Tasting: Railbender Ale

Railbender Ale Erie Brewing Co. Erie, PA.
So, I'm skulking up and down in front of the coolers at the Beer Depot, looking for a six of something new (and preferably Michigan-born), when I spy this one. Never even heard of the brewery! Railbender! I guess it had a nice ring, because here we go.

From the label:
(Deep Malt Flavor, Caramel Sweetness Lingering In A Soft Hop Flavor, Deep Red)
"Dubbed 'Nectar of the Gods' by 'Bender', believers and ardent apostles from mount to the plain, this strong Old-style ale has a following of devout like none since Aegir himself. With an alcohol content of 6.8% by volume, our maltiest ale is remarkably smooth and sweet. It's complex bitterness and aroma result from four hop varieties, including Czech Saaz and English Fuggles. Taste Ambrosia!"


Wow. I have no idea who Aegir or 'Bender' even are, but I can tell that this is going to be awesome. Did you read that? Awesome, I tell ya. Be back soon...

OK, I'll argue that it's not "Deep Red", but more of a dusky golden red. It pours clear, and the refrigerated head is but a skim that somehow lasts until the beer is gone. The aroma is all malt, with just the ghost of aromatic hops present. The taste...oh, yes. This has the perfect amount of sweetness for a beer. Very malty, like a good Old style ale should be, with a slight carbonation burn. I'd put it at about a 4 out of 10 on a bitterness scale, with nearly all of it coming from the boiling hops. Man, this is nice. The aftertaste is where the bitter hops really come out, and they stave off the inevitable sourness for a minute or so.

So, sweet-but-not-cloying, some gentlemanly bitterness, and great drinkability. Well, decent drinkability, with that 6.5% abv estimate. I would totally buy this again.


Let's talk about an uncomfortable subject. Mouthfeel. Say it with me...mouthfeel. It's a word that has great utility if you're describing a tasting experience, be it beer, wine, lemonade, or melted butter. Trouble is, it's a horrible, horrible word. It really puts the reader or listener right inside your mouth while you're describing something, which seems, on the surface, to be a great idea, but in reality it is a bad thing. I don't, for example, want to be in your mouth while you're tasting something, so it stands to reason that...got me? And it's no good to say something has X characteristic "in the mouth", because that just sounds dumb, and causes the same ooky problem.

So do we need a new term for expressing this, or has the existence of the word just made me lazy? Instead of "...had a heavy mouthfeel, like maple syrup...", I could say "...after slurping up a yapful, I found it heavy, like maple syrup...", or even "...I sat there with a mouthful, my tongue violently probing the flavors prior to swallowing, and I noted a peculiar maple syrup-like gravitas to the concoction...".

Incidentally, Railbender Ale was delicious in the mouth, and it had a fantastic mouthfeel.

Please help me.