Headstrong Munich Lager

Brewed by Matt Brewing Company
Style: Dortmunder/Helles
Utica, New York USA

650 mL bottle. Golden amber/orange colour with thin head. In style of dortmunder/export @ 5.5%. It calls itself a Munich lager so it should be leaning towards malty sweetness, and this one does (but there is some ingenious use of hops which really gives it a nice mellow bite). I might have had a less than fresh bottle from the LCBO but I see where this is going: well-balanced with a slick, sweet, almost citrus or spicy taste and not too bitter on the finish. This has a real malty presence but the slight sweetness gives it a nice long finish which isn’t overly bitter. Really well-made beer: mix it up & get this instead of your normal lager. Reminds me of really fresh Steam beer. This beer is so well crafted you can taste it for a while after you are done, and it tastes really "wet" (you know what I mean) which you can’t say for every lager out there. This is just a different level of lager that most wouldn’t be exposed to, an impressive lager really. Slightly increased alcohol content without ruining the over-all taste, brilliant.

650 ml bottle: Yum! Poured out an orangish/gold with little head. Amazing flavours going on in this one: malty, yet fruity and sweet all at the same time. Very mellow hops make this a tasty surprise.

Draught, 3 pints, savoured at JLJ Schnitzel for Oktoberfest on September 29, 2006; eye: burnt orange, lightly hazy, beige head, lacing; nose: hops, grapefruit, caramel, citrus, floral hops, "fresh"; mouth: pleasant hops, caramel, grapefruit-citrus, finale in light hops and caramel, medium body, grainy texture, lightly sweet, mildly bitter FRANÇAIS Fût, 3 pintes, savourée chez JLJ Schnitzel pour l’Oktoberfest le 29 septembre 2006; oeil : orange brûlée, très légèrement voilée, mousse beige, dentelle; nez : houblon, pamplemousse, caramel, citron, houblon floral, « frais »; bouche : houblon agréable, caramel, pamplemousse-citron, finale en houblon léger et caramel, corps moyen, texture granuleuse, légèrement sucrée, moyennement amère

This is sadly no longer brewed by Wellington. The 473 ml cans now sold at the LCBO are brewered in in states by Big Hole brewing. In an odd case, the wellington copy of headstrong was better, actually it was a lot better. This is still a good beer, but it is not nearly as good as it used to be when it was brewered by wellington. It is a shame. But oh well

Pours dark golden with a sweet corn nose but a bit flat, no head at all, no carbonation. Roasted malt flavour clear to the finish. Not a bad beer but this particular bottle was pretty flat. (650ml bottle)

473 mL can. Pours a golden with moderate head. Aroma is nice and well balanced. Flavour is initially very spicy but yields to a sweet, dry, pleasant finish. Quite nice.

the aroma is a soft bready, slight yeast smell. it is golden with a foamy head and the taste is bread and butter with a bit of grass, and has a nice palate with a tiny, pleasant bite. this was a good deal, i used to get it frequently and probably will again

Pours an orange-copper with a big soap sudsy head. Lacing remains throughout. Smells of grassy hops, wet grain, celery, bread dough, brown sugar. Mouthfeel is crisp with medium carbonation. Not overdone. Taste is grapefruit citrus, bitter hops finish, touch of aspirin, touch of caramel. Overall, a decent session. I quite enjoyed it, but it certainly doesn’t jump out at you and pull your hair, does it?