Saint Arnold Santo - Saint Arnold Brewing Company

AtrumAnimus

Texas

4.93/5  rDev +49.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

This was a pleasant surprise. I had no idea it was out till I was at the Rammstein concert at Toyota center in Houston and saw it was available. I have been drinking it every day since I found it!

This beer pours a dark brown with amber highlights (when held up to the light). The head is a frothy white that has staying power and leaves rather elegant lacing down the sides of the glass.

The nose is sweet malt, coffee floral hops and a tinge of citrus. All I can say is WOW!
The taste is just as complex as the nose with a very noticeable blend of coffee and dark chocolate mixed with sweet malty tones that are perfectly blended with eh hops winding through the flavors giving it a complexity that is mysterious and elegant. This beer has real panache and the flavors are just something to be savored.

I absolutely love this one and I now have a new local favorite from the master brewers at Saint Arnolds. These guys have pulled off a masterful brew.

I don’t recommend this beer; I declare it a mandatory beer. A recommendation is just not good enough. Any serious hop head should absolutely consider it mandatory to taste this wonderfully crafted beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2012 19:46:32 | More by AtrumAnimus

Ford

Texas

4.23/5  rDev +28.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Gordon Street Tavern in Alvin, Texas (also most Buffalo Wild Wings in Houston)

Love this beer.

Plenty of caramelness in there. Not really any bitterness. To me Saint Arnold makes flavorful easy to drink beers and Santo is right up there with their best.

Being in Houston, this beer is easy to find even in those establishments that just tend to serve the big, bad, American beers. I'll take a Santo over those any day.

Serving type: on-tap

09-15-2012 01:52:55 | More by Ford

chocosushi

Oklahoma

4/5  rDev +21.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Melbourne Bros.
Described as a "Black Koelsch"
A ~ Black-Brown w/ an off white head. Slight lace.

S ~ Spicy greens, crackers, toasted white breads. . . bit of caramel. Smells a lot like Weedwacker, one of my favorite Sessions!

T ~ Toast following through w/ steamed greens, grains, wheat, & a light sweetness with a bready dry finish.

M ~ Great flavors with a meaty Robust feel on a palette. Nice finish with a slight metallic note.

D ~ Would gladly drink again. I like Saint Arnold A LOT! Great American expressions of German styles. This is not a traditional Koelsch by any means, but it's still pretty tasty. Thanks brad!

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2012 19:00:11 | More by chocosushi

angelmonster

Colorado

4/5  rDev +21.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours an extremely dark brown body with a frothy cream colored head. Lacing and head retention are good.

Smell is of fresh baked biscuits, slightly burned. Also getting faint coffee and chocolate. No hops or alcohol.

Taste is of crisp pale, straw malts but nicely contrasted with chalky, roasted, biscuity malts. Alcohol is undetected, hops are very light, good flavors for such a light beer.

Mouthfeel is light and refreshing, as you'd expect from a kolsch. Where this beer is different is in the chalky aftertaste that you get from some dry porters. Beer is well carbonated, head added a small amount of body.

Overall this is a good, highly sessionable beer. Similar in body to saint arnolds lawnmower beer but with a deeper flavor profile. Too bad it's not available in Colorado, another reason for me to take more trips to Texas.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2012 03:53:15 | More by angelmonster

elNopalero

Texas

3.98/5  rDev +21%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This is a dark kolsh? I gave it a vigorous pour and got a good couple of fingers of foam. It’s a dark ruby-cola color in the glass. Slight biscuity aroma, but very light. Tastes of light roast and some honeyed sweetness rounding it out. To be honest I haven’t heard anyone speak highly of this so I’m going to stick my neck out and say it: for what it is, it ain’t half bad.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2012 22:01:58 | More by elNopalero

allengarvin

Texas

3.98/5  rDev +21%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a wide chalice, this is a very dark beer with a head that fades away pretty quickly. Nice aroma, though: light coffee roast, perhaps a faint hint of smokiness. It's a solid dark malt. I'm not sure why this is classified as a Kolsch: it clearly doesn't fit the style at all. The flavor resembles the nose mostly, but adds a touch of cocoa. A moderate amount of bitterness dries things out, but I don't get any hop flavor. Again, I get a hint of smokiness that adds a nice dimension. Clean flavor yeast-wise, with a lingering maltiness.

I'd call it a schwarz myself. In any case, it's pretty drinkable. The low strength makes for a nice session beer as well.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2012 02:10:50 | More by allengarvin

thagr81us

South Carolina

3.98/5  rDev +21%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Big thanks goes out to one of my co-workers for bringing me this one to tick! Served from bottle into a Mother Earth strange. Poured a deep ruby red dark brown with a half finger off-white head that subsided to a minimal amount quickly. Maintained phenomenal lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, wheat, spice, grain, dark chocolate, and toasted malt. The flavor was of sweet malt, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, wheat, grain, toasted malt, and cream. It had a light feel on the palate with high carbonation. Overall this was a fairly good brew. I honestly went into this one not expecting very much. What I found was actually quite nice and well balanced. There was a nice roastiness/toastiness going on in this one that really added a nice touch to this brew and was definitely different for the style. This was a welcomed change in the way that they executed it. Really glad I got the chance to try this one and suggest you do the same if you get the opportunity!

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2012 12:09:38 | More by thagr81us

Lee17

Texas

3.86/5  rDev +17.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A great black lager. Very full taste, hearty without a strong bite. Slight roasty flavor, yet surprisingly smooth and easy to drink. A great beer to have with chips and guacamole, or while barbequing steaks out back. I will buy this again to enjoy on a Friday or Saturday night.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 03:45:31 | More by Lee17

Vashtar

Texas

3.83/5  rDev +16.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance was good

The smell was clean. It was too exotic to just be caramel. I'm not sure what it was. The scent stops short, though.

The taste was good for a dark beer.

I took notes on my phone, so I'm not writing this as I drink it.

There was a bit of slime in the mouthfeel but no after-slime.

Overall, it was pretty good for such a dark beer.

I took notes on my phone so I'm not writing this as I drink it.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2011 20:01:03 | More by Vashtar

SWMeyer4141

Texas

3.8/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a Pint glass...

Appearance-Brown, pretty dark, some red hues. Head was about a finger of tannish bubble head that lasted for a bit.

Smell-Had that typical St Arnolds aroma. Earthy and Floral. Some subtle Chocolate Malts as well.

Taste-Definitely reminds me of Lawnmower w/ some added chocolate malts. It's subtle, and not very chocolatey, but it's there. Very clean.

Mouthfeel-Clean and Refreshing, Light bodied w/ medium carbonation. I could suck down a few of these.

Overall-Only had one, but could definitely drink plenty of these. Glad this beer is in the rotation. Very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

10-23-2011 17:12:40 | More by SWMeyer4141

acevenom

Louisiana

3.68/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pint glass. Pours clear dark brown with a biege head that dissipates moderately fast. The appearance of this beer is almost like a dunkel. There are plentiful tiny bubbles in the beer. There are hints of chocolate and coffee with the dark roasted malt. The aromas are pretty subtle. The taste follows the nose. The beer is chocolately and a the malt profile really comes across like a good dunkel. The hop bitterness is low to non-existant. The body is light with moderate carbonation. The finish is clean and the drinkability is high. This beer drinks like a dunkel, but is labeled a Kölsch. This is a very good beer, but ultimately loses some points for being something it shouldn't.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2012 18:31:11 | More by acevenom

kyleelton

Texas

3.58/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Look is very brown in the pour. Have to hold it to the light to get any amber, at all. This is darker than I thought it would be.

Bready smell. Very much like a Kölsch.

Much breadier taste than the Lawnmower. Crisp taste and finish with a lot more malt flavor than a regular Kölsch. Aftertaste sticks around for a bit and mouthfeel is a bit chewy and thick, as compared to your typical Kölsch.

Overall, an interesting diversion from the normal. Very drinkable and safe, but also different.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2011 22:01:31 | More by kyleelton

RonaldTheriot

Louisiana

3.53/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Saint Arnold Santo has a medium, off-white head and a dark copper, yet clear and bubbly appearance. There is a decent amount of lacing left behind. Aroma is of mildly sweet and spicy brown bread, and the flavor is of dark-roasted malt and coffee, plus some very slight chocolate. I detect no bitterness, but there may be some spice from the yeast. Mouthfeel is light and watery, and Saint Arnold Santo finishes dry, mild, and highly drinkable. Overall, this is a pretty plain and dull beer. It’s worth trying, though.

RJT

Serving type: bottle

08-16-2012 14:47:06 | More by RonaldTheriot

emerge077

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks Chris for sharing this beer today!
Live review, served in a tulip glass.

Earthy husky grain aroma. Bright caramel color, thin string of bubbles on the surface. Spotty lacing left behind. Crystal clear with a jewel tone clarity.

Tastes caramel sweet, dry and smooth. Clean and flavorful. Bready, tasty. Something that could be sessioned, an easy drinking beer.

Wouldn't consider this a traditional Kölsch, more of a Maerzen or ESB in character, though they do use a Kölsch yeast. American-Style Dark Lager is the category it won bronze in the World Beer Cup.

Serving type: bottle

07-23-2012 02:46:58 | More by emerge077

match1112

Illinois

3.48/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

deep dark brown body with a three finger head that unfortunatly settled rather quickly. smell and taste mirror one another. pick up on grassy earth tones at first with some biscuit and cracker and roasted grains. some toffee, caramel and chocolate are also noticable. there is almost a smoke quality on the finish that is not expected. a thin mouthfeel but easy drinkin. i like it. thanks again UHCougar12!

Serving type: bottle

03-25-2012 15:45:04 | More by match1112

Pegasus

Texas

3.45/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Deep reddish amber when eld to light, with a moderate, persistent, coarse tan head, fine scattered lacing, like some lost ancient writings. The carbonation is slight and slow-rising.

Aroma; Citrus hops, bordering on orange dominate the aroma, as well as roasted and caramel malt, as the taste progresses, the roasted malt flavor intensifies, although pleasantly. Towards the latter part of the taste, there is a moderate cold coffee note. Finishes with lingering roasted malt and a faint herbal hop flavor.

Mouth feel: Smooth, soft, a bit thin, but still pleasant.

Drinkability/notes: Very pleasant and drinkable.

Presentation: Packaged in a short twelve-ounce brown glass bottle with a twist-off crown, served in a standard pint tap glass.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2012 02:12:04 | More by Pegasus

TMoney2591

Illinois

3.4/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Served in a stemless globe.

Thanks to hannydawg for sharing this bottle!

Would Ron endorse? Discuss. Meanwhile, this stuff pours a clear garnet topped by a finger of off-cream-white foam. The nose comprises toasted caramel, light chocolate powder, and lighter orange peel. The taste, being insanely conformist and uninteresting, brings in more of the same. Straight up. The body is a light medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a dry finish. Overall, an okay beer, but nothing I would ever consider a kolsch. I'm thinking this must be miscategorized or something. Either way, it's alright, but nothing close to special or memorable.

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2012 05:05:54 | More by TMoney2591

imasloth

Texas

3.4/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A- Poured from bottle into pint glass. Beer is a dark amber colour with medium carbonation. An almost white head that lingers thinly across the top of the beer. liquid is clear when held to light.

S- Chocolate malt. Some light smokiness.

T- Smoky but smooth, with just a slight hint of bitterness.

M- Left my mouth a bit dry after swallowing. Medium-bodied.

O- Fairly average beer. I'm not a fan of smoky-flavoured beers so this one wasn't for me.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2012 20:16:06 | More by imasloth

SkeeterHawk

Texas

3.38/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I picked this beer up at the "new" Spec's on 1960 and Cutten road. I am always behind the curve on the new Saint Arnold offerings out there and picked this up before I even realized that it was from SA. It is an unusual goal, to produce a black Koelsch, but I commend the innovation nonetheless. Let's review this one properly:

Appearance: Poured into my glass stein a clear brownish color with a small creamy head of light tan bubbles. Earlier bottles had a lasting head, but this one faded to a small ring within about 30 seconds. There is a little bit of lacing left on the glass after drinking the beer. I am going to score it a little higher on the appearance as other beers in this six-pack were notable on how long they held the head.

Aroma: The aroma reminds me of brown malt in that it is a little chocolaty with some earthy notes mixed in. I am getting some sweet toasty notes in here that seem Munich derived, and maybe there a little bit of dark Munich in here too? The yeast is muted as it should be for the style, but the Koelsch fruity characteristics are getting buried in the malts, so you could call this a "black Pilsner" for all I care and it would still fit the bill. The aroma is moving slightly toward Coffee as it warms a bit and there are no hops really noticeable at all except as a very subtle floral component.

Taste: There is a little bit of the subtle fruit in the flavor that would kick it out of the lager category. The overall presentation is a little thin like you would expect from a Koelsch, but the dark malts are adding a bit of acidity that sets in on the back of the throat and is playing with the carbonation and light hops to dry out the finish quite a bit. There is no alcohol noticeable anywhere in here.

Opinion: Overall this is a pretty decent beer. It has enough character that it sets itself apart a bit in the craft-beer market so that it might lead a Lawnmower drinker to try different beers. That said, the beer lacks the complexity that I would like to put it in the outstanding category. Even a black Koelsch should showcase some of the fruity aspects of the yeast while still having good head retention and more of a sweet aspect to the dark malts, so maybe this would have just necessitated taking out the very dark malts for some dark crystal and fermenting it a tad warmer. This may have brought it a little closer in, but regardless, it is a pretty good attempt at something that doesn't exist.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2011 00:54:40 | More by SkeeterHawk

bonkers

New Jersey

3.35/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to texasfan549, pours deep black with a 2" white head, nice lacing. The aroma has roasted notes, chocolate notes. The first sip has nice roasted and chocolate notes, then it faded a bit. It finishes light. The body is too thin, good carbonation. Black kolsch, maybe not the best idea. Not sure this is the proper style.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2011 03:39:14 | More by bonkers

hmph

Virginia

3.35/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Graciously received in a trade with Tofuspeedstar , love some Texas beers!

A - pours a light brown with a copper hue which I think is due in part to the transparency, very minimal head

S - smells like a Kolsch! medium dark sweet malt smell with a slight hop touch

T - Clean, clear and tasty, there is a nice bit of carbonation and bitterness upfront that leads to the medium roasted choclate toffee taste, it finishes dry with a hint of bitterness lingering

O - Not a huge fan of the Kolsch style itself so went in trying to be objective, but really enjoyed it as a beer itself and possibly my favorite among the style that I have tried. Well done Saint Arnolds and thanks again Neemesh for sending some my way!

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2012 19:08:12 | More by hmph

mactrail

California

3.35/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

What is this, a new style-- Black Kölsch? Well, anyway it's a lot darker, a dark amber, than any Kölsch I've seen.

I just had the Fancy Lawnmower Kölsch, forgetting this one is also from Saint Arnold. Fairly malty and much richer. A distinct taste of roasted malt. Sort of an amber ale but without much in the way of hops. There are some hoppy aromatics, but mostly it's about the toasty barley and without the distinctive perfumey notes. A decent quaff and not a bad entry in the lower-alcohol sweepstakes. Not particularly distinctive but goes down easy and mixes well with a hoppier brew.

From the 12 oz bottle bought at Leonard's Market in Lubbock.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2012 03:10:23 | More by mactrail

2xHops

Texas

3.3/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

What is this beer?

I didn't realize it was dark, and that is certainly not what I expected when I ordered this beer at Flying Saucer.

It looked good and appetizing. It is dark, but not as dark as you'd see in black lagers or stouts.

it didn't taste as interesting or even good as I thought it might would. There is a slight roasted flavor (I mean, very slight) to the beer, and it was slightly bland.

I don't know if I'd order this beer again. It's hard to say if it's a good representation, because it's not a typical kolsch I thought it would be.

Serving type: on-tap

11-14-2011 20:37:14 | More by 2xHops

Chickenhawk9932

Pennsylvania

3.3/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a dark amber leaning towards mahogany.

Smells of malt, nuts, & spicy hops.

Spicy hops up front with a mild tartness, followed by a roasted malt nut flavor. I am trying this while visiting family in La.
This is a very interesting beer that is easy drinking and enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2012 03:45:16 | More by Chickenhawk9932

turfy

Texas

3.28/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured into a SN pint glass.

A - Nice appearance. A medium brown color and nice retentive head with decent lacing.

S - Slight roasted malt/ corn/grain aroma . Nothing earth shattering.

T - Slightly underwhelming. A lightly roasted or burnt grain taste with a hint of coffee.

M - It's just kind of 'there'. Carbonation is on the lighter side and body is medium.

O - I was hoping for something better. It can be interesting in a way but overall it's a 'meh' kind of beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-22-2011 01:03:07 | More by turfy