Rock River Lager - Minhas Craft Brewery

SetarconeX

Florida

2.88/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Reddish brown and crystal clear. Not just normal clear either, I mean 'I can see perfectly through a mile of this stuff' clear. Smells just a bit off. There's a brand of hand lotion made of corn oil that smells not unlike this. Not bad, just..off.

Been a while since I've accused a beer of being phenolic, but this one's definitely it. It has a really tasty, grainy quality to it which would be great if the strange corn-oil quality didn't rush in on the aftertaste and ruin the party.

The more I drink, the less I like. You can do better than this.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2007 22:36:22 | More by SetarconeX

t0rin0

California

2.75/5  rDev -7.1%

11-04-2012 02:46:04 | More by t0rin0

bzach

Indiana

3/5  rDev +1.4%

10-12-2012 10:45:44 | More by bzach

Goldfishman

Massachusetts

2.5/5  rDev -15.5%

01-30-2012 02:22:36 | More by Goldfishman

SargeC

Japan

3/5  rDev +1.4%

01-16-2012 07:46:27 | More by SargeC

rab53

Massachusetts

3/5  rDev +1.4%

12-02-2011 04:36:50 | More by rab53

depechemode1983

Texas

2.33/5  rDev -21.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

A - Clear dark golden in color. Sudsy white head that's gone pretty quickly. No lacing. Not good. More along the lines of a bad malt liquor.

S - Toned down. A bit sweet and metallic. A little grains. Actually smells a bit like playdough. Or some sort of clay.

T - Toned down just like the aroma. Sweet with a bit of grains and sourness.

M - Medium bodied with high carbonation. The medium carbonation. Pretty smooth just average.

D - This might be one of the worst beers I have had in a long time. If you have a chance to pick this one up...Don't. Just keep on walking.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2011 02:02:06 | More by depechemode1983

lwootton

Texas

3.5/5  rDev +18.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a St. Arnolds Tulip Pint.

Appearance: Transparent straw gold. Thick head that dissipated quickly leaving little lacing behind.

Aroma: Simple malt smell with hints of grass. No floral/hop smell.

Taste: A bit sweeter than I expect from a lager, especially a Pilsener. Plain malt base with a bit of yeast flavor. No hop/bitterness/floral taste.

Mouthfeel: Light bodied but not as clean and crisp as I expected.

Drinkability: Good! I could use a little less sweetness and a bit more complexity but I still enjoyed this beer quite a bit.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2010 02:14:42 | More by lwootton

Krishob

Florida

1.98/5  rDev -33.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

Appearance - pours with a foamy white head that reduce to just a small ring that clings to the side of the glass. Clear yellow almost burnt ember in color.

Smell - there is a sweet smell to it right up front. Also very floral, but there is a strange metallic or tin smell there as well.

Taste- overly sweet for a lager with that metallic taste on the backside. Has an almost apple cider taste and not well balanced at all. No bitterness and again more on the sweet side then would expected from a lager.

Mouthfeel - felt like I was drinking a non-alcoholic apple cider that has had water or even apple juice added to it to make it stretch. Very thin and watery.

Drinkability - this came in a sampler pack and there is one more left. I will be passing this off on to someone else. K am not opposed to a sweet beer but this is just one that for my taste would not want to have unless I had drank all my better beer and didn't feel like going out to get more.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2010 06:42:17 | More by Krishob

biggred1

Indiana

3.58/5  rDev +20.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pale yellow with a thin white cap of suds. Untoasted grain and grassy hop notes in the nose. Grainy, slightly sweet malt flavors with a touch of herbal hops to balance. I much prefer the flavors of this beer to most macro adjunt lagers. Medium bodied and smooth, finishes squeaky clean. A good straightforward American lager and a good lawnmower beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2010 02:23:14 | More by biggred1

berserker256

Michigan

2.42/5  rDev -18.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

I pour the drink into a pint glass and it's not impresseive. A small sad head fades away into a straw-colored beer that kind of looks like apple juice. Fizzy bubbles continualy rise to the top of the glass but it looks weak. It stinks of green apple skin and astringent chemicals. Unripe apples and pears dominate the flavor. It tastes and smells like a substance that I would clean out a bloody wound with. Acidic, apple, sour, aftertaste. Decently bodied and carbonated. NOT easy to drink. I don't care for it. Poor for a German Lager style beer. Not even close to what it should be.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2010 02:42:59 | More by berserker256

Brettster

Indiana

2.88/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Received this as part of a historical beers of America gift box. This lager pours a translucent golden color. Produced a one finger white foamy head that faded very quickly into a short white lacing on the top of the beer. It has decent carbonation with a steady flow of bubbles. Smells sweet and grainy. There is not much complexity in this beer. Has a light bodied smooth and bubbly mouthfeel. Kind of boring. It is a decent lawnmower beer though, much like many others offerings in this variety pack. Needs some hop flavor.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2010 01:38:56 | More by Brettster

number1bum

Pennsylvania

2.08/5  rDev -29.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 1.5

Part of the History of Beer in America pack.

Pours a perectly clear golden color with about a finger and a half of white head. Keeps a mostly full lace and leaves a touch of stick here and there.

Smell is sweet, and sweet. Bleh. It's a pale lager alright, in all its glory. How out some hops? Not enjoying this.

Taste has more than just sweet...skunk. Ugh this is not good. Sweet honey like flavor, but it's not pleasant. Some weird fruitiness as well, plus some skunk. It's worse than the smell. Sweet pale malt and some skunky grain and that's about it.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied and crisp enough to keep it from being completly disgustingly sweet. Still not good.

The other 3 beers I have tried from this box have been decent; nothing special but drinkable. This one is downright bad. I just cannot stomach it; it's a drainpour. But then again, the history of beer in America is full of bad lagers. So in that case, well done Minhas.

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2010 03:32:11 | More by number1bum

vdread

Texas

2.88/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Rock River Lager

beer #3 in the 'beers of america' 12 pack. it's a decent little pilsner, and fits the style better than most of the others in the pack. easily drinkable, but still pretty bland and unoffensive.

it looks like a fizzy yellow beer with a tiny bit of froth at the top that winds down quickly and turns into a little collar, leaving a few spots behind. smell is light. mostly grains, a hint of hops.

taste is very grainy, with some slight hop backing. it's somewhat sweet with that earthy, diacetyl taste that seems to be ubiquitous in the beers of america pack.

mouthfeel ok, it's a little dry with some carbonation, nothing special really. drinkability good. easily sippable. there's nothing really wrong with this beer, but it's not that exciting, either.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2010 23:44:12 | More by vdread

thekanna

Maryland

2.8/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Part of the "Beers of America" Historical Beers six pack.

A: Poured clear yellow into a stein with about 2 fingers of white, frothy, clean head. Lots of large effervescent bubbles attach to the side of the glass and rise from the bottom.

S: General yeasty adjunct malt smell, with a metallic tinge.

T/M: Crisp carbonation upfront with a sweet malt body that devolves into a diacetyl creaminess and a slight hop bite. A very textbook example of a pilsener.

D: Quite a drinkable pilsener, though many other breweries can do about the same thing for less per bottle.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2009 04:57:10 | More by thekanna

generallee

New York

2.68/5  rDev -9.5%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Presentation: This is one of six beers from an eighteen pack labeled Beer of America, Historical Collection. The 18 pack also came with a nice book titled, The History of Beer in America. It was poured from a brown 12oz bottle into a Pilsener glass. There appears to be no freshness date on the bottle.

Appearance: It has a light foamy white head that fades quickly to a thin wispy covering and then down to nothing. There is not much in the way of lacing, just a few slick spots at the top of the glass. The body has a bright golden color with very good clarity and some visible carbonation.

Smell: The aroma is light and has hints of grassy hops, light husky grain and cooked vegetables.

Taste/Palate: Its flavor has a fairly dry grainy, corn and husky malt taste with some grassy hops. The finish is dry with mild bitterness and acidity as well as an odd salty mineral like thing. The body is light to medium with a light easy drinking texture and light fizzy carbonation.

Notes: This is nothing more than your basic American pale light colored lager. It is drinkable but boring and I have noticed that all the beers in this mixed 18 pack are oddly similar to each other. The best part of this 18 pack is the book that came with it.

Serving type: bottle

10-08-2009 18:55:15 | More by generallee

hopdog

Pennsylvania

2.5/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

12oz bottle acquired in trade with daknole (thanks!).

Poured a medium yellow/golden color with a small sized white head. Aromas of graininess, and corny. Tastes of the same graininess, corny, and a little sweet. Hey, its a Pale Lager!

Notes from and tasted on: 5/21/09

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2009 15:01:02 | More by hopdog

BigRedN

Nebraska

2.58/5  rDev -12.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Appearance: Poured from the 12 oz bottle into a pilsner glass. The beer is clear, golden in color with my pour producing a weak white head, about 1/2 inch in height. Head quickly fades to nothing and leaves no lacing.

Smell: Sweet malts, a little grainy, seems to contain adjucnts (corn). While I do not think it does, it just smells like it a bit. Nothing hop related in the aroma.

Taste: Listed as a German Pilsner, this drinks more like a typical American macro lager. Some slightly sweet malts, sweetness is not cloying but noticeable. No hop bitterness whatsoever.

Mouthfeel: Light in body with good carbonation. Goes down smooth and easy with a crisp finish. As mentioned previously, it drinks like a macro lager.

Drinkability: Part of a mixed eighteen pack that came in a nice metal "box" that I may try to use as a patio cooler this summer. That's been about the best thing about these beers. This one is a decent easy drinker, just not overly memorable or one that I would seek out again.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2009 04:00:52 | More by BigRedN

everetends

Alabama

2.58/5  rDev -12.8%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12 oz bottle, yet again, from the Beers of America mixed pack which I think I have finally worked my way through. Served up in a pint.

A: Wow. This has the palest yellow color that is almost clear water. It is ridiculous. The beer has a pretty lame look. Had about a finger of head that went away immediately. Wow, shitty.

S: Smell is of some corn and malt. Your typical lager. Don't really have anything else to say here. What? Stop looking at me.

T: Yup, it tastes like a lager. Heavy sweet corn presence. Yup. no presence of hops. Grassy, earth presence.

M: Thin, watery, light bodied beer. Guess it matches the style. HEY!!! A ton of carbonation and it finally works for one of the style!!!! What do you know, they nailed it on this one. Crisp, very crisp. No aftertaste.

D: Goes down easy as a lager should. This beer is not that great at all. This and the porter from this pack were probably the worst. Pretty lame.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2009 06:47:37 | More by everetends

BeefyMee

Connecticut

3.45/5  rDev +16.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

I got this out of the Beers of America 12 pack. There seems to be some mystery about who makes these beers, but I haven't really tried to figure it out. I'm guessing they're contract brewed to put into the holiday gift packs.

The beer has a nice yellow-amber color but not much of a head. The aroma is severely subdued with just a slight butteriness and the tiniest wisp of hops and alcohol. The taste is clean and fairly pleasing. Still a little buttery with a nice use of malt. No real hop presence to speak of. Nothing spectacular but quite drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2009 21:31:12 | More by BeefyMee

garymuchow

Minnesota

2.85/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pouring straight out of the fridge. Helpful, or not?
Pale color of gold. Bright. Clean white head that is small and leaves really quickly.
Clean aroma of sweet malt and typical for style. Seems to have a metallic quality or that could be the glass.
Mild flavors all around. Seems to be lacking any sweetness. Bitterness notable that leads to a distinct dryness. Malt character of some bread.
Fully carbonated (so why such a little head?). Actually rather filling on that account. Otherwise feel is moderately light and seem right.
Drinks fine, just lacking any distinct character.
Part of beers of America series.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2009 19:46:16 | More by garymuchow

jjanega08

Minnesota

2.93/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

A= darker than I expected. A golden color with a small head but the bubbles keep rising.
S= stronger than I expected. Its got a nice balance where you can smell the malt and hops seperatly. Boozy smell comes in as well. Lots of carmely sweetness
T= thick malty flavor followed very quickly with booze. Then a metallic taste comes through. The hops do not fit with the malt at all.
M= average body with average carbonation.
D= very average. The metallic taste is too much for a lot.

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2008 00:20:45 | More by jjanega08

Procrastinator

Florida

3.03/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12 oz. brown bottle is part of "Beers of America" 18-pack that was given to me. I've had this beer several times in years past, always within these type collections. Dating of 2707R 09:05:70 stamped on bottle neck. Poured into pint glass.

Appearance: medium gold colored body with white small-bubbled, 2-fingered head which breaks down to thin layer. Streams of carbonation dance off the bottom in this very refreshing looking beer.

Smell: scents are mild at best. Lightly toasted grains along with subtle flower sweetness.

Taste: slightly sweet cereal grains, mild honey with hops in the background to balance. Hard mineral water and slight sourness at finish. Lacks that nice hop crisp bite.

Mouthfeel: carbonation is beneficial to help bring out the flavors. Body is relatively watery, but turns a bit buttery upon warming.

Drinkability: easily drinkable, but flavors are pretty non-descript. Nothing to seek out here.

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2008 21:38:22 | More by Procrastinator

beveritt

Ohio

2.8/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Presentation: Poured from a 12 oz brown bottle into a standard pint glass. This is from a sample pack of historic American brews.

Appearance: Pours with a little over an inch of pure white foam. The foam doesn't stick around long, and visibly retreats, leaving some lacing. The beer itself is a pale yellow and crystal clear, with just enough bubbles coming up to keep a thin layer of head.

Smell: Sweet malt upfront, with strong hints of adjuncts. Very little in the way of hop aroma, but has a slight metallic twinge.

Taste: Sweet yet shallow maltiness with no depth or hops. Unpleasant aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Carbonation level is average for this style of American lager, which means high. Body is average.

Drinkability: Not much here to talk about. Not a drain pour, but very little depth or character.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2008 03:02:47 | More by beveritt

altgeeky1

New Hampshire

3.05/5  rDev +3%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours clear pale yellow-gold, with 1 finger of head foam that settles to a very narrow lace around the glass. The beer has some head retention issues, but it's not the end of the world.
Smells malty sweet, with floral hops. I am guessing they use Saaz hops, which make for great aroma hops with low bitterness.

Tastes like an American pils - sweet, medium-low body, medium carbonation, very refreshing. Hops are there, but not overpowering - just as you would expect in a pils.

Mouthfeel is excellent - there's some rolling malty feel, appropriate carbonation bite - even if it's not visible in the glass you feel it expand in the mouth. Finish is VERY clean like an American macro. I almost detect a small cider bite (like you get in a corn sugar homebrew) but that was very faint.

Styles are a subjective thing - placed in the German Pilsner category this beer scores above average because of so many finer beers in the style, but this is a very good session beer without resorting to filler like corn and rice.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2008 01:49:37 | More by altgeeky1