My family and I are at the Lake of the Ozarks in central/southern Missouri with the rest of my family to help my grandparents celebrate their 65th wedding anniversary. It was great seeing my whole family, as well as my grandparents. While waiting for dinner, I ordered a local beer. I’d heard of Bur Oak Brewing during my last trip to Columbia, MO, when I had their Trail Bender Wheat. And since I used to live in Boone County when we lived in Missouri, I thought it would be a good one to try.

Location: On tap and served in a tumbler style pint glass at Wobbly Boots Roadhouse in Osage Beach, MO.

Numbers: 4.5% ABV, 25 IBUs, ~130 Calories

Ingredients: Malts: Pilsner Malt, Chocolate Malt, Coffee Malt, and Caramel 40 Malt; Hops: Mt. Hood

Appearance & Aroma: It’s dark brown in color with some brown highlights when held up to the light. it looks like it’s very clear, with a nice and creamy head that had some great retention and lacing. The aroma is nutty with some toasty brown maltiness.

Taste & Feel: The body is medium and the mouthfeel is somewhat creamy from the head. The flavor up front has a good, sweet caramel maltiness with some nutty toastiness. The sweetness maintains itself in the middle, but is joined by a grainy toastiness from the malt. In the finish, the brown graininess peaks with some slight earthy bitterness, balanced by some sweet, toasty caramel flavors. The graininess and caramel sweetness last for a minute or two in the aftertaste.

Food Pairing: I had the prime rib for dinner, and this beer went pretty good with it. The caramel and grainy notes mixed perfectly with the flavors from the beef, and the creaminess made for a nice transition between the meal and drink.

Overall Impression: I thought this was probably one of the better brown ales I’d ever had, with a good, complex mix of nutty, toasty, and grainy flavors, complimented by a good body (for a lighter ABV beer) and a smooth creaminess. This was also a very flavorful beer for being lighter in ABV. Overall, I thought this was very good, and would recommend it if you’re looking for a good brown ale to try.

My Rating:

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