Surly Cynic Ale (365 Day 43)

By scot in 365 Days of American Craft Beer on Thursday, January 13th, 2011

Surly Brewing CynicAle

Surly was a brewery that I was fortunate to go visit twice this past year: Surly Darkness and a family trip. Surly makes some really great American craft beers, getting a chance to have them fresh and on tap was something I didn’t think would happen but my wife, being the good trooper, agreed to a trip to Minnesota and my taste buds were happy.

I have to admit the first time I had CynicAle I was a little of, well, a bit of cynic. Even though I have savored quite a few American craft beer Belgians, I just always expect the worst. In Surly’s case I think I was over the top as I know they are known for other more “American” styled beers. Could they really be that good that they could pull off a solid Belgian to go with their quality line up of beers?

Obviously this isn’t my first CynicAle, which should very quickly lead you to the answer I surmised from my question above. There is a nice layer for light fruits to this beer that really make it juicy and refreshing. The one slight problem I had with this beer was that it seemed a bit on the light side. That aside, I could drink several of these as the typical Belgian spices are spiked, because, at times, the pepper can be difficult to take in anymore than small doses. Enjoy!

Aroma: 8, Taste: 8, Look: 9, Drinkability: 9, Overall: 8.5

Useless Fact: The thyroid cartilage is more commonly known as the adams apple.