I’m sure you’ve had this beer. And I’ll bet you like this beer. And yes, that’s my rabbit behind the Newcastle bottle. He’s very charming and does tricks and can dial a phone. Hoookay. Newcastle. Sometimes, beers are so widely available that they get stigmatized, one way or t’other. Think of the recent surge in popularity of, say, Heineken. Heineken is currently billed as a “hip” and “fresh” beer. In this beerophile’s opinion… Heineken is not all that good. Certainly not special. Not hip. And not fresh… in fact unless you are at the brewery in Amsterdam (ja, I know–the actual brewery has moved out of the city, but I’ve been there before and since the move so… I’m kind of an authority…), the beer tastes kinda skunky.

My point is that just because a brau* is ubiquitous, it is not necessarily good or bad. Newcastle… is good. They like to play up the Manichean “smoothness” yet “full flavor” of the beer and, dammit, so true… so true. The beer tastes great and does indeed have subtle complexities and, well, it’s really smooth. It goes riiiiight down. Followed by 2 or 8 more. The hop character is light, adding some crispness and a nice clean finish. The body is malty, with a light roasted taste and bready hint. The aroma is malt and very faint chocolate/burnt toast. Newcastle’s Brown Ale is subtle, complex, smooth and good. Not the most complex or wild beer ever, but at least you can most always find one at the store, and it will never let you down.

I’ll stop there. I don’t need to go nuts describing this ‘ol guy because if you are on a beer site, you have had Newcastle. If not, I am wrong and you are friendless.

*From the German for “arboreal.”