Schlafly Kölsch - Saint Louis Brewery / Schlafly Tap Room

Jacobob10

New Jersey

3.2/5  rDev -14.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bright yellowish-orange pour with a fizzy white head. Lively carbonation and great head retention all the way thru the duration of beer. Aroma was nothing great, hints of lemon and other citrus fruits but nothing more to speak of. Taste was along the same lines. Nothing stands out, but it wasn't bad. Light to medium bodied and easy on the palate. This beer could use some more "oomph" in my opinion.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2005 12:38:02 | More by Jacobob10

zeff80

Missouri

3.2/5  rDev -14.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

A - Poured out a golden color with a white, two-finger head. It was highly carbonated and left no lace.

S - It smelld of grains and clove.

T - It tasted very sweetand of grains and corn. It did have a slight bitter kick.

M - It was crisp and sharp. A light-bodied beer.

D - This is an okay kolsch. It just doesn't have a lot of flavor.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2007 23:43:29 | More by zeff80

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.15/5  rDev -15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A nice beer with a light, sweet character, and fairly clean. However, a Kolsch-style beer is more demanding. The beer's attempt to measure up falls a bit short. The color is a medium straw color with brilliant clarity. A somewhat-fizzy carbonation settles into a trace of bleach-white head retention. Aromas of sweet pilsner malts with a rich, earthy note and a moderate grain scent remains clean, but not Kolsch-clean. Tastes sweeter than expected with light vegetal flavors (corn and cereal grains), and moderate pilsner maltiness. Hop flavor is light with a bitterness that struggles to balance the sweetness. Light fruitiness shakes the vegetal flavors late into the finish and takes on pear, apple, and a light cider flavor. The texture is quite round and full for the style, but may sacrifice cleanliness and crispness. A light dryness and a slick texture wraps up the tail-end of the experience. Nice, but may fare better as a Blonde Ale.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2007 13:29:17 | More by BEERchitect

beagle75

Iowa

3.15/5  rDev -15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a becker glass.

A: Clear, medium golden color with over one finger of white foam head that diminishes to a persistent pad. Moderate lacing remains on the glass and a few streams of bubbles rise lazily in the column.

S: Faint fermented grain and crisp herbaceous hops are present in restrained balance. A slightly skunky sulfurous thread is also detectable, weighing a bit more than the sum of the other components, yet not derailing the nose.

T: Begins barely off-dry, with refined malt that is slightly crackery and buzzing with carbonic acidity. Nuanced tartness extends deep into the otherwise seltzery middle, then recedes in the face of swelling sweetness, late grassy hop flavors, and huskier pale malt. Bitterness is brief and very mild during the finish; vacant tartness lingers on the palate.

M: Thin viscosity, wet yet lifeless on the palate and showing relatively little felt acidity compared to the flavor, with low carbonation.

D/O: This golden ale strives to faithfully represent the kolsch style, with scattered successes. The malt bill is metered and appropriate, yet flavors become confused early on as tasted acidity runs amok. Still, the tart qualities are not wildly out-of-place in such a light beer, actually helping it to be more refreshing than the textures alone would accomplish.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2012 02:36:23 | More by beagle75

BlueMoon10

Mississippi

3.09/5  rDev -17.4%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3

Had this at Schlafly's Taproom. A decent Kolsch.

A: a bright straw-yellow/gold, with medium white head
S: wheat/yeast - standard Kolsh aroma
T: Grainy, dry, crisp, slight bitterness. Decently clean finish
M: Light body, good carbonation

O: Enjoyable beer, but nothing that makes it too different.

Serving type: on-tap

04-06-2013 23:14:11 | More by BlueMoon10

hwwty4

Missouri

3.08/5  rDev -17.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured a 12oz bottle into my Boulevard Smokestack goblet. This beer pours a light, pale lemon with a little bit of a head and leaves just a bit of lacing. The aroma is mildly sweet and a bit grainy with just a kiss of hops at the finish. The taste follows suit. There really isn't too much to it. It is just blindly sweet with nothing really to it. The mouthfeel is light and crisp, making for a good summertime beer like the label implies but I've had much better Kolsch's and I think I would rather have one of those then this one.

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2008 02:48:24 | More by hwwty4

Goliath

Illinois

3.03/5  rDev -19%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a clear golden color with one finger of frothy white head. Decent retention and a bit of lacing all down the glass.

The aroma holds a gentle fruity note with some pale toasted malt and a hint of hop spice.

The taste has a large pale malt profile that is reminiscent of a German pils.

Mouthfeel is thin to medium bodied with plenty of carbonation.

Drinkability is fairly high as the alcohol is low, flavor is decent.

Serving type: on-tap

06-02-2008 21:48:01 | More by Goliath

binkman

Maryland

3.03/5  rDev -19%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A: Brilliant gold, a very slight white head that dissipated quickly, and left a faint bit of lacing on the glass.

S: No malt arome to speak of. A slight apple-peachy scent, likely from yeast ester production during fermentation. I can also detect a hint of noble hops here. Together the two come together to suggest Froot Loops.

T: Slightly sweet up front. Not very malty. The fruity character from the aroma is present, and glides into a noble hops flavor. The finish is clean with pleasant bitterness. The fruity and hoppy froot-loops flavor is pleasant at first but persists too long and gets old by the end of the bottle.

M: Smooth and crisp with light body. It could finish a bit drier for me.

O: It's nice and drinkable, but probably better with some food. By itself the aftertaste is a little unpleasant and I was hoping for a bit more maltiness.

Serving type: bottle

10-08-2011 22:21:12 | More by binkman

becktone

Ohio

2.95/5  rDev -21.1%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

From notes 4-29-09

Eye: Pretty much looks like a fizzy yellow beer, head retention might be better than most fizzy yellows though...at a thick blanket comparable to a layer of sod that covers raw earth...about the average size of a suburban yard (keep the proportion intact though). Really nothing special, average I guess.

Nose: The first thing that strikes me about this beer is an aroma I can't quite put my finger on but know to be off for the style. At first I think its a bit skunky, but that doesn't seem quite right. Next I'm thinking it smells like a fermenting mash, as in bourbon. In connection with that I'm also thinking use of adjunct, corn especially. Lastly I'm thinking that it could just be overhopped with some noble hops. Perhaps a bit vegetal as well. Some diacetyl. Its odd, instead of finding subtlties that are positive, I'm only finding negative aspects of this beer, all subtle though. It doesn't smell bad, but I can't find anything positive about the way it smells. Every subtle aroma seems out of place in my opinion.

Tongue: This is nothing like other Kolsch beers that I've drank. This is much less complex and much more flawed for what I perceive to be the style. Nothing herbal, and too much, well nothing going on. This tastes more like a cream ale. Buttery maltiness with some dry hop character that is noticeable but completely overthrown by diacetyl. This just seems off. Slight spiciness from hops. Really not much flavor. This isn't a bad beer but for the price I'd rather go somewhere else. Like I said, I think that this would be better off if Schlafly were to call it a cream ale or perhaps just a light golden ale. I really don't think that this one represents the style very well.

Feel and Drinkability: The label says its medium bodied, I think that thats a bit of a stretch..medium-light at most with enough carbonation to make it feel that way without a doubt. Body and carbonation work well for the way that this beer tastes. Finish is dry. This isn't one I'd pick up again, though I would drink it again if I didn't have to pay for it. Its not bad, but I really don't think that its anything close to a Kolsch style. Perhaps I might buy it if I wanted something real bland, but then the price on it...well I could get something far better for less.

Edit: The more I drink of this the less flaws I find with it and I find it to be exactly what the brewers were going for, dry with a wine like palate with some bitterness in the finish. This is one I'll definitely be coming back to in the near future. Till then the review must stand. I guess I will pick up a sixer after all. There's one for drinkability, intriguing.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2009 18:55:57 | More by becktone

badsneakerz

2.9/5  rDev -22.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Unfortunately, this beer isn't close to being representative of the Kolsch style. It's not as nutty and dry as is representative of this style of beer, the beer I'm drinking also has significant hints of dicetyl taste and nose that are far too butterscotch tasting and smelling for Kolsch. It could just be the six pack I purchased. I would try it again on tap.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2013 03:53:18 | More by badsneakerz

SpecialK088

Missouri

2.75/5  rDev -26.5%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Poured into a perfect pint glass from Sam Adams

A-Very Very pale yellow with no head or lacing looks liek apple juice to be honest.

S-Nose is pretty delacate but sweet and grassy. Grains and a very small citrus note are noticeable.

T-Tastes like stale water...Has some light grain undertones with a hint of barely. There is a bitterness in the very back of the beer but I cant tell if it really has anything to do with the hops. refreshing beer but the small bitterness that lingers seems to defeat that pourpose as it feel like I need something else to drink.

M-Like stated above is like water very thin near no body at all

D-Dont see any reason why I would ever buy this beer again there are way to many refreshing beers that have far more to offer

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2009 21:40:31 | More by SpecialK088

hotstuff

Indiana

2.73/5  rDev -27%
look: 2 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

When poured into my glass, this beer poured virtually no head with fine sized bubbles that quickly dissipated.The body was clear and uncarbonated with a yellow hue.The nose was malty and hoppy with a medium bitter flavor.The mouthfeel was tingly and for the most part it was smooth.

Serving type: on-tap

11-04-2003 00:49:30 | More by hotstuff