A Taste of Iceland from Einstök

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve planned an imaginary trip to Disney World over the last few months. More than I really should, seeing as that’s an itch not likely to be scratched for a while. But somethings I just can’t help.

As some of you might be able to guess from previous posts, one of the highlights is sampling the beers available on the Disney World property. The Magic Kingdom may be predominately dry, but the rest of Disney doesn’t abide by the same rule. EPCOT is now almost synonymous with drinking.

And it’s precisely where I am taking you today—sort of.

A few years ago, we paused our trek around the World Showcase in the Norway Pavillion. If you are coming up through Mexico, the first thing in Norway you see is not Anna and Elsa, but instead the bathrooms and a cute bakery. More importantly, there’s a drink cart in this resting area, which has the ubiquitous sodas and waters, but it also has a pair of tap handles.

While you’ll often get a country’s lowest common denominator beer within the World Showcase, that’s not the case at this cart. Although the beer isn’t from Norway. The beer cart carries two beers brewed by Einstök Brewing Company from Iceland, their Icelandic White Ale, and a Toasted Porter.

Hey, you weren’t expecting a legit geography lesson while on vacay, were you? Heck, I am barely keeping to the East Coast theme of Thirsty Thursday with this review.

I, for one, am not about to complain and have this beer moved or removed. I am not joking when I say the beers available from Einstök make a solid case for us visiting the island nation when things become more normal.

These beers had been filed away as a vacation treat. None of the local liquor stores carry the Icelandic brews. And yes, we had been keeping an eye out. That is until we used the power of the Internet. Meaning, amid the pandemic, my fridge has a little piece of Disney magic. I know a touch dramatic, but this purchase was a surprise win, so let me have it, alright?

For today’s post, I am going to review my favorite of the two. No one reading is surprised that it’s the Icelandic White. The While Ale was extremely active upon pouring the beverage into a glass. A novelty drinking it out of a glass and not a cup. The head is bright white and thick, as you can see from the photo. The brew is a pale gold color with a slight haze to it.

When bringing the glass up to my nose, I am not assaulted with the aromas. A wheaty/malty smell hits my nose to start. Then, I get hints of yeast. Not banana or clove, like you might think. It’s more of a nondescript spice with citrus mixed in for good measure.

As I start sipping the beer, the coriander and orange hit the palette. This does dominate at first, but the spice is not overdone. The orange flavors can rise up over the coriander as each sip matures. Here again, orange can be too much just as it can be too little in beers but not in Einstök’s offering. I get just enough for a refreshing zing. In turn, the flavors from the orange peel step aside for the wheaty and slightly bitter finish.

Einstök’s White Ale is incredibly refreshing. It is a beer that can be enjoyed on a hot, humid day in sunny Florida. Or on a cold New England night as Mother Nature prepares to dump snow on us weeks before we are due for any. I cannot recommend this beer highly enough. If you happen across this or one of their other brews on your beer runs, I would say stop and pick up one to try.

Cheers Nerd Girls!