09:30:24 | More by RBorsato

Ozone34

Florida

4.53/5  rDev +23.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

This, after all the beers I've drank this past year(starting into the 100's), this is still my Top 3. This was also the first beer that I drank legally. It was on tap at the Cock and Bull and I have been continuing to drink it ever since. The brewers, Lost Coast, continue to put out consistent beers and I've never received a bad beer from them.

Appearance: typical brown ale, slight red/amber haze.

Smell:sweet with slight hints of chocolate and citrus.

Taste: nice mild carbonation, nutty and with a citrusy finish.

Mouthfeel: rather light for a nut brown; not a heavy aftertaste

Very good brew, all around good brown.

Serving type: on-tap

06-22-2006 20:05:55 | More by Ozone34

francisweizen

Australia

4.5/5  rDev +22.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This brown ale poured a nice "brown" colour with a small, neatly shaped, off-white head. The aromas are of nuts, alcohol, candy, patent malts, hops, and more. The taste is a nice mix of nutty flavor, alcohol, hops, and heavy malts. This stuff reminds me of Rogues brown ale, or Sam Smiths brown ale! The mouthfeel is thick, but not cloying and the drinkability is great too.

F

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2003 22:05:06 | More by francisweizen

Lou101

California

4.5/5  rDev +22.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

What more can I say. This is a tasty brew!
Bottom-line, Downtown Brown is an overall great beer.
You can never go wrong in ordering this tasty ale.
I have enjoyed this brew in both bottles and on tap and never had a bad pour.
Very smooth and even with caramel undertones.

Serving type: on-tap

12-19-2011 00:28:20 | More by Lou101

kmpitz2

Tennessee

4.43/5  rDev +20.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer pours a dark brown color with some nice ruby hues. Two fingers of head fall to a finger. The nose is nice mocha, little bit of chocolate, little bit of coffee, maybe a hint of caramel sweetness. The flavor is very nice. Intense mocha with just a slightly bitter coffee finish. Nice. The feel is a light moderate, a touch thin for my liking, but still not bad at all. Drinkability is very good here. As far as a brown ale goes, this is what I want to taste and smell. Good good beer. Thanks to clvand0 for sharing his spoils with me.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2004 01:53:51 | More by kmpitz2

vegantreats

Hawaii

4.43/5  rDev +20.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer poured with minimal foam with a brown color (the name doesn't lie). I immediately noticed notes of nuttiness and later a mild cinnamon scent. The initial flavor is of walnuts and, despite the beer not being thick, I was surprised by the flavor which had a bold almost porter like finish. I will admit I didn't expect much from the beer, I don't remember being wowed by brown ale, yet, this beer was a nice surprise, great notes and flavor!

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2009 03:44:31 | More by vegantreats

yesyouam

New York

4.38/5  rDev +19%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Lost Coast Downtown Brown is a dark brown ale that has a shade of dim garnet. It's crystal clear with a dense, creamy, light coffee colored head. It has excellent retention and leaves thick sheets of lacing on the glass. It has a toasty, nutty aroma with notes of roasted dark chocolate, walnut bread and a fruity grassiness. It's medium bodied, soft and smooth with a slightly gritty finish. It's fruity and roasty tasting. It's chocolaty but only a hint sweet. It has nice balance and it's a bit warming. It's a well executed brown ale.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2009 15:57:02 | More by yesyouam

clvand0

Kentucky

4.35/5  rDev +18.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This beer came in a bomber. Cool label and cap. Pours a dark brown color with a tall head that has nice retention and leaves some good lacing on the glass. The aroma is very much mocha, as was stated previously. Nice chocolate, small bit of coffee. The flavor is much the same as a mocha shake. Nice chocolate flavors with just a hint of coffee and nut. Perhaps could use a bit more body, but I like it very well. Great brown ale.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2004 16:11:53 | More by clvand0

lechroy

California

4.35/5  rDev +18.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 12 oz bottle into glass. Exceptional brown that is well balanced with warm toasted tones and mild hopiness.
A - loved the rich amber color and a nice 2 finger light head.
S - toasted warmth with sweet hops
T - Yum, the best part of the beer for sure. Really nice malt bill with chocolate overtones. A taste of hops. Dry for a brown, thats points in my book.
M - solid friendly feel. Smooth.
O - highly recommended brew for beer drinkers of all tastes.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2011 05:22:57 | More by lechroy

Dmann

California

4.33/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This was a supprising Brown ale. I am usually not a big fan of them, but this one tasted very good. It poured a very dark brown color and had a pretty good head but did not last long. The smell caught me kind of off guard with its smokey scent, but it intrigued me and I could not wait to drink. The flavor was great. It had a little bit of a nutty flavor which I expected, but it had a good hop bite and just a hint of smoke in there too which made this a wonderful drink. If I ever go for a Brown ale again, this will be my first choice

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2003 06:48:22 | More by Dmann

beertaster13

Washington

4.33/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

If this is what browns taste like then boy have I been missing out. Pours a deep dark brown with an off white head that is nice to the eye. The smell is of roasted chocolate and butter, a nice floral hop refreshes. The taste is a nice caramel rich chocolate with a nice floral hop in the end that balances out the sweetness, the hops taste so good with this, great combo, great beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2004 22:11:22 | More by beertaster13

drew37

California

4.33/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Went straight through a six pack with these and was impressed. A great brown ale with apparent tones of coffee and caramel. A highly recommended brew and will buy more of these in the future. Does much better than most other brews in its category. Will look to experiment with more Lost Coast Brewery beers in the future. Definitley worth a shot.

Serving type: bottle

10-22-2007 05:31:15 | More by drew37

electricfields

Idaho

4.33/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a dark, nutty brown. I gave it about a finger thick head. It dissipated quickly and left only a little bit of lacing on the glass.

S: Sweet malts, spices, with a slight nuttiness. Most of what I notice about this is the surprising sweetness and how the nuttiness is unusually subdued for this style (although, admittedly, I am not super familiar with it).

T: Bittersweet with a strong nuttiness. Chocolate malts with citric hops. Sort of unusual, but delicious. Tastes sort of like grapefruit, but sweeter.

M/D: Medium-thick body with quite a bit of carbonation. Still I've had a really hard time slowing down on this stuff. It's really tasty, really easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2009 08:03:15 | More by electricfields

bierguru

Florida

4.33/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

A - pours with a thick head which keeps through the beer deep brown in color

S - Caramel and biscuity malt you also get hint of brown sugar

T - caramel with hints of nuts like hazelnut and some oats

M - very smooth little carbonation

D - very drinkable

Serving type: on-tap

08-28-2010 19:40:36 | More by bierguru

KoG

Nevada

4.3/5  rDev +16.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Dark brown liquid with a tan head that leaves a small ring of sticky lacing.

Smell is slightly fruity with some chocolate malt and light hops.

Taste is very rich. Roasted malt with chocolate and an earthy nuttyness that is reminiscient of hazelnut. A very nice finish and very tasty indeed.

Another good brew from Lost Coast, rich and packed with flavor.

Serving type: on-tap

06-11-2005 02:10:45 | More by KoG

sinistrsam

Maryland

4.3/5  rDev +16.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Medium brown color with a small tan head. Not as watery as I usually see with browns.
The nose was caramel malt and nut, maybe some coffee?
The taste was very well-balanced (something else I rarely see in a brown). It had sweet caramel and roasted malts, mild sweet fruits, and maybe some very mild hopiness.
It was rather sweet, but not overpowering. It was semisweet to start and finished very reasonably with a nice long aftertaste which wasn't saccharine or syrupy.
I was impressed; this is a rare find for me. I'm always on the lookout for a good representation of the harder styles to brew very well, like a brown or a pilsner. Hats off to Lost Coast.

Serving type: on-tap

08-25-2007 18:41:48 | More by sinistrsam

ryanonline

Florida

4.3/5  rDev +16.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

from bottle poured into a wine glass

Appearance is dark brown with traces of ruby. tan dissapating head. moderate lacing.

Aroma is sweet and roasty, fairly malty and nutty. not too complex.

Taste, sweat and clean, very clean, with a nice nutty malty finish.

Mouthfeel is light carbonation and, again very clean.

Drinkability is smooth and tasty.

All in all not the most complex beer in the world but nice and well rounded. good for a relaxing drink.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2009 01:45:46 | More by ryanonline

DESTRO

Nevada

4.28/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

why have i been avoiding this? recently being converted into a brown beer lover, i decided what the heck. pours out a deep drown with not much of a head, but all together it is a nice looking beer. the aroma is highly fruity, very nutty, pretty toasty and down right lovely. (zing!) flavor wise this is good stuff. strong nutty character with a light caramel sweetness that is tamed by a sharp but controlled hop bite. finishes a bit dry and overall is very balanced. the only down fall of this beer, even though its no biggie...it is a touch thin in the mouth. not bad, but could use a little more body. now that we got that out of the way, this shwaithe is drinkable as all hell and much tastier than expected. loved it.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2004 17:49:57 | More by DESTRO

MLegendre

Oregon

4.28/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Dark dark brown with a nice fluffy tan head which disapates very slowly, a little bit of lacing.

S: Very strong small of roasted malt... almost smells like a stout.

T: Roasted malt is upfront just like in the smell. It is very stout like and even has some hints of coffee in the finish. It's definatly a brown, but it is quite a bit stronger than others I have had. Very tasty.

M: Medium bodied, and very smooth.

D: Lost Coast never disappoints. All of there beers are very flavorful and original. This is an amazing brown, though people looking for something milder than a Porter or Stout may not find what they are looking for.

Serving type: bottle

08-10-2006 05:21:24 | More by MLegendre

micahgoldfus

New Jersey

4.28/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured a red-brown with a dark 1-finger head. The smell was malty and of roasted chocolate and roasted nuts. It had a more robust smell than most English Brown Ales. The taste was also a bit more full and well-rounded than the other EBAs I've had. It was almost like the taste of a stout without the heavy mouthfeel and with a bit more subtleness to it. There was the taste of nuts (maybe even hazelnut), a malty body made of burnt coffee and chocolate malts, a oak-like aged flavor, yet a light, bitter bite at the end of each sip that played with with the well carbonated body. In terms of EBAs, this one is the best tasting and most drinkable that I've had in quite a while.

Serving type: bottle

11-15-2007 21:25:55 | More by micahgoldfus

alpinebryant

Connecticut

4.28/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance - Medium brown color with some red when viewed in a fairly lit room. Medium head which hung out for the start of the drink, and then laced on the edges.

Smell - Sweet maltiness , some chocolate hints, hops in the back

Taste - Very sweet malt with toasted and roasty flavors. Just enough hops to make it a light american brown ale. Very tasty IMO and how I like a brown ale

Mouthfeel- good carbonation, slightly watery composure

Drinkability - I had a bomber of this and was easily able to finish it off - had I another, it probably would have been the same story

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2009 00:28:29 | More by alpinebryant

JuicesFlowing

Kansas

4.28/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a conical pint glass.

The beer is a nice dark ruby mahogany with a frothy cream colored head that takes some time to recede. Really foamy lacing clings to the glass initially.

The aroma is rich in barley and malts, glazed over with a bit of caramel sweetness.

This is one of the sweetest, most delicious brown ales I've tasted in a while. Very malt-forward with a sweetened honey-like glaze in the beginning. A nice brown sugar body, and a toffee finish.

The mouthfeel is clean and medium to light.

Overall, I'm really impressed with this brown, certainly as a session beer. In fact, it may be too sweet with not enough hops to balance it out, but that's alright.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2012 10:36:42 | More by JuicesFlowing