Le Mort Vivant - Reviewed

When Satan and I stopped at Five Points Bottle Shop last month, in my frenzy to buy things I hadn't seen before, I came across Le Mort Vivant. I didn't look at the label, and when I got home, I discovered that it was brewed by Southern Star Brewing Company.

Crap.

It's ironic that I had to drive to Athens, Georgia, via Philadelphia to get a bottle of beer brewed in Texas.  Southern Stars is in, like, 27 states, but has a piss poor presence in Texas. Sure, you can get some Southern Star here in Paradise, but not in 720 ml bottles.  Just in 16 ounce cans. However, that may be a good thing.

Appearance (0-3): Pours up a crystal clear amber/orange with a thin white head that disappears quickly. 2 points

Aroma/Bouquet (0-4): Faint treacle-y aroma. No hops detected. Not terribly appetizing. 1 point

Taste (0-10): Like most Southern Star beers, this is under-attenuated. It's too sweet. If this were a bit drier it would be a great beer. It's medium bodied with low carbonation, and the hops do help make it a bit less cloying, but, frankly, it's too sweet. 7 points

Overall Impression (0-3): I keep trying Southern Star, and I keep being disappointed by the sweetness of their beers. They must be doing something right to have such wide distribution (I've seen it from San Diego to Athens), but I can't tell you what it is. 0 points

Total: 10 points