Brooklyn Brown Ale (Alcohol Content 5.6 percent)

Brooklyn Brewery, New York, New York

Approx.: $8.49 for six pack

3 of 4 Mugs

Brooklyn Brown Ale is a splendid, clear-textured brown ale. Pouring with a subdued caramel head, Brown Ale quickly dissipates leaving a thick ring around the glass with a good carbonation bubble stream rising from the bottom. It has a distinct burnt malt, chocolate and caramel taste that lingers on the front of the pallet with hints of rich coffee. Brooklyn Brown Ale, as is the case for most brown ales, is rather light with regard to hops, and can come across as watery when compared to fuller, bitterer lagers. Overall it is a wise beer to start with if venturing into new beer styles.

Boddingtons Pub Ale (Alcohol Content 4.8 percent)

InBev U.K. Limited, Luton, England

Approx.: $7.87 four-pint can pack

2 of 4 Mugs

Boddingtons Pub Ale pours with a thick creamy-white head out of the nitrogen-activated cans into a pint glass that cascades and settles like a Guinness, despite its hazy gold color. Nothing about its aroma jumps out as too strong, and the first taste confirms it is thicker and more complex than it appears. The floral taste is hard to pin down with little prevalence of hops or malt. While probably great in a British pub surrounded by English football hooligans, this style beer shouldn’t hold the same sway stateside.

Marple Ale (Alcohol Content 5 percent)

Homebrewed, Syracuse University

Free for the right people

3.5 of 4 mugs

When pairing the words college and beer, brewing is most likely the last gerund that follows this couple – but Colby Marple, a junior public relations major, has done just that, crafting his own custom brew in the basement of his Comstock home. Admittedly hesitant to the capabilities of a first-time brewer, I was surprised to find Marple Ale is a wonderfully balanced and refined beer I would not be surprised to find in a niche pub. Just the right amount of hops and malts combine to give it an evenly bitter and sweet taste, and with a beautiful orange-yellow color, it is an impressive accomplishment of dedication and ingenuity for anyone, much less a busy college student.

Published on January 29, 2008 at 12:00 pm