Rogue Morimoto Soba Ale

Pours a clear yellow/amber with yellowish head. Malty, nutty aroma with some grainy notes. Flavors of sweet malt, wheat (I’m guessing buckwheat ;) ), and hints of nuts and caramel. Pretty nice easy to drink beer.

Bottled as Morimoto Soba Ale. I’ve never seen this beer as Buckwheat Ale. Thin head with clouds of yellow hues. Nose is chestnut and wheat. Very light and airy palate to this with tastes of (I thought rice, but could be the buckwheat), roasted nuts, and mild malt. Good carb and thin body. Decent.

Hazy orange, thin white film. Interesting aroma, roasty and nutty and some licorice. Flavor is more mild, balanced and a bit floral. A little thin and not much alcohol, slightly oily finish.

Bottle as Morimoto Soba Ale Hazy yellow pour with a thin creamy head. Interesting and surprising aroma, I guess it’s the buckwheat. Flavor also has that surprising flavor I’ve never had before. Definitely interesting brew. What the hell is soba?

650 mL bottle. Slightly hazy yellow with a creamy white head. Sweet grainy and roasty aroma. Creamy nutty taste with a vanilla flavor to the finish.

Morimoto Saba Ale was the name of it when I had it. Wow, yet again I’m not disappointed by Rogue. The aroma, amazing, flavor, just as dood as the aroma, overall, I’d get it again, great beer.

I love Masaharu Morimoto. He has a very serious composure, with the utmost majime and a stoicism today found only in lingering photographs of the now extirpated samurai class of Japan, but when need be he can become as convivial and frivolous as a schoolboy. His creativity is both tasteful, yet eccentrically Japanese, and his overall determination and good sportsmanship is second to none. Putting his mug on a beer was a darn good way of catching my eye, reminding me that it was about time to try another Rogue Ale. The Moromoto Soba Ale, which I understand to be only the latest moniker for the beer, pours a hazy, sticky looking orange with great torrents of carbonation circulating all around. The head is pillowy and poofy, looking a great deal like curvaceous sea foam with ripples and pockets of air matted between thick layers of soft sea lace. The aroma elicits only a slight honey smell, with fresh peanuts, burnt caramel, and Mexican spices and cheese. Do I detect a mild hint of jalapeno? And even more, somewhere behind the capsicum is an odiferous waft of wet lilac flower. It is an enticing aroma, but a bit strange and hodge-podge. The flavor is more mellow and reserved than the aroma, repeating the same honey and nut combination (now in every cereal, cereal bar, cereal bar stick and cereal bar stick tube on the market), but includes a sparkling water freshness and a spoonful of coriander, all wrapped in a general wit like flavor that is more hoppy than a wit, and also more pungent and powerful. The mouth feel is well tailored to the flavors, being both easy and bouncy. My only problem with this beer is I can’t slam my fist down and exclaim “Aha! Yes! This is buckwheat! Buckwheat at its finest!” and I blame this more on my own ignorance than Rogue’s brewing. Somehow I don’t see Morimoto’s reflection in this beer, but it’s less about the label than what’s inside I suppose, even if the upfront visage is almost entirely irrelevant to what is inside. Now I’m hankering for some real soba. Is there a possible pairing here?

Thanks to beer buddy ghawener. Pours into a rich golden color with nice head. Great aroma of citrus and ginger. Palate falls short as I felt it a bit watery and flat. Would have liked more boldness on this one.