Near Beer

Medium sweet. A surprising amount of natural orange in the nose. More hops than I was expecting at the start adds a bitter core with a soft wheat shell. The flavors feel layered but cohesive through the entirety, including the medium long finish. Nice complexity though the fruit might be off-putting for some. Ok. …

Slightly sweet. Rich and malty with just enough hops to provide a bitter backdrop without being overwhelming. Excellent mouthfeel. Probably one of the better alcohol removed beers that I've run into lately. While many have a certain tang in the finish, this maintains a full flavor all through the extended finish. …

Medium sweet. Where the sweetness in the Oatmeal Dark was kind of off-putting, in this Raspberry Gose it makes a lot more sense. Also there is just enough of a tartness to bring down the perceived sweetness to something much more expected from something that also has plenty of fruit going on. Speaking of which, plenty …

Quite sweet. Surprisingly sweet for a near beer. If it had been a fruit beer I could maybe understand, but this is supposed to be something like an Oatmeal Stout and it shouldn't be just about as sugary as a standard soda. There is some bitterness there to take the edge off the sugar, and gives some toasty notes. Those …

Quite sweet. Identifiably peach, but with some slightly interesting overtones. The malt base is just detectable but overall pretty subtle. The start is quite fruit forward but somewhere right in the middle you aren't quite sure if there is maybe some spearmint in the mix. That slightly minty tone grows a little into …

Quite sweet. Intense start with both tart lemon and a big hit of spearmint that runs through the entire experience. The malt from the na beer base does make brief appearances just before the extended, and quite minty, finish but is mostly providing a little character in the background rather than being anything like …

Slight sweet. The coffee hits hard and strong, but with enough sweetness to blunt the bitterness. Probably closer to an espresso than drip. Reasonable depth from some malt integrates really well. Compares really well to RTD cold brew coffees, but with a slightly different flavor profile. Recommended. Purchased at …

Not sweet. Pretty classic cream ale with a malty start and a touch of hops bitterness at the end. A little bit of a tinny taste over the top, but not incredibly noticeable. Long bread-y finish. Ok. Purchased at Stinson Wine, Beer and Spirits

Something Bowl Sunday 5/5 Not sweet. Like the Hairless Dog Lager earlier today this is hop forward. The difference then is in degree, not kind. Where the Hairless Dog used a big hammer, Athletic instead adds enough to be assertive but not enough to be abrasive. Floral notes develop in the middle and the finish is like …

Something Bowl Sunday 3/5 Not sweet. Lightly malted and fairly clean with just enough depth to be interesting. Other than the alcohol it's really similar to a Corona. Recommended. Purchased at Stinson Wine, Beer and Spirits

Something Bowl Sunday 4/5 Not sweet. Roasted malts are the star and they do shine pretty well. Slightly toasted bitter edge brings character and adds to the depth. A little more thin that I normally like my stouts, but works ok here. Not perfect, but worth it. Recommended. Purchased at Stinson Wine, Beer and Spirits

Something Bowl Sunday 2/5 Not sweet. Quite malty with just a bit of a bitter edge from some hops. Plenty of depth. Finish comes off slightly metallic unfortunately. Ok. Purchased at Stinson Wine, Beer and Spirits

Something Bowl Sunday 1/5 Slightly sweet. Overpowering hops nearly obliterates everything else though some malt comes through eventually. IPA lovers looking for a non-alcoholic beer might enjoy this but far too hoppy for something labelled a "lager". Pass. Purchased from Top Ten Liquors Roseville

Not sweet. A pretty good example of a fairly malty lager. Low bitterness. One of the most normal tasting non-alcoholic beers I've run across. Ok.

Not sweet. Malt forward with sharp hops follow-up. Slight umami towards the finish. Bitterness strongest in the middle with a slow drop through the extended finish. Ok. Purchased from Top Ten Liquors Roseville

Slightly sweet. Solid malt and a little bit of decent hops can't quite stay away from slightly cardboardy background. Bitterness swells in the middle, recedes toward the end, but never quite leaves the very long finish. Pass. Purchased from Cub Foods Har Mar

Slightly sweet. More malt than hops at the start. The hops do fairly quickly assert themselves for a fairly characteristic Cascade bitterness. Bitterness fades before the medium long, fairly nice finish. Ok Purchased from Top Ten Liquors Roseville

Slightly sweet. Tart and malty start with defined lemon essence melding with a light hop bitterness. Indeterminate fruit tones make an appearance at various points, but nothing that leaves much of an impression. Somewhat nutty malt and light lemon continues through the long finish. Ok. Purchased from Top Ten Liquors …

Medium sweet. Cider-like with fine grained/intense bubbles modulates into slight malt tones. OK. Originally posted to Twitter.

Not sweet. Mild malty start blooms into some hoppy bitterness. Short finish. OK. Originally posted to Twitter.