Legend of This Fall: The Bruery Autumn Maple

Sampled: Oct. 23, 2010

The Bruery strikes again with an autumn ale bursting with ingenuity. Topping off a Belgian brown ale with a concoction of spice, molasses, maple syrup and yams (read that last one again), the Orange County brewery demonstrates the best traits of American craft beer.

Root vegetables add an unmistakable character to beer, whether beets or yams. With my novice knowledge of wine I would describe it as an earthiness, which only builds on the complexity those touches of molasses and syrup began. Autumn Maple has a tight effervescence, with the flavors emanating sassafras notes that recall small-batch root beer. The nose is a powerhouse with the yams, molasses and syrup all competing for time. The yams definitely take the lead role after a second sniff.

All those flavors dovetail into the creamy, slightly sweet finish native to Belgian brown. The mingling of all these flavors has a wine-like character. Despite all those heavy attributes and a 10 percent ABV, it's an unexpectedly light Belgian brown. It's more Chimay Red and Chimay Grand Reserve, and the array of brew-kettle additions makes for a transcendent experience. Aside from Utopias, I cannot imagine a more rewarding experience with malt beverage and maple syrup.

The Bruery touts Autumn Maple as a beer that can age five years. As tantalizing as that sounds, I couldn't imagine waiting on an original beauty like this fall brown ale. Few beers cling to the season as well as Autumn Maple.