First impression: lightly pined copper-hazed ale compared favorably to Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Sinewy caramel yeast foundation provides perfect ‘tap beer’ essence while subtle nut bitterness firms up wheat-chaffed floral bouquet. Damp dry-hopped orange rind dankness envelops succinct mineral grain finish.
Tag Archives: pale ale
ANCHOR LIBERTY ALE
First brewed in 1975 to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Paul Revere’s historic ride, Liberty Ale is hand crafted at small traditional brewery. Light spice-fruited aroma, resinous mocha palate, biscuit-y wheat spine, and dry-hopped lemon rind bite beget curious red and brown ale traits. Vivacious, bubbly, dry-bodied ale pleasantly funnels down the throat to rock you like a hurricane.
BASS COUNTRY CHASE ALE
Smooth medium-to-full-bodied Country Chase celebrates the first hunt of the season, matching terrific Bass Pale Ale caramel malt character to smooth red-orange fruiting. Pleasant hop-spiced bitterness calibrates sweet stone-fruited quince stint. Strong dark ale just a tad less distinct than brewers’ world renowned Bass Pale Ale.
(BLACK SHEEP) MONTY PYTHON’S HOLY GRAIL ALE
Commemorating hilarious Monty Python movie, dry honeysuckled Brit (with clinging Brussels lace) matches thick caramel sweetness to light floral-hopped citric spicing. Abiding wood-smoked tinge, reminiscent of an India Pale Ale, endures to mildly bitter mineral-grained vegetal finish, but soapy aftertaste lowers vitality.
(LITTLE KING’S) BRUIN PALE ALE
CAULIER SAAZ ALE
Rewarding rocky-headed bottle-conditioned ale pours off-white before revealing hazy bleached yellow hue. Spritzy Saaz-hopped signature picks up wheat biscuit exertion as dried banana, tangerine, apricot, grapefruit, and lemon fruiting enlighten sour-candied honeyed clove finish, revealing latent grassy herbal mint nuance.
(DAVIDSON BROTHERS) DACKER ADIRONDACK ALE
J.W. DUNDEE’S AMERICAN PALE ALE
Slightly better than Dundee’s Amber, this translucent auburn pale ale retains sour-fruited dryness and sharp clove-hopped frolic above cracked wheat spine. Unripe white peach, lemon, and grape tartness overtaken by sweet tea-leafed tobacco dalliance, but oily nature and phenol acidity decrease credibility.
FLYING FISH EXTRA PALE ALE
(MCAUSLAN) GRIFFON EXTRA PALE ALE
IPSWICH ORIGINAL ALE
Sampled in smaller 12-ounce bottles, all Ipswich ales lose some rich malt-extracted excellence. Nevertheless, in half-gallon jugs, they truly kick ass! Resembling a fine brown ale with its cloudy copper-bronze body, this ‘Original’ ale’s initial cured yeast sinew provides floral bouquet that fills nostrils, then absorbs tongue. Creamy mocha, ripened prune, dark honey, and unobtrusive butterscotch give buttery-textured, frisky-hopped bitter a husky malt-draped finish. Earthen dry bark slink randomly detected.
LAKE PLACID INDIA PALE ALE
Initially labeled ‘Frostbite Pale Ale,’ crisp IPA gains luster as it pours. Floral-hopped red-fruited sweetness coats woodsy cedar-spruce-pine veneer and charred grain spine of coppery ale, gaining loud currant bitterness by creamy maple malt finish. Faraway apricot-tangerine-grapefruit delusion diminishes slightly over course.