Mankato Saffron Kilt

The Mankato Brewery is in North Mankato, Minnesota.  It is the first production brewery to be in that city since 1967. You'll also see this beer called their IPBA beer, for Irish Pipe Band Ale. One of the brewers is in Minnesota's Brian Boru Irish Pipe Band. They often open beer festivals in Minnesota.

This beer uses the same type of malt used in many Irish whiskeys. The beer pours a light copper and amber in color, or, as the name implies, saffron, which is an orange/yellow color. There is a relatively short off-white head. The aroma is malted barley, you can tell it is the same stuff used to make Irish whiskey, with light fruit behind it. The taste is pleasantly malty, toasted, a bit nutty, again whiskey precursor evident, with a congruent lemon tang, and a moderate floral bitterness. I love Mankato Brewery, their beers are tasty, highly quaffable, yet exquisitely finely crafted in a subtle way.