Gran Alpin Amber
https://www.appenzellerbier.ch/de/beer/gran-alpin-amber.html
Brewed by Brauerei Locher Appenzeller bier
Style: Amber Lager
Appenzell, Switzerland
Brauerei Locher AG is a Swiss based family business located in the town of Appenzell, near the Alpstein Alps. The brewery is in the hands of the Locher household, since 1886, and presently running into the fifth generation of family ownership.
Their Appenzell Beer (Quöllfrisch hell), which I found very smooth and enjoyable, is known throughout the country as one of Switzerland’s finest beers, due to the traditional methods of production and use of the local fresh spring waters that produce a lovely clean natural beer. Also the fact that the small independent brewery is standing after all these years, and still producing top quality beers is a testament to how popular the independent brewery is. Something that hasn’t changed since 1886 when Johann Christoph Locher bought the brewery over a hundred years ago.
Appenzell beers are available throughout Switzerland with the Quöllfrisch and Vollmond brands being particularly popular. Apart from the wide variety of specialty beers they also make whiskey, a beverage one doesn’t perhaps associate with Switzerland.
Review: 33cl dark brown bottle of Gran Alpin Amber: 5.0% vol
Bought this beer from the local Coop supermarket here in Basel, bought it in a six pack in a nice black packaged box. The bottle itself had a smart logo with the majestic looking Swiss Alps looking all nice and shiny.
Apparently this is an eco and bio friendly beer with the malted barley produced by organic farmers in Grisons, the Eastern part of Switzerland, and also using natural spring water from the Alpstein, part of the Appenzell Alps.
It also is produced using a two fold fermentation process. The Gran Alpin Amber beer is first fermented with bottom-fermented yeast, then fermented with a top-fermenting yeast, a process that takes about six weeks to complete.
On pour got a small white head that fizzled out pretty quick, with a dark amber coloured beer.
Head died a death, a very flat looking beer, not appealing on the eye at all!
No carbonation and also not a lot in the bottle, I wonder where it all went to!
Got a nice enough smell on the nose, very malty, caramel, grainy, some barley, and refreshing enough albeit a little faint too.
The taste is nice but not a whole lot in it. It is smooth and tastes likes a good old fashioned lager, but there are little flavours or tastes to get into in this beer which is all a little disappointing.
Taste is malty and barley flavoured, and sweet, all in the front end. Smooth enough, but with a bit of a slightly bitter off aftertaste at the end.
Front end is ok, can’t taste much though or feel any of the alcohol. Very light and tasteless.
Not great, very dull and boring, which is a shame.
Lucerne is in central Switzerland, and its star attraction is its massive lake, a total area of 114 km² (44 sq miles). It is very scenic with many bends and turns and one can always see the Alps far off in the distance, most of the time with snow covered peaks. Taking a cruise is the way to go, and at peak tourist time they are regular enough, and stop at various points along the lake. Or, if you prefer, you can do some laps of the lake without getting on a passenger boat at all as there are scenic walks all around the lake.
On the bottle you get a nice big UR logo, interesting and striking, it stands out. 
The initial taste was fantastic, very crispy soothing start, very good.
So the town is well known for its wooden pedestrian bridge between itself and the nearby village of Hurden. Built in 2001, crossing the Lake Zürich, the bridge symbolizes the fact that over the centuries locals have crossed between Lake Zurich and Obersee, mostly on boats, but also on a wooden bridge that was constructed by Count Rudolf IV the Wise and Duke of Austria. In 1358 this structure was a handy little earner as there was a toll set up on the bridge, that’s why he was considered a wise man! It is also important to acknowledge that there were other bridges from prehistory, and in the Roman times, so this crossing was and is of an important cultural and historical significance to the local area. 
Arriving early to the town, it was good to see at least one bar open on the promenade. Nice looking bar from the outside, ventured in to a very small bar. A few people came in, looked like they were in town for some sort of sporting gig, so the small bar, with an interesting wooden and nautical themed decor, was actually quite busy. Ordered a Falken bier (from Schaffhausen), poured well and not too bad to drink for the first beer of the day. 
Vaduz started the game much better and scored after about half an hour, a well worked goal deservedly putting them in the front. Devic squaring the ball lovely for Mathys to easily slot home. 
Feldschlösschen is the best known beer brand in Switzerland. Their beers have been brewed at the Feldschlösschen brewery in Rheinfelden, the biggest brewery in Switzerland, since its foundation in 1876 and has been the leading Swiss beer brand for more than 100 years. Today its by far the leading brand in the country with 45 per cent of the beer market, with more than 40 Swiss beer brands, mineral waters, soft drinks and wine produced and shipped all over the country and beyond. 
For the appearance it is a yellowish looking beer, with no head to speak of, looks pretty shite to be honest. Yellow goes a bit cloudy after a while too. Doesn’t look great. 
