Lammin Kataja Olut - Lammin Sahti Oy

Jason

Massachusetts

3.33/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

Presentation: 11.2 oz brown stubby with no freshness date, says on the label “Ale brewed with natural flavor (Juniper Branches)”.

Appearance: Very little carbonation, not much of a lace at all. Clear copper color, the beer was poured with care to leave the sediment in the bottle.

Smell: Musty lemons, faint hard-boiled egg and a steely aroma. Canned mandarin oranges?

Taste & Mouth Feel: Wow … canned mandarin oranges on the palate. Carbonation is next to nothing with a moderate body. Pretty damn tart from the get go, mildly lambic-like. Walnut skins. Musty … nearly chalky with a drying tartness, lemony with a sharpness of the juniper riding it back.

Drinkability & Notes: Weird … I sort of like the flavor, it has grown on me after several sips. If the carbonation had a nice sharp spike of crispness to it I’d probably love it.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2005 02:35:43 | More by Jason

PatGreer

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +30.4%

03-25-2013 03:32:16 | More by PatGreer

sliverX

New York

3.5/5  rDev +7.4%

02-21-2013 03:09:10 | More by sliverX

prisoner1572

Illinois

4/5  rDev +22.7%

01-21-2013 23:26:18 | More by prisoner1572

spycow

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev +7.4%

01-14-2013 04:46:21 | More by spycow

akttr

Michigan

2/5  rDev -38.7%

08-31-2012 03:00:13 | More by akttr

trxxpaxxs

New York

1.85/5  rDev -43.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

A: Pours a deep amber with a ton of floaties in it. There is almost no head, just a think ring of tiny white bubbles around the edges of the glass.

S: The nose is sour, funky, a bit spoiled, and maybe a little infected. It's like sour cherries mixed with two week old rye bread. It smells terrible.

T: Terribly tart right up front. But then it turns into a putrid mess. It's like rotten cherries and mold rye. Good lord. I almost spit it up.

M: Medium bodied beer. It's acidic and gross, funky and spoiled.

O: Nasty. It may only be from 2008, but it's terrible. This is a straight drainpour. I can't bring myself to take another sip.

Serving type: bottle

07-26-2012 21:48:42 | More by trxxpaxxs

electtodefer

New York

2.5/5  rDev -23.3%

01-18-2012 01:17:26 | More by electtodefer

MoreThanWine

Massachusetts

1.5/5  rDev -54%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5

This sounded so cool with Juniper (I'm a fan of gin) and I greatly anticipated trying it, but alas it's just not to my taste. Poured only a few soap suds bubbles of head and they popped immediately. The body is a hazy apple cider brown (or muddy water, take your pick). Smells so weird, not at all like the gin smell I expected. I'd say it smells more vegetal. The taste is like pickle juice only more sour. Quite unpleasant. I don't know, maybe this is a good example of the Sahti style (first I've had of it) but I couldn't stand this. It was a pricey drain pour.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2012 10:34:54 | More by MoreThanWine

yesyouam

New York

1.63/5  rDev -50%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1

Kataja Olut IVB is a very clear, solid, caramel colored liquid with no head to speak of. It has a sweet aroma of juniper berries and a host of herbs that my nose can't identify. There's something like soy sauce in the background. It smells like a fortified wine, not a beer. It's medium light bodied, flat and abrasive. It kind of hurts my mouth. This tastes like... beer gone bad; oxidized and infected. It's salty and it burns. I don't know if this is intentional, but I suspect not. Down the drain it goes. There's no indication as to when this was bottled, but it probably wasn't recently.

Serving type: bottle

12-12-2011 19:55:21 | More by yesyouam

rab53

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +22.7%

12-02-2011 03:21:25 | More by rab53

barnzy78

Illinois

3/5  rDev -8%

11-27-2011 05:50:03 | More by barnzy78

JAHMUR

Connecticut

4/5  rDev +22.7%

11-20-2011 05:05:55 | More by JAHMUR

vince4953529

California

3/5  rDev -8%

11-15-2011 03:45:49 | More by vince4953529

ktrillionaire

Florida

4.25/5  rDev +30.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to beersack for the share. The brew pours a murky and rustic deep caramel hue and is totally devoid of head or signs of effervescence; the rustic aspect saves the score. I smell sweet caramel, oxidized vinous notes, and perhaps suggestions akin to plum wine. The flavor is surprising, as is just about everything with this brew; the first anomaly is that I do not detect any trace of juniper or spruce - I am not sure whether this is an older faded bottle or if it always tastes like this. The taste is more like an English Barleywine, as if executed by a Belgian brewer, and is replete with heavy suggestions of toffee and dark fruit, oxidized vinous notes like a Marsala wine, some concord grape sweet fruitiness that I often find in Flanders Reds, small nuances of mulled spices and tea, and a slightly lemony finish. Very complex. The feel is more lively than its appearance suggests, and is medium-bodied, silky and pétillant enough to carry the flavors. Overall, I am very impressed with this, my first real Sahti.

Serving type: bottle

07-10-2011 19:05:24 | More by ktrillionaire

dragonWhale

New York

2.83/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A very interesting beer indeed.
Amber, protein and yeast particles float about. No head, no pop upon release of the cap from the lip. A vigorous pour results in wasted effort.
Juniper and caramel with some copper in the background. Thick and sweet with a tangy aftertaste. Not tart, though. Not bad, think I'll do a little more investigation within this style..you know, just for shitz.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2011 22:27:11 | More by dragonWhale

zaphodchak

Virginia

4.3/5  rDev +31.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Muddy/cloudy body-- no head. A higher pour yields a bit of foam. I like my beers cloudy, but this still is not pretty.

Nose is quite neat (reminds me of vintage Aventinus), some banana ester and some caramel that's hard to pin down.

Taste is interesting and quite complex, tart and earthy. Faintest coffee (or very dark chocolate) aftertaste. Body is chewy with some caramel, dark, with a bit of malt and wheat and a trace of juniper.

Mouthfeel is critical; this almost comes across as watery (especially with no head retention or lacing whatsoever), but a hint of carbonation to even out the body.

Overall this is super-neat. It's kind of a sipping beer, and as a sahti, this is different than what a lot of beer drinkers would expect. Not as off the wall in terms of sourness as a Flemish beer, but definitely exciting and worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2011 02:57:08 | More by zaphodchak

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

2.93/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

This beer was a little too unique for me I think... This beer pours from the bottle as a hazy brown color and it has a ton of sediment in it. The aroma is very intriguing, it's got a lot of juniper and other spices. The mouthfeel is fairly light but the flavor is really strong. The beer didn't have much carbonation at all. I just wasn't feeling this one too much.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2011 02:06:26 | More by Knapp85

THECPJ

Delaware

3.68/5  rDev +12.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from notes

A: your basic brown beer, but when held up to the light gives a slight orange hue, no head whatsoever

S: malty, slight spice/fruit scents, got and old/musty thing going on

T: sweet, dry on the backend, slight sourness/acidity

M: very mild carbonation, almost flat

D: interesting, not in any way outstanding

Cheers!
The CPJ

Serving type: bottle

02-23-2011 11:39:23 | More by THECPJ

avalon07

South Carolina

2.83/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A: Poured from a bottle to a pint glass. Had an orange-brown color and a thick, cloudy texture. Lots of floaties. There was a small amount of foamy, quickly dissipating head. No lacing to speak of.

S: There's a sharp aroma right when you open the bottle. Malt, an herbal quality and what seemed like caramel.

T: Flavor consisted of the advertised juniper, malt and some alcohol. Mainly, this is a thin, watery brew without much personality.

M: Almost no carbonation with a flat, watery finish. Medium-bodied.

D: Not much to recommend about this beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-15-2010 13:58:58 | More by avalon07

BeerNinja007

New Hampshire

4/5  rDev +22.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

Picked up a bottle of this for $4.99 at Hoosick Beverage in Troy NY. I'm really intrigued... Sahti, Finland... both are unexplored territory.

A heavy pour into the center of the glass gives nothing but a few random bubbles. The brew itself is a foggy brown with chunks of sediment settling to the bottom of the glass. The smell is very unique, reminds me exactly of a sweet zinfandel wine... tannins, grape, a little liccorice. Body is very flat and smooth. Taste is much more mild than the smell, but very diverse, a lot going on, more like wine than a beer. Semi-sweet, mild caramel, grape juice, very light tannins, unidentifiable herbs... man, this is really running me in circles. Maybe if I had a few more of these to try I could make more out of it.

What I can say is that this is really really interesting and very very different.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2010 01:55:29 | More by BeerNinja007

Cresant

Kentucky

2.65/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 2 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

Poured this 11.2 oz. brown bottle into a Sam Adams glass. No date. I poured hard but absolutely no glimmer of a head appeared. This is my first Shati so I am not sure if that is typical? The body looked like strong, old tea. Brown and hazy.

The smell was syrupy malts. Fruity as it warmed further. Hints of cinnamon?

The taste was tangy and mildly herbaceous. Almost cider-like. Some aftertaste of juniper but not as drying or as woody as I had expected.

The body was medium in density but it had almost no carbonation. I will not seek this one again but I would like to try other Sahtis.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2010 15:32:03 | More by Cresant

drabmuh

Maryland

3.18/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Beer served in a snifter. Beer is dark amber / dark orange and forms almost no head without really aggressive pour. The head is gigantic bubbles and monolayer, no lacing and no noticeable carbonation. Basically its flat.

Smells kind of malty sweet with a little bit of spice....interesting I guess.

Beer is thin and has an odd dry finish. OK it has a very odd dry finish. Its a little sweetness and not much else to it. Not a very good beer. Could be something totally different.

Serving type: bottle

06-25-2010 02:38:04 | More by drabmuh

drpimento

Wisconsin

2.8/5  rDev -14.1%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Different for sure and not in all the great a way. Poured with almost no head which is now totally gone. Color is a cloudy dark amber with lots of sediment. Aroma is a pungent malt juniper(?) yeast, wet cardboard resin. Flavor is like aroma with a tart edge. Almost no carbonation. Finish is like flavor with a long lingering tartness and a little alcohol. Maybe I got a bad one.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2010 22:46:09 | More by drpimento

wchesak

Virginia

2.63/5  rDev -19.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Poured into pint glass

A - dark amber color, little no head even pouring straight down the middle, no lace

S - sweet malt, bit of alcohol, pinesol like, some sort of cherry aspect

T - bit more cherry, some caramel malt, reminiscent of an old ale just thinner, dry spicy after taste

M - light side of medium bodied, much thinner than it looks or youd expect, no carbonation - reminds me of a few of my early homebrews

D - this is my first and last of this beer, after first taste I almost drain poured it, but its getting slightly better as I keep drinking it, had a DFH sahti but traded it, need to get a hold of another to try something that is better in style

Serving type: bottle

05-27-2010 23:32:52 | More by wchesak