Bent Paddle Roof Rack Lager Review

Name: Bent Paddle Roof Rack Lager
Style: Vienna Lager
ABV: 5.7%
IBUs: 27

Well, fall is almost here and while I got a slew of Oktoberfest beers out of the way, there are other fall seasonals that I've been meaning to try out for a while now. The first one comes courtesy of Bent Paddle with their Roof Rack Lager, or Roof Rack Vienna Style Lager if you ask Beer Advocate.

According to the label, this beer is meant to commemorate the end of summer, or "paddling season" as they call it, while at the same time paying homage to Highway 61, which runs along Minnesota's North Shore. And in case you were wondering, it is the exact same Highway which Bob Dylan sings about in the song "Highway 61 Revisited."

Appearance - Clear bright orange color with a high amount of visible carbonation. The head is on the thinner side but it has a good amount of lacing retention.

Aroma - Strong Munich malts upfront with some mild citrus hop notes. I'm also getting some lager yeasts in here as well, but it's more moderate.

Taste - Citrus hops and Munich malts that linger throughout with some lager yeasts that show up primarily towards the back. Aftertaste is fairly dry, save for a mild bittersweet citrus hoppiness.

I never thought that I'd ever see a Citrus-y Vienna Lager, but here it is and it's a damned fine one at that! It's not the most complex beer out there, but the flavor is enough to keep you coming back for more. Since this just came out recently, there's still plenty of time to try this out. So do yourself a favor and get a six-pack of this, you won't regret it.

Bent Paddle Roof Rack Lager - 9/10