I like to travel just for beer. What I mean to say by that is that at times we plan trips entirely around brewery and brewpub visits. That’s all well and good, but you can’t do it all the time. Sometimes, the wife wants to go other places. Case in point: our recent trip to the Smoky Mountains, specifically Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, both in Tennessee.
What’s really nice about craft beer today, though, is that even when you aren’t heading to a beer mecca, you can still usually find good beer wherever you go. This was the case in the Smokies; as we visited two different locations of the Smoky Mountain Brewery. The first, in Pigeon Forge, was less than a mile walk from our condo rental, while the second and my favorite was only about 8 miles away in Gatlinburg.
The second has fantastic atmosphere and a great location at the feet of the mountains; I would recommend staying downtown where everything is in walking distance including the Smoky Mountain Brewery. They offer a fair array of decent if not exceptional beers at fantastic prices. One of these is the beer under consideration tonight: Smoky Mountain Cherokee Amber Ale. I got a six-pack for $5.99 at the brewery. Pints were $3.50, growler fills $8, and amazingly, they have 99 cent pints weeknights after 9 PM.
The brewery calls this
Medium bodied and well balanced amber ale with a slight fruity note. Inspired by the "Red" ales of Ireland.
Smoky Mountain Cherokee Ale pours to a deep amber color with a medium sized, short-lived head formation and a tempting nose of fresh soft malt. Taking a sip I get a subtle beer with a gentle chewy caramel maltiness up front. That peters out a bit in the finish and a hint of fruit emerges before the subtlest of hop finishes balances the beer. Cherokee Ale is not really a bitter beer, but it is a decent quaffing brew perfect for the first beer of the night. Great after cutting the grass.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft