Dubuque Star

Formerly brewed at Old Capitol Brew Works and Public House
Style: Pale Lager
Iowa City, Iowa USA

Serve in Dimpled mug, English pint, Lager glass, Shaker

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   add pic

Currently on tap at the Old Capitol Brewpub, I was told it’s brewed on site. I am not sure of the current distribution. The beer pours with a slightly hazy light gold with a thin white head. The aroma is vegetable with some notes of peas and a little bit of spicy hops. The taste is like an unsalted saltine with some more of the green leafy vegetable notes. There is also a little bit of spice in the finish. Certainly not offensive, this is decent for the style.

From what I have heard I am fairly certain this is not a faithful re-creation of the fallen label. But that isn’t necessarily a bad thing I suppose. The beer has a nice head retention, and is a pale translucent gold. It has a very nice malt character with a good hop dryness. Reminds me more of a Bavarian lager than a Midwestern. Very crisp and clean, if it were bottled I’d no doubt buy a case.

Draft at Old Capitol Brewery in Iowa City in a mug. The beer comes out as a very pale brew, and I was expecting the typical light lager flavor. However, the flavor is quite a bit different from what would be expected from the look. Most of the flavor is from the malt, and it tastes a lot like what one would expect out of a American wheat, not a lager. Hop bitterness takes a back seat to the malt. Being a lager it takes no flavor from the yeast. The closest flavor I can approximate it to would be the malt flavor of Sam Adams’ Cherry Wheat. Overall a very drinkable addition to the Old Capitol line of brews.

Light gold with a big white head. Aroma was corn and grape. Similar flavor, refreshing pale lager finish. Not offensive, but boring. I ordered this for no other reason than a rating, and I feel bad about myself for doing it this morning.

Draft at the brewpub. This beer is a nod to the beer of same name brewed in Dubuque, Iowa back in the day. The beautiful brewery on the Mississippi is still standing, but it is now home to a local vineyard tasting room, a brewerania museum, and a restaurant. As far as this beer goes, it poured a clear golden color with a fizzy white head. There wasn’t much lace to speak of. I smelled the slightest whiff of grassy hops, but the aroma was mostly corn and light cereal grain. Light bodied and delicately sweet. The flavor was similar to the aroma. Probably not dissimilar to its namesake.