Central Coast Chai Cream Ale

Brewed by Central Coast Brewing
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
San Luis Obispo, California USA

Serve in Lager glass, Tumbler

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Looked interesting, so thought I’d give it a try. The body is nice. Perfectly carbonated and holds a nice head. The flavor leaves a lot to be desired. Sharp and a bit of a bitter finish. Worth trying once.

On tap at the brewery with my bro-in-law Mike. Great off-the-radar brewery. Was told by bartender this was their blonde ale with chai added during fermentation Nice cinnamin chai flavor. Creamy and light.

Bomber poured into a pint glass. Gold with a heart of orange and a fizzy cola-like off-white head. Aroma is sweet with obvious chai spices, vanilla, hay, candied citrus. Flavor is sweet as well, with a round honey malt base and a restrained chai spiciness that surprisingly doesn’t become overwhelming. At first the beer is on the cloying side but with a little warmth, some mild tea tannins come out and dry the palate without being too astringent. I wasn’t expecting much here but this beer is completely fine. The only flaw is it’s sweet and fizzy.

Bottle from Henry’s: Poured a sparkling golden liquid and had a fizzy short lived formation of foam. As for the aroma, I can definitely pick up on the scents of cream, green herbs, spices, and perhaps a light background of tea. The flavor is just as rewarding as the nose led me to believe because of the touches of herbs, tea, and spicing as well as a delicate usage of cream flavoring. Certainly creative and different cream recipe than made for an interesting drink since I usually don’t fancy cream ales unless their really dark in complexion.

Draught at the brewery. A beer clothed in controversy, and possibly rightly so. Takes more of a sweet chai line than spicy, though the spice is there in a rounder, sweeter way, like a starbucks chai with plenty of sugar. But I like starbucks chai; much better than their coffee. Basic blond/cream ale base with light hops but a little more malt sweetness to carry the tea. Nice stuff.

bottle thanks to bullzeye.. Pours pale gold with thick head. Aroma of hay, gras, some malty sweetness, tea. Flavor is understated, some spice and sweetness. Nice but thinnish.

Bottle thanks to bu11zeye. The look is slightly cloudy, golden, with a nice white head. The smell is flowers, tea, honey, jasimine, and chai. Tthe taste is weak, some spices, flower, and chai.

Bottle thanks to bu11zeye. Hazy gold with a good sized white head. Aroma is floral with notes of fruit and perfume. Taste is of grain and lightly floral.

(22oz bottle, 2008 vintage) Pours a lightly hazy yellow body with a tall frothy white head. Aroma of lemon, orange, clove, and tea leaves. Flavor of tea, citrus, floral, clove, cardamom, and grass.

2008 bottle thanks to bu11zeye. murky yellow pour with a white head. nose is light spice and some earth. not bad on the palate with a sweet chai flavor.

Bottle thanks to bu11zeye. Aroma of new sneakers and tennis balls. Taste is exactly like verner’s ginger ale. Creamy mouthfeel and medium length finish. Different.