Latest Reviews
Double Dry Hopped pseudoSueToppling Goliath
Modus Vivendi
Wild Beer Co.
Spaceman
Brewfist
Recent Articles
Outdoor Winter Tippling TipsStay safe from the pandemic and stay warm with these winter patio drinking tactics. Shameless
Craft brewer sellouts become as tone-deaf and underhanded as their new overlords. Great Taste Eve
Check out the burgeoning Madison beer scene the night before the best fest in country. Good Beer Makes Good Conversation
The effects of drinking beer worth talking about. The Beers of Walmart
The largest retailer in the world now has its own line of beers. archives »
Beer Reviews
Half Acre Lager
| Other reviews for this beer: | ||
| Jill Jaracz |   |
read it › |
Chicago, IL
USA
http://www.halfacrebeer.com/
Style: Lager
Eddie’s Rating:
(Recommended)
Comments:
You’d think a city the size of Chicago would have more than just two distributing breweries—Goose Island and now, nominally, at least, Half Acre—but that’s the way beer marketing works: in large markets, the large breweries spend mondo cabbage to make sure the little guys don’t get a foothold. And that’s especially true in Illinois, where the beer and liquor distribution system is just about as crooked as it was during Prohibition. Plus, if you go big market, you better make something that is going to appeal to the lowest common denominator, because that’s where the big margins are. Hence Goose Island’s shitty-ass 312 Urban Wheat and, at first blush, at least, Half Acre’s maiden offering, a “premium” lager.
To me, it’d take a miracle to wow me with such a beer, a member of the most boring style on the planet. But the Half Acre is a noble attempt, and does have a little success setting itself apart.
It pours an orangey copper, distinguishing itself from the get-go from your typical offerings. The head didn’t do itself any favors, though, with a thin fizziness more akin to an Old Style than a craft beer. And just when I think things are going downhill, the nose: fruity, light, and summery, a world away from the dry unpleasantness of its kin. All this preludes an extremely soft, medium body (which is huge for the style). Little-to-no hop profile, which I actually applaud—it would have been an easy way out to just hop the shit out of it and dare people to not call it a craft brew. Despite this—as well as a thread of maltiness in the backwash—Half Acre comes across as a fairly balanced beer.
Although I’d reach for a long list of American wheats before I’d grab a Half Acre on a hot summer day, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a quaffable, refreshing beer.
Reviewed by Eddie Glick on September 25, 2007.
Agree with this review?
No 
Yes 