March 25, 2009
Morimoto Soba Ale
Tonight’s beer is one that I picked up at a local beer tasting. I was going to try another beer that Petey gave me. It, like last weeks, had gone bad. Again there was some kind of slimy sediment to it. Fortunately, I still had a back up beer. This week I am reviewing Morimoto Soba Ale by the Rogue Ales Brewing. This is one of Rogue’s signature beers developed by Chef Masahura Morimoto, of Iron Chef fame.
The beer came in a 1 pint, 6 fl oz brown bottle. The label is silk screened on and is a blue circle with white oriental writing on it and Morimoto’s signature I assume. Bellow the art is the name of the beer in white lettering.
When poured into a glass, there is a nice golden orange color to the beer. There is a mild haziness to it, light passes through without difficulty. You can see carbonation bubbles flow up through the beer itself. It poured a thick white head made of a mixture of large and small bubbles. There was a nice thick lacing on the side of the glass.
The smell is different. I can detect malts and grains, but there is a scent that I am not familiar with. I’m assuming this is the Soba (Buckwheat). The smell is very pleasant, unlike any other beer I’ve ever had. The taste is malts and again something I’m not familiar with (probably the soba/buckwheat). A slight breadiness is also present. There is a touch of lemon zest to the finish. The aftertaste is pleasant and non-distracting.
It is a light bodied beer. Almost no coating to the mouth and the carbonation is a present if not mild.
When I first had this beer at a tasting, I didn’t know what to make of it. It was unusual, different and something I knew I had to try. I just couldn’t tell if it was good or bad after just 2 ounces of beer. I’m rather glad I picked up a bottle to do a full review on. I’ve found the taste to be surprisingly pleasant. I bet this beer would go really well with a lot of different meals. I give it 6 out of 10.
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