I went up to the bar at Latrobe Uni today and was thinking of having a stout when I saw a James Squire Amber ale in the fridge, looked like the best thing there so I asked for that. The publican told me that he had the rep in yesterday and that they had a new beer in, only so many (6?) cases of Malt Runner.
When I sat down and had it I really did like it, much more than I would have any ‘generic’ type of stout. These sort of flavours are really to my liking, not a huge roast impact or hop bitterness but something else. James Squire describes the beer as having a ‘subtle acidity’, with a good dark caramel sensation right through the palette and something a little similar to a Bock. I’m the sort of person that enjoys Belgian ambers/reds/browns… the Malt Runner is none of those with far less complexity and acidity. By the way, that is a good thing!
Whilst I was drinking this I was thinking that it is a great beer for the middle of the day and would guess that I can enjoy this at any time of year… but it is a seasonal! It was really what I needed and I wish that drinkers appreciated beers with colour (lagers have no colour in my eyes) more so that when I walked up to any bar I had more of a choice than only 1/2 dark beers. So try a Malt Runner while they are in season and leave that other pale stuff for the warmer months.
Cheers/salud!
Tags: James Squire, Malt Runner, new, seasonal