Foster's Premium Ale. 5.5% abv. 18 IBU. Gold-amber color. Thick bubbly head with good retention and some lace. Faint aroma of malt with muted hops. Flavors of malt, roasted grain, some corn. Thin-medium body. Mouthfeel is lukewarm, sticky, bubbly. Aftertaste is mild hops, bready, yeasty, dry.
At the pour, this ale was better than expected. However, it lacks character and complexity, and the nose becomes off-putting as the temp drops, with emerging notes of cooked veggies and canned corn. Not a terrible brew, but not something I’ll be revisiting anytime soon.
From the brewery:
"It’s brilliant copper appearance sits beneath an enormously foamy head. A nicely balanced maltiness accentuated by rich caramel notes and a slightly sweet character. Foster’s Premium Ale is a 5.5 alcohol volume ale with a brilliant copper color that delivers a rich, earthy beer-drinking experience with a smooth caramel finish."
[source: fostersbeer.com]
I'm not sure how anyone can overlook the in-your-face Pride of Ringwood hops that Foster's uses in its beers. The Premium Ale has even more hop flavor than the lager, not that the lager can be considered flavorless. To say that it is characterless is, especially when compared to American beers, strange to me.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't say Foster Premium is *completely* without character, but it does lack. The hop profile here is very mild, which is surely by design considering the extremely low IBU. It's not a bad beer, but that canned corn adjunct taste is something that's hard to get past, no matter what hop variety is used or how much. In the end, it's really just personal preference.
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