All About Beer Magazine

Beer Talk

Organic Mateveza Ale with Yerba Mate

Available: CA, OR, WA

• Roger Protz

  Do you want or need caffeine with your alcohol? Maté is a variety of tea grown in South America and adds a spicy and herbal note to this hazy gold organic beer with a clean white head. The aroma is herbal and spicy, with citrus fruits and a hint of licorice. It is tart, tangy and fruity in the mouth with a big punch of hop resins. The intensely bitter finish has hops, tart fruit, juicy malt and herbs.

• Fred Eckhardt

  The head here is eloquently low key in its proclamations, and followed by well-balanced aromatics. The taste is smooth, friendly and a tiny bit more non-hop bitter than expected; which is surprising because the hop character is noticeable, especially on the nose, but not really so on the palate. Odd, but very interesting and quite delicious.

• John Hansell

  A session beer drinker’s dream: a CNS depressant and stimulant, all in the same bottle. Citrus, herbal aroma, with a kiss of honey. There’s more citrus again on the palate, with a quickly emerging earthy, somewhat tannic bitterness that crescendos on the finish. The tannins coat the palate and linger long after the swallow — which is easily satiated with another sip. (Could that be why it comes in a 22 oz. bottle?) A pale ale with grit.