Sixpoint Sweet Action

I found this one on tap at T.B.A., a beer garden in Greenpoint on Labor Day. Some friends and I shared an $11 pitcher and enjoyed the lovely outdoor space.

The Pour: A light but opaque amber coloring with a good amount of fresh draft carbonation and a vigorous but short lived soda-type head. Head remained for a few sips and left no lacing. Pretty average.

5/10

The Nose: A nice bitter hop scent but no depth here. The malt is sweet, but mild and distant, perhaps a hint of rye or wheat. The carbonation does a good job at keeping a pleasant nose up front however; the hops stayed through-out the pint and well into the pitcher. I keep getting a hint of a funky malt at the very end, is it bit of wheat in the mash? The nose is a bit generic so I'd only give it a 5 or 6 but the staying power deserves a boost.

8/10

Mouthfeel: A nice light bodied ale. The hops are a little simple for me, a good dash of bitterness but no complexity. The malt is also dialed back a bit similar to a pale ale or a bitter, which is odd considering the amber coloring suggests something maltier. Over all it's a very smooth drinker and a good choice for a pitcher.

8/10

Taste-

Again there is an odd aftertaste of something interesting in the mix. I'm thinking they add some dark wheat to the brew to add the color and give it a bit of depth it would otherwise be lacking. This is a very subtle beer and it seems about a 5% ABV. I enjoyed this as a lazy afternoon session beer and it served it's purpose well, however it's a bit too muted for me to really dig into. I'd like to see it with some fresher hops, something to wake it up a bit. I was reminded of some of the European beers I'd tasted in Ireland, especially in the bitter and wheat-y aftertaste. As I've said, a competent session brew but nothing I'd laud or particularly recommend. It gets bonus points for keeping up it's carbonation and hoppiness from the pitcher to the last gulp. I wouldn't order a pint of this again, but if it's on tap during half-priced pitchers during football sundays, well, that's alright by me.

8/10

Sixpoint is a Brooklyn brewer located in Red Hook. They don't bottle, so bars and growler fills are the way to go. I've had a few by them and always been happy, but left wanting something more. Maybe I just haven't had their big guns yet, but I'd love to see an imperial stout or a belgian tripple from these guys, taste what they can do when they reach for something higher than mediocre.

29/40