Cigar City Tampa-Style Lager

This beer is for drinkin'. At least, that's what Cigar City says.  Here's the thing about them - I may stop buying their stuff. It's not that it is bad, but none of it is all that great. This one should be a straight-shooting lager, and that means there aren't unrealistic expectations for it.

The pale yellow, misty beer appears almost neon in the right lighting. The head isn't copious to begin with, and it withers away to a few clumps of surprisingly small bubbles all huddled in a few little groups on top. The aroma is sweet grains and grasses blowing in the breeze. It's a simple smell, but that's the nature of a simple lager, right?

First sip is a little lemony, a bit acidic, some grains, and a whole heap of water. It's not an impressive start. It seems that (at least from the sip) this brewer intends on pretty much hitting the traditional macro-brew lager right on the head. I don't know why - the other guys do that at extreme volume and a lot cheaper.

Tip-in is kind of watery lemon with a bit of heavier malt adding sweetness to the drink. The middle opens into a very watery grains and grasses with the sweet malt still keeping any bitterness away. The finish is a bit tart with more grains and lemons.

Bottom Line: Better than the macro-brews, but nothing to get excited about.

1.75/5