Dry, Austrian Lager, Brewed the Cleveland Way

Brewed in the tradition of a Vienna- style lager, Eliot Ness is a handcrafted lager brewed by the Great Lakes Brewing Company in Cleveland, Ohio. This beer is one of the company’s year- round offerings and it joins the ranks of many other highly- respected, award- winning beers produced by this brewery.

Basic Characteristics:

Eliot Ness is considered a lager, because it’s a bottom- fermented beer. But don’t buy this product if you’re expecting a lager that’s similar to American- style products. This beer is full- bodied and flavorful, quite unlike the beer one expects when they think of a typical lager. It's a Vienna- style lager, which is similar to a German Marzen.

The ingredients used in this product are in compliance with the German Purity Act of 1516. The product is brewed with Belgian Malt, Two- Row Barley Malt, Munich Malt, and Caramel malt. Hallertau hops are added, along with lager yeast. There are no preservatives or chemicals used.

Poured into a glass, this beer does produce a good amount of foam and it does last for a while. The color of this beer is reddish- brown, and the nose is malty and toasty. The flavor of this beer could be described as a mixture of toasted malt, caramel, and German hops. The finish of this beer is dry and alcoholic. Overall, the flavor profile is bitter. There are 35 IBU in this product, which isn’t too extreme, but the alcoholic taste in the finish makes it bitter. Speaking of alcohol, the level in this product is 6.2 percent by volume, which is a little higher than most other beers and you can definitely taste it in the finish.

Food Compatibility:

Matching this product up with food requires that you take the bitterness of the alcohol into account, more than anything. Because of this, I would recommend drinking this beer with a spicy food, like Indian cuisine. It would also go well with spicy chicken wings or barbecued pork.

Awards/Recognition:

Eliot Ness has won several awards. In 1995, it won the Silver Medal from the Beverage Tasting Institute. In 1996 and 1997, it took home the Gold Medal from this same Institute. It also won the Silver Medal in 1995 and a Gold Medal in 1996, in the World Beer Championships.

Final Thoughts:

Eliot Ness is a good lager, but it’s not the greatest Vienna Lager I’ve ever tasted and it’s not the best product produced by the Great Lakes Brewing Company. It’s also not an every- day type of beer, because it’s a little too full- bodied and dry. This is not the type of beer you would want to offer to a malt- beverage novice. It’s really intended more for seasoned beer- drinking veterans who appreciate a beer that's a little out of the ordinary once in a while.

I recommend this beer for its complexity and rich, unique flavor. While I wouldn’t necessarily buy large volumes of Eliot Ness, I do think it’s a good beer and it has a wall of awards to prove it. Marzen- style beer isn't one of my personal favorites, so I probably am a bit biased.

Great Lakes Brewing Company does not distribute it’s products very widely, but if you do happen to come across a bottle, give it a try and see what you think. You will probably agree that it’s the type of beer that’s good on occasion, but not something you would imbibe with on a consistent basis. Cheers!


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