He'Brew Messiah Nut Brown Ale - Shmaltz Brewing Company

UCLABrewN84

California

3.45/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a clear but super dark brown with a 1/2 inch foamy khaki head that settles to an oily film on top of the beer. Small streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of toasted malt and some nutty aromas. Not too much going on in the smell department unfortunately. Taste is of toasted and almost burnt malt, toasted nuts, and slight caramel flavors. There is a mild roasty bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good brown ale with some nice toasty and roasty flavors.

Serving type: bottle

05-27-2012 21:20:44 | More by UCLABrewN84

TMoney2591

Illinois

2.83/5  rDev -21.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Served in an Ohio State shaker pint glass.

It's only fitting I be drinking this stuff here at Jon's. If only he were here... Anyway, this stuff pours a very dark sienna topped by a finger of glowing khaki foam. The nose comprises light cola, very light nuts, and a vague sense of toasted/roasted malts. Things sorta resemble old Coke that's been left out by a basket of peanuts. Something like that. The taste holds notes of light walnut, light dried maple syrup, mild toffee, and light toasted biscuit. The body is a light medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a sorta/kinda watery feel. Overall, a weak little brown ale, one that just doesn't step up enough for me.

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2012 10:59:44 | More by TMoney2591

metter98

New York

3.66/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

A: The beer is clear dark brownish amber in color and has a moderate amount of visible carbonation. It poured with a finger high dense beige head that gradually died down and consistently left a thin head covering the surface and a coating of bubbles down the sides of the glass.
S: There are light aromas of chocolate in the nose.
T: The taste is similar to the smell, but is a little stronger, having flavors of chocolate and nutty malts along with a very slight amount of bitterness and some hints of earthy yeast towards the finish.
M: It feels a little more than light-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is quite chocolaty compared to other nut brown ales. It is also rather easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

02-09-2013 03:19:56 | More by metter98

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.73/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12oz bottle, another nice single find in this American craft beer far-flung consumer outpost.

This beer pours a clear, deep, dark reddish cola hue, with two fingers of supertight, fine foamy beige head, which leaves a few streaks of bleeding cut lace around the glass as it slowly sifts away.

It smells of lightly roasted caramel malt, a twinge of edgy toffee, oily mixed nuts, and herbal citrus hops. The taste is somewhat biscuity, semi-sweet bready malt, a grainy, almost dry nuttiness, some dark, singed wood-tinted sugar, some mild generic citrus notes, and earthy, leafy hops.

The bubbles are rather sedate, but still softly burbling in the background, the body a sturdy medium weight, and generally smooth. It finishes off-dry, the nuttiness pulling more or less even with the malt by this point, while the hops loiter about listlessly.

A tasty enough brown ale, the inherent nuttiness showing some commendable staying power - the flavour does not let up to the (not so) bitter end. Not a smack in one's keister, but at least worthy of seeking out more, methinks.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2012 23:34:48 | More by biboergosum

lacqueredmouse

Australia

3.48/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Purchased at Berkeley Bowl West in Berkeley, CA.

Pours a mild brown colour, with good clarity, but almost no head—what forms is a fine ring of flimsy suds. Very light body, no lacing. Overall, it looks pretty insipid, to be perfectly honest.

Nose is mild and pleasantly grainy, with an organic, musty wholesomeness to it, but very little else. No, I lie, there is a hint of something hoppy to it, giving it a mild sweet lemon character. But this is hidden under the malt, which while dominant, is not particularly strong.

Taste is mild and grainy, with a crispness on the back that seems to come more from the carbonation than from hops. Wet malt sits on the back, cloying slightly, and giving a mustiness to the aftertaste. Feel is suitable—pretty light, but with a slickness that speaks to the malt.

Overall, it's a bit dull, but not bad. It's light, obviously designed not to overwhelm the palate. It succeeds there, at least, but there are much better beers that do the same thing.

Serving type: bottle

06-17-2012 21:45:14 | More by lacqueredmouse

thagr81us

South Carolina

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

Served from tap into a sampler shaker. Poured a reddish brown with a half finger khaki colored head that subsided to a minimal amount slowly. There was no lacing evident throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, grape, and fruit. The flavor was of sweet malt, grape, fruit, and apple. It had a light feel on the palate with mild carbonation. Overall this was a decent brew. I have to be honest that I was quite hesitant on this one as I have not found a Hebrew beer that I like yet. So I was a little afraid to try this one. However, this one wasn’t too bad. I think they made a good move making this one so simple as I think that’s where they lose me on their other brews I’ve had. This one was easy to drink, which was a nice change. Worth trying if you get the opportunity.

Serving type: on-tap

04-06-2012 15:35:06 | More by thagr81us

Cyberkedi

Georgia

3.7/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Malty aroma has caramel and fruity notes and a hint of molasses. It pours a dark, slightly hazy cola brown with a fairly thick, fine-bubbled, pale beige head. Mouth-filling flavor has a malty core and caramel, nutty and apple tones plus a hint of - cola? Rather tasty and enjoyable. Smooth texture has average fizz and body. Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2012 01:40:05 | More by Cyberkedi

avalon07

South Carolina

3.15/5  rDev -12.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A: Poured from a bottle to a pint glass. Had a brownish color, with ruby tints and a slightly hazy consistency. There was an inch of creamy, fairly long-lasting, off white head. Good lacing.

S: An underwhelming aroma of malt and the typically brown ale, nutty quality.

T: Tasted of malt, a little chocolate, light hops, and that aforementioned nuttiness. Not an awful flavor, but certainly very average, and a bit thin.

M: A good amount of carbonation with a smooth, dry finish. Medium-bodied.

O: This beer has some good attributes, but never rises above the average.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2012 12:11:21 | More by avalon07

twiggamortis420

Texas

4.28/5  rDev +18.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle pours a dark chestnut color with an ample cap of frothy tan head. Excellent retention and lacing. A pretty dang good looking brew.

Nose is a nice blend of cocoa, walnuts, caramel, hazlenuts and buttery yeast. I really like the aroma on this one, has everything you want in a brown ale. Maybe even some coffee and brown bread as it warms.

Smooth and rich for the style with ample sweetness and a sharp tannic, hop bite at the end. A well thought out recipe on this one as the flow is terrific with the yeast, malt profile and notable hop presence all play nicely together. One of the better brown ales I have had in quite some time.

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2012 21:11:01 | More by twiggamortis420

DrDemento456

Pennsylvania

3.45/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Wow not many reviews on this one. Picked up at my local place for about 3 bucks.

A - Looks to be a great brown ale, a touch dark but clear dark wood in color with a 1/4 inch of mocha colored head that turns into a thick lace.

S - Very little actual nut or brown malt smell in the nose. Mild hops and sweet malts. Weird.

T - I want to say it's balanced but really nothing sticks out in this one. You get brown malts, mild peanut taste at best and some blended hop bitterness in the finish with again mild brown malts. Not bad overall just nothing that screams "nut brown ale"

M - Light to medium it drinks quite nice.

Overall with it's "limited" release and availability it's really not going to be in my fridge again any time soon. Hopefully the dry hopped session ale will be better.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2012 23:53:03 | More by DrDemento456

LiquidAmber

Washington

3.95/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a dark, slightly hazy mahogany brown. Fine one finger light tan head with good retention and good lacing. Aroma of sweet dark, lightly toasted malt, nuts and a hint of caramel. Flavor follows aroma, with light toasted and sweet caramel malt and nuts, finishing with light nuts, chocolate and hops. Medium bodied with good carbonation. On the light side of flavor, but very pleasant, well integrated taste. Left me wishing for more intensity, but enjoyed this well made, light brown ale.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2012 04:49:35 | More by LiquidAmber

claspada

New Jersey

3.85/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a hazy medium brown color with ruby tints and a small creamy, fairly long-lasting, off-white head that leaves some decent lacing.

Aromas begin and end with toasty brown breadiness with an emerging nutty and light yeasty fruity presence.

The tastes begin with the same toasted brown bread maltiness, a little cocoa, light earthy hops, and that aforementioned nuttiness. Some molasses and burnt caramel flavors emerge more as it warms.

The mouthfeel is medium bodied with a good amount of carbonation. The finish is fairly smooth and dry.

Overall this is a decent example of a brown ale, a bit on the hoppier end of the spectrum but it's appropriate for an American Brown ale I guess, I just usually prefer a little less in my brown ales. Not bad, worth a go.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2012 15:35:35 | More by claspada

Darkmagus82

Montana

3.53/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from bottle into pint glass

Appearance – Pours a deep brown color with a one finger cream head. The head has a good level of retention, fading slowly over time to leave a decent level of lacing.

Smell – The aroma is one the lighter side for a nut brown. It does however have a nice sweet brown bread aroma, mixed with notes of chocolate and some nutty smells.

Taste – The taste starts out a nice blend of roasted malt and some caramel sweetness. A lighter nutty and cocoa flavor comes to the tongue more toward the middle in the taste. In the end some lighter bitter hop flavors of an earthy flavor come to the tongue and leave a roasted bitter flavor to linger on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is on the thinner side with a carbonation level that is rather average. A thicker body would have definitely been better, as it would have played well for the roasted, nut and earthy flavors.

Overall – The taste is fairly nice; roasty, lightly nutty and bitter, but the other characteristics, mainly the mouthfeel take away a bit. Overall not too bad, but nothing spectacular either.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2012 00:41:02 | More by Darkmagus82

joemcgrath27

Alberta (Canada)

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

A - clear deep brown, thumb of tan head dissipated to a thin covering with fairly consistent lacing
S - nutty and toffee malts, brown sugar and a somewhat artificial sweet aroma, subtle citrus
T - molasses and roasted nut malt, mild earthy and citrus hop notes, burnt sugars in the finish
M - slightly heavier than medium, pleasant carbonation, a little teeth coating sweetness
O - its a solid tasty brown ale, no real wow factor anywhere, but worth a try as usual with Shmaltz

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2012 02:55:37 | More by joemcgrath27

shand

Florida

3.9/5  rDev +8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a nonic.

Pours out a very deep brown (for the style, at least), with a finger of fluffy head. The aroma is malty, nutty, and a bit watery smelling. The taste is much better, providing a nice rounded roasty maltiness along with a nice nut flavor. Bitter and delicious. The mouthfeel is very smooth and medium-bodied, and the drinkability is good. Another solid brew from Shmaltz. I'm really finding that a lot of their smaller beers are really overlooked, the Coney Island line has some real stunners in it as well as long as you can find them fresh.

Serving type: bottle

05-30-2012 02:47:20 | More by shand

Fatehunter

Oregon

3.13/5  rDev -13.3%
look: 2.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A thin, tan head formed but was quickly gone. The body is dark brown.
The aroma is mild roasted and chocolate malt backed up with caramel candy.
The taste maintains a moderate bitterness throughout with roasted malt and dark chocolate just showing through.
The texture is crisp with moderate carbonation.
Not bad just an average brown ale.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2013 21:25:44 | More by Fatehunter

micromaniac129

Pennsylvania

3.78/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Has a ruby chestnut brown color with a thin loose structure head. There is a nutty malt aroma, but lean. Taste is malty with some nutty notes, licorise. Drinks alittle sweet with light hop bitterness.
Drinks smooth and clean and is apleasure to drink, though it drinks lean and thin.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2013 12:54:30 | More by micromaniac129

KajII

North Carolina

3.15/5  rDev -12.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

[Suggested Glassware: Dimpled Mug]

The pour was a dark chestnut brown with an average (1-2 finger) light brown frothy head that receded at a quick steady pace, down to a very thin film and medium collar with good runny lacing.

The aroma was of roasted dark malts, light resin hops and an earthy leathery yeast with notes of toffee, chocolate, coffee and a decent nutty presence.

The taste was rather malty with a touch of chocolate and a nice toffee sweetness from the start, progressing with a slightly bitter coffee taste and a mildly roasty nutty finish. The flavor lasted an average time after the swallow with a slightly bitter roastiness left behind.

Mouthfeel was between light and medium in body and watery in texture with a medium carbonation.

Overall this was a decent enough Nut Brown with all the taste you would expect but was really nothing over the top, to sum it up it was pretty basic for the style. That being said it still was a good drinkable and tasty brew…

http://www.facebook.com/KAJIIsBeerReviews

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2013 15:25:10 | More by KajII

MoreThanWine

Massachusetts

3.48/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured a 3" beige head with good lifespan. The body in masstone is really quite dark - a burnt umber brown. Held to the light it reveals a clear mahogany. Probably the darkest nut brown ale I've seen. It smells mildly of malt, cocoa, and coffee. The taste is very mild, even milder than the smell, and it's kind of like and ultralight porter. Medium long finish. A nice enough brown ale.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2012 09:03:58 | More by MoreThanWine

scootny

New York

3.88/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A towering head with nice lacing. Dark off white. Brew itself is clear and a dark cola. Smell sweet malt with a nice healthy breadiness. A good nutty character to the nose. Flavor has a nutty malt core with lots of roasted grains and a light sweetness, mostly Caramunich malt. Flavors of faint chocolate and coffee. The finish is dry and mostly earthy with a light leafy hop and oil lingering. A touch of bread and earthy hops as it fades. Feel is medium weight and a crisp tingly carbonation. A really good nut brown/American brown ale.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2012 03:00:11 | More by scootny

BucannonXC5

California

3.1/5  rDev -14.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3

Type: 12-oz. bottle
Glass: Firestone pint glass
From: Holiday Wine Cellar in Escondido, Calif., on Jan. 5, 2013
Price: $1.39
Misc.: N/A

Poured a brown color with 1-2 fingers of grayish head. Sporadic lacing on the sides on the way down. Average retention on the top.

Smelled roasty nutty malts up front. Then got caramel, toffee and chocolate malts. That’s about it, but it was plenty. Nice on the nose.

Tasted a lot darker than the smell. Got roasty nutty malts up front, but much more bitter and grainier than the nose. Some bitter coffee beans. Grindy and earthy.

Medium-to-full body. Creamy texture. Average carbonation. Long, slightly bitter finish.

Just wasn’t really digging the taste. I don’t think I’d have this again.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2013 06:34:20 | More by BucannonXC5

TheSixthRing

California

3.35/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance - Pours dark brown with reddish tinge when held to the light. An off-white/light tan head builds to less than finger width before dissipating quickly, leaving behind a sparse lace.

Smell - Subtle, but malt forward aromas; faint chocolate, caramel and the faintest whiff of coffee. It's very hard to pick up.

Taste - Lots of malt sweetness up front; sugary caramel and hints of chocolate. Slightly nutty. A touch of light coffee on the back end.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, with a fair amount of lively carbonation. The standout part of this beer.

Overall - A little too sweet and sugary for my tastes, but then again most browns are. Decent, but forgettable in the land of average browns.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2012 04:21:53 | More by TheSixthRing

GPHarris

Alabama

3.4/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

a - poured a one finger thick bubbly, tan head into a snifter that left a thin ring throughout. the body was dark brown with some red tints.
s - bready with some semi-sweet chocolate.
t - toffee and chocolate malts with some nutty flavors.
m - medium thickness.
o - solid beer but definitely not in the top half of brown ales i have had in my life.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2012 15:38:43 | More by GPHarris

Lemke10

Wisconsin

3.78/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served 11/10/12 poured into a glass from Old Chicago in Madison, WI. This pours a dark brown color with a light beige head. The scent is rather mild with hazelnuts. The taste is bold and nutty with a great blend of robust malts, caramel malts, and nuts. The texture is smooth and is an overall pretty good beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2012 20:03:51 | More by Lemke10

GossageBrewery

Missouri

3.1/5  rDev -14.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured this American Brown Ale from a 12 oz bottle into a pint glass. This ale poured a dark brown color, produced an average tan head, poor retention and left little lacing on the glass. The aroma consisted of toasted malt and some mild nuttiness. Medium in body, the foundation of this ale is of toasted malt, caramel and roasted nuts. Overall, this is an average brown ale, better then most, not as good as some. Decent session beer, its worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

10-24-2012 01:58:01 | More by GossageBrewery