Mastodon - Mahrs-Bräu

crossovert

Wisconsin

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

Not a huge fan of the band, they are decent lots of fanboys and haters just with something like DTP would have taken thier place in the grand scheme of things, but love Mahr's. The label is cool. 500ml bottle.

It pours a nice hazy amberish orange with a nice off-white head.

The smell is nicely malty. Rich caramel and bread notes, a subtle bit of noble hops. There is an almost rum-like aroma which is nice.

The flavor is malty and fruity. Decently fresh. A zippy kellerbier. Very fuckin nice.

Serving type: bottle

07-19-2012 02:02:16 | More by crossovert

ryan1788a5

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

1pt .9oz bottle poured into a pilsner glass.

A: Pale yellow, slightly hazy. Bubbles of carbonation rush to the top of the glass in quick streams. Huge white, rocky head. Small, sporadic clumps of lacing. The head formation and retention is impressive, but I docked the score a little for the cloudy appearance.

S: Sweet malt scent. Biscuit and grain. Slightly bready. Touch of earthy yeast. Hops are very floral and grassy with an herbal edge.

T: Grainy malt taste up front is quickly overtaken by an outspoken hop profile. It shifts from floral to a leafy, spicy garden herb taste that slowly builds in bitterness, though it stays tame enough overall. This one is very balanced. Malts come back to the forefront with sweet and bready flavors. Hay and dried grain as well, as it dries into the finish. The finish is clean with tastes of grain and green, oily hops.

M: Light to medium in body. Creamy and slightly foamy. Carbonation lends a pleasing crispness. Nice and smooth.

O: This beer surprised me. I just bought it on a whim. I like Mahr's, and Mastodon (the band) is okay. So I thought, "What the hell?" Munich Helles is not a style that typically hits my beer g-spot, but this one really did the job on a hot, sunny summer day. Carefully crafted, very well done. Color me impressed.

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2012 03:23:07 | More by ryan1788a5

smcolw

Massachusetts

4.23/5  rDev +14.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Impressive thick, lumpy, near-white head. The liquid is golden with a mild chill haze. Only negative is the limited lace.

Grainy, raw barley aroma--similar a freshly opened bag of pale malt.

Slightly sweet, this is a malty pale brew. It has a hop spice in the swallow and the short aftertaste. The malty flavor is dominate, but there is no grainy flavor. The body is like skim milk. The carbonation is low. The total effect makes this beer seem to have dried fruit.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2012 22:35:41 | More by smcolw

emerge077

Illinois

4/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a tulip glass, it billows up with a voluminous head of white foam that retains some good coverage for the rest of the glass. Spotty sudsy lacing. Intentionally cloudy, it says unfiltered on the label, glowing sunset orange color.

Clean, floral, grassy aroma, simple and true to style.

Bready and crisp, simple and seamless. Medium bodied with a light crisp bitterness that dries out quickly in the finish. Fresh floral hop notes that are somewhat subdued, but complement the dry crackery malts nicely. Pricey for what it is, but worth a try from this quality brewery.

Serving type: bottle

07-17-2012 01:54:56 | More by emerge077

OtherShoe2

Massachusetts

3.9/5  rDev +6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours pale orange with a decent foamy white head. A little clinging, but no real lace. Ok clarity, some bubbles rising.

Light malt, some minerals, and bitter grassy notes as well as a bit of honey in the nose.

Nice clean drinkable lager. Grassy lightly toasted malt up front. Nice bitter punch of hops immediately, a little spicy. This has slight sweetness from the malt, but bitter overbalances it -- and it works very well. Dries out more towards the finish. Finish is lightly bitter with the dry malt bringing up the rear. Nice beer.

Medium mouthfeel. Perfect carbonation.

great overall. Very drinkable. I'd like to have a lot of this on a hot day.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2012 22:50:43 | More by OtherShoe2

Domingo

Colorado

3.9/5  rDev +6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Never seen this before, including at a trip to the brewery this past summer. After a little looking around, apparently it's a tribute to the band Mastodon. I guess that's unexpected for a brewery usually known for old traditions.
Pours a copper orange color. Looks almost like the older amber Oktoberfest beers. Some Franconian helles beers look a bit like this (Faessla, for example), too. A slight haze comes from the yeast at the bottom of the bottle. Lots of lingering foam.
The character here is a nice balance of very bready and biscuity malts and a nice earthy hop finish. A little caramel character and clover honey reminds me of the sweeter, and more amber helles beers around Bamberg, but the hops are more punchy. The malt character surprisingly seems to grow stronger as the beer warms.
Like most everything from Mahr's, I could drink this by the gallon.
Not quite as good as the "U" or normal hell, but still really good and different. I wonder how common this is and how long it'll be around?

Serving type: bottle

04-25-2012 01:11:03 | More by Domingo

wcintula

New York

3.68/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a hazy orange-yellow with a foamy head that reduces to a film. Smells a bit noble, grassy and Munich-y. Very rich malt flavor with a nice touch of bittering from the hops. Honey comes out as the beer warms up. I love these simple styles They're very easy to appreciate when done correctly. and this is a good example. I don't know how limited this is, but it's definitely worth trying you Germanophiles.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2012 16:51:44 | More by wcintula

Cyberkedi

Georgia

3.65/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Gotta love the picture on the label. The bottle I got fizzed from hell to breakfast, so be prepared! It pours a rich and slightly hazy amber with a rather thick, if not too persistent, pale amber-tan head. Crisp aroma is fruity and malty with just a hint of hoppy wood. Flavor is typical of a lager, malty and a little fruity, but more mouth-filling and rounded out; again there is just a hint of hops. Texture has firm body and good fizz, better than with many lagers I have tried. If lager is your style, uncork this beast!

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2013 23:08:17 | More by Cyberkedi

avalon07

South Carolina

3.58/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Poured from a bottle to a pilsner glass. Had a light brown color and a hazy texture. There was a big, creamy fairly long-lasting head. Good lacing.

S: As you'd expect with a German beer, this one had a very malty smell to it.

T: Like the nose, the taste was dominated by malt, but it did have light amounts of grain and hops. Not a bad flavor, but so very predictable and obvious.

M: A good amount of carbonation with a crisp, clean finish. Medium-bodied.

O: This is a well made beer, but as I said it's a predictable one. drinkable, but not much separates it from the pack.

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2012 13:12:21 | More by avalon07

homebrewhawk

Kansas

3.4/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

500ml bottle served in a tulip. Unfiltered. Pours a slightly hazy gold with a finger of fine bubbled white head. Some noble hops in the aroma and a little sweet malt. Light bodied. Bready malt, slight noble hop presence. Adding the yeast gives the aroma a bit of a yeasty tang. Decent German Lager.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2012 00:56:53 | More by homebrewhawk

cbutova

Massachusetts

3.4/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A- Poured into a goblet with a hazy orange amber body. Silky white head forms to about a finger and has decent retention. Small ring leaves some small patches of lace.

S- Hard to pick much up for me. I basically get reserved German yeast, raisin and some sweet biscuit caramel malts.

T- Pretty laid back for such a gargantuan creature the Mastodon is. Yeast lends a profile of spices, raisin dark fruits and very slight clove banana ester. Some nutty, caramel and almost rye spice malts. Spicy and herbal hops balance it out.

MF- A lighter overall consistency with high end foamy carbonation. Fair amount of bitterness in the finish.

Easy going but in a good way.

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2012 05:02:26 | More by cbutova