Since they began canning their year-round HopArt IPA and 32/50 Kölsch, COAST has promised that more seasonal offerings would be available in cans. On Tuesday, they revealed the new design for one of them: Dead Arm Pale Ale.
Tag Archives: pale ale
Holy City brews pale ale for College of Charleston basketball
Men’s college basketball is back in full swing, and those going to see the College of Charleston Cougars play at home will have the chance to enjoy a new brew from Holy City.
Hail All Pale Ale, the brewery’s newest release, was made just for the CofC basketball team. Coming in at 5%, it’s a “low-bitterness, aroma-hopped-to-the-hilt pale ale” available at TD Arena. The beer gets its name from the school’s alma mater: “College of Charleston, hail, all hail.” Additionally, HCB’s Chris Brown and Sean Nemitz are CofC alumni.
If you don’t find yourself in a private room at the arena, you’ll be able to find the beer at the brewery and around Charleston.
Westbrook finally canning One Claw, Gose this week
After some delays in getting the can designs approved, Westbrook will finally begin canning their One Claw Rye Pale Ale and Gose this week.
Photos tweeted by Westbrook’s Mike Levin show rows of the new cans ready to be filled. The Westbrooks themselves told me last week both beers should be hitting shelves across the state by the end of the month, so expect to pick these up soon.
Maybe now this will finally put all those “rumors” about canned Gose to rest.
Bell’s Smitten
Bell’s Brewery, Inc.
Galesburg, MI
Smitten Golden Rye Ale
6% ABV
As winter begins to loosen its grip and spring … uh … springs again, hopheads everywhere rejoice, for it heralds the return of one of Bell’s most desired beers: Hopslam.
But seemingly lost in the mix is Smitten, one of the newest Bell’s beers which also just recently hit shelves. What started out as part of a smaller series of rye beers, Smitten is an American pale ale with a heaping helping of rye malts to help spice things up a bit. But with the hops used, you’d think you were drinking … well, you know.
For a brief second after first checking the nose, I thought I had poured myself a bottle of Hopslam. Those rich, juicy flavors of mango, papaya, pineapple and more are all there in spades, and there’s a dank hoppiness coating everything coming out of the glass. But those dreams were quickly dashed when the spicy rye took over. It’s masked just slightly by the hops, but there’s certainly a bite in there. There’s just a touch of wheat and a yeasty sweetness present as well.
The taste is pretty unique compared with other rye beers I’ve had. To start, it’s got a really dry and bitter beginning. There’s a slight pinch on the front of the tongue and just some mild carbonation on the mouth. In the middle of the mouth, you get those really dank wet pine notes from the hops, which is cut immediately by the spice of the rye. The finish is dry and piney again with a lingering wheat and yeast sweetness. The rye lingers quite nicely throughout the mouth, but it settles and lets up a bit the more you drink. The mouthfeel is full and flavorful, and overall it’s a great new brew.
Coast More Consistenter
Coast Brewing Co.
Charleston, SC
More Consistenter Single-Hopped Rye Pale Ale
5.5% ABV
Not to be outdone by their S.C. beer brethren in Mt. Pleasant, Coast recently put out a Citra single-hopped rye pale ale of their own. Much like Westbrook’s Single Hop: Citra, More Consistenter lets uses a rye beer base to help showcase the nuances and flavors produced by Citra, one of the most popular and sought-after hops around. The hop is so popular that the entire 2013 crop is sold out, and if brewers missed out, they won’t be getting any until 2014.
I loved Westbrook’s attempt at the beer and was just as excited to see what Coast did differently. But the end result … well …
As with the Single Hop entry, the nose is unmistakably and deliciously Citra heavy. It’s like the tropics in a bottle, with lush notes of papaya, mango, juicy oranges, pineapple, peach and the like flooding the nose. But where More Consistenter departs from Single Hop is the sweetness that’s very heavy on the nose. There’s a sort of syrupy sweetness coating everything, kind of like you’d get from canned peaches. There’s not much of a rye spiciness on the nose, and if there is, it’s canceled out by the sweetness.
Unfortunately, what the nose giveth, the taste taketh away. It starts with a mild sting of bitterness on the front of the tongue, followed by a bite of carbonation and a pleasantly smooth mouthfeel. The finish is somewhat dry, which does a nice job of helping the hop bitterness hold on and finally reveal the rye spiciness. The rye bite is most prevalent in the middle of the palate after a few sips as the beer warms.
And … well, that’s really all there is. The big, juicy tropical fruit notes from the nose are more or less non-existent on the palate. From the smell, you’d expect a really flavorful beer, but it’s just not there. The rye certainly is, and the malt profile is good, but those peach and mango flavors you’d expect the Citra to impart are nonexistent. Maybe the Westbrook Single Hop spoiled me, but on the second try, this just isn’t what I’d hoped for.
I hate to say it, but More Consistenter is one of the more disappointing beers I’ve had from Coast. It’s certainly drinkable and enjoyable, and I certainly love a good rye beer – which this is – but the Citra just doesn’t shine on it as it does on the Single Hop variety. There just isn’t anything going on the in the taste except the rye, which is surprising given how flavorful the nose is. More often than not, Coast impresses me with their stuff, but More Consistenter is not one of their better offerings.
Westbrook Single Hop: Citra
Westbrook Brewing Co.
Mt. Pleasant, SC
Single Hop: Citra Rye Pale Ale
5.5% ABV
One of Westbrook‘s earlier and more popular beers was the Citra Rye Pale Ale, which gives away everything about it in its name. First brewed in May 2011 and draft only, it’s returned as part of the brewery’s Single Hop series, following Pacific Jade, Amarillo and Nelson Sauvin.
I’ve had Citra Rye on draft a few times before and it’s just as great out of the bottle as it is from a tap. Popping the cap releases a burst of citrus and tropical fruit flavors which are tenfold on the nose. The Citra aroma is gigantic with mango, pineapple, peach and papaya absolutely dominating the senses. As with the other Single Hop beers, there is certainly just a touch of rye spiciness and malty sweetness, but the beer is designed to showcase the hop and it does that perfectly. It just smells so. Damn. Good.
And the taste doesn’t disappoint either. On the front of the tongue is a spicy bite which, to me, was a mix of the rye, the carbonation and the tartness from the Citra. It’s a big sour pinch, but it vanishes almost instantly as the taste continues across the palate. The middle of the mouth is very malt with a big biscuity and bready quality. There’s also a good bit of that tartness again, but the malts take the forefront in the middle.
The rye is also prevalent throughout the taste, more so than I remember with the previous Single Hop beers. The more you drink, the more you can taste the spice in the middle of the tongue and on the back of the throat. The tropical fruit flavors are strong as well, with peach and papaya taking the lead midway through and that lingering tangy grapefruit flavor sticking to the back of your throat. It is a Citra bomb, for sure, and a damn good one at that.
Everything about this beer screams bright and fresh. From the yellow label to the fluffy, foamy head to the aromas and taste, Citra Rye is such a lively beer and another excellent entry in the series.
Intuition Ale Works People’s Pale Ale
Intuition Ale Works
Jacksonville, FL
People’s Pale Ale
5.3% ABV
In case you didn’t know – and if you didn’t, where the hell have you been? – Tuesday of last week was Election Day in the good ol’ U.S.A. Americans across the country lined up to exercise their civic right and cast their ballot, thus playing a roll in the democratic process.
But democracy doesn’t come easy, especially in South Carolina.
After waiting in line for nearly three hours, I was able to cast my vote and head home to relax before heading off to work to cover the election for the rest of the night. Before working until the early morning hours of Wednesday, I decided to enjoy a civic-themed pale ale from Intuition Ale Works.
Their People’s Pale Ale is the brewery’s flagship beer. Like their I-10 IPA, it’s inspired by pale ales from the West Coast. While it’s certainly hoppy, this pale ale leans a little more toward the malty side of the style, with great results.
The beer pours very dark for a pale ale. It’s super clear, a sort of dark orange verging on a brown. There was a finger of a really light head on top that settled quickly. It left some mild lacing and alcohol legs behind.
The nose is very sweet and malty. There was a light nut note and a big hit of caramel to it. I got only a little hop bite but it’s covered up by the sweet malt. Different, but in a good way.
There was a very mild hop bitterness bite on the front of the tongue. Very smooth across the palate with some mild carbonation to boot. Right on the back of the tongue is this slight pinch of a piney hop bitterness that washes away quickly into that sweet, mellow malt flavor. Lots of sweet orange peel, caramel, a little brown sugar. Much sweeter pale ale than I’m used to, but again, it’s really good.
While no Zombie Dust of Dale’s , People’s Pale Ale is still great for a malt-forward pale ale.
