#moosehead lager

beers, dogs and Lillyhammers

Moosehead Breweries is the oldest independent brewery in Canada, having started in 1867, founded by Susannah Oland, an immigrant from England. The Oland Family still owns and runs the business. That's certainly something the New Brunswick brewer has every right to proud of as a lot of older beers were snatched up by the macro brewers over the years. However, I can't say I'm a huge fan of Moosehead Lager. I'd be willing to try other Moosehead beers but most seem pretty light, with an amber and a pale ale being the darkest. Moosehead Lager is very light. It has a golden yellow color and a bubbly body give the beer a certain champagne-like feel when sipped. It has that generic watery light beer flavor, a bit of grain-like taste in the middle but bookended by slight sweetness and skunkiness. There's just a hint of bite in the finish but I think this has more to do with alcohol, not that there's much of that either, than hops. There's just not much to Moosehead Lager. In a way I liken this to Shiner, another independent brewery that's over a century old, and a desire not to mess with the old tried and true formula even if some tweaks would make a better beer. Both Moosehead and Shiner also long predated the craft beer revolution. But I guess there is a need for middle of the road brews for those that aren't quite as beer nerdy as myself. My experience overall with Canadian beers is not much to write home about but then again, I don't see very many besides the big ones like Molsen and Labatt here in Texas. I'd be willing to bet that Canada has some great craft brewers though. But until I can get my hands on those, I don't think I'll be gravitating to Moosehead much even if it's the closest thing.