Rogue Morimoto Soba Ale

golden in color thin white head. nice spicy aroma. flavor was spicy with pepper and corraindor notes. A slight hop bitterness to it complemented spicy notes.

Bottle from Premier Wine & Spirits, Dartmouth, NS. Shared with blankboy, HogTownHarry, tupalev & jerc. Bottled as Morimoto Soba Ale. Clear, bright golden-amber colour with a small, quick head. Aroma is quite hoppy, very fresh and fruity, with sweet caramel malt to back it up. Flavour is much mellower than the aroma would suggest, but is very well balanced - earthy, buttery malt with a subtle, woody hop finish. Sort of atypical for Rogue, but I liked it.

Bottle shared with HogTownHarry, GregClow, tupalev & jerc -- courtesy of GregClow. Pours a clear amber-orange with an average size fizzy white head. Aroma was nice and hoppy with some sweet malts, yeast, sour milk, citrus and spice. The body is a little flat. Flavour is not as hoppy as the aroma would lead you to believe -- it’s a bit sour with an odd taste that I can’t place, the buckwheat perhaps? (What does buckwheat taste like?) -- also has a buttery taste and consistency. Not bad but dissapointing as far as Rogue beers go.

Bottle shared with blankboy, jerc, tupalev & gregclow - courtesy of GregClow.. Poured clear orange with minimal off-white quick-diminishing head - no lacing; somewhat flat. Classic Rogue nose - heavy hops with spruce and resin notes, light malt and yeast. Flavour redolent with oak, virgin olive oil/butter, woody, musty - NOT hoppy at all; average linger, slightly acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, quite woody and hoppy in the linger - like a good oaked chardonnay; complex!

Bottle. Pours a clear light orange color, fluffy white head, good lacing, a few tiny bubbles rising in the beer. Honey, toasty aroma, not particularly strong, but a pleasant scent. Flavor is very sweet, only a slight hop bitterness that I can detect, kind of nutty in the finish. A well rounded toastiness comes in the middle and leads well to the very clean, nutty complementary finish. Definietly unique, I’ve never had a beer that’s anything like this. Body seems a little weaker than medium body I thought it should have, medium carbonation, smooth. This goes well with a light meal, for instance a salad (like I ate tonight), with its clean finish and lighter body.

Citrus hops and bready malts and light spice in the very fruity, doughy aroma. Opaque golden-orange with large-bubbled, low, white head that leaves a lasting cover and ring. Citrus hop flavours marry well with pastry-like doughiness and fruity esters with a roasted, almost burnt nut flavour in the finish. Tastes somehow like it should be darker. Understated bitterness allows the curious flavour of the roasted soba to take the spotlight. As it warms, floral and vanilla tones become noticable along with a light, pleasant hint of buttery diacetyl. Medium-light body is fairly dry and well-attenuated with initially spritzy carbonation that doesn’t last. Bottle (Bieropholie, Apr-05).

I didn’t like this beer too much. Kinda sweet, weird flavor, didn’t really have a beer flavor, like a strange malt beverage.

Bottle was labeled as the Morimoto Soba Ale. Interesting that Rogue does this with a quite a few of their beers, renames them or gives them two names.....don’t quite understand why. Seems like it would be more expensive to change the designs. But anyway, the ale pours a honey color with a small white head. Aroma has hints of bread/yeast. Nice crisp mouthfeel. I really liked the unique taste, malty on the front end and nutty on the finish.