September 05, 2010

Cold Trail Ale from Mountain State Brewing Company

By Don

My wife and I went on a trip to celebrate our 18th Wedding Anniversary to Berkeley Springs, WV.  Our first night there, we had dinner at a great place called "Tari's."  My first thing to do when we're at a new place is to check out the beer list and more importantly, see if they have any local or regional offerings.  I noticed they had a couple varieties from Mountain State Brewing Company so I ordered a Cold Trail Ale.

But first, let's talk about my meal.  To start, I had a cup of their Spicy Crab Vegetable soup.  Delicious!  A nice little kick and the crab was a great compliment.  We also had some Veggie Pot Stickers.  Also delicious!  But, my mouth kept watering at the thought of my main dish ... Southwest Shrimp Tratalle.  It's sauteed black tiger shrimp, fire roasted peppers, black beans, corn, and sauteed onions tossed with tratalle pasta in a zesty Pepper Jack cream sauce.  It was rich and it was yummy!

Hindsight being 20/20, I should have gotten a beer with a little more bite to compliment my meal.  Cold Trail Ale is an American Blonde Ale.  It's crisp and light.  It's 5.5% ABV.  I'd say this is more of a Lawn Mowing, hot summer day beer.  But, something had me puzzled.  I kept saying to Lori that there was something different about the way it tasted, I just couldn't figure it out.  It might be the "healthy dose of oats and wheat" that it's brewed with according to their website.  I also saw from their website that they have an "Almost Heaven Amber Ale."  Being a big fan of the Amber Ales, I'll have to try that one on my next trip back.

"Take Me Home, Country Roads!"

Cheers!

CATEGORY: Summer Lawn Mowing Beer

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