Cigar City Brewing is based in Tampa, Fla. and offers quite a few good beers, some of which have been reviewed on the site previously. Up for review today is their Maduro Brown Ale.
The beer pours a deep brown with a thick, tan head that stood over two fingers tall at its height. If you are a fan of Brown Ales then you will appreciate the appearance. The beer almost looks as dark as coffee and looks delicious. There is no carbonation seen through the dark color.
The aroma is one of malt, toffee, caramel, and a touch of chocolate and coffee. Nothing truly sticks out on the nose and the aroma isn’t very strong but it is nice when you get into it.
The first sip offers notes of caramel, toffee, chocolate, coffee, and malt. There is very little hop flavor here but some notes do come through. The mouthfeel is light and smooth and finishes smooth and dry. It makes you want another sip.
As the beer drank there were notes that reminded me of a cigar and I couldn’t tell if my taste buds were being tricked by the can which features a cigar on it or if there was a slight earthy, tobacco note. Either way it was pleasant and relaxing. The beer was consistent and there was some light lacing on my mug as I drank it. I did keep going back for more sips and even though the taste was consistent the flavors that introduced themselves up front sometimes changed. For example, on one sip you would hit more toffee and caramel notes followed by malt and coffee. On another sip the coffee note was more forward followed by the toffee and caramel and so on. The profile was consistent though.
Overall, I liked this beer. I could imagine myself drinking this while enjoying a cigar or even on its own. I am a fan of Brown Ales and this one was a little adventurous and slightly different from some other Brown Ales. It clocks in at a very manageable 5.5% ABV so this could easily be a session beer. It is certainly worth a try if you enjoy this style brew.