Appearance: Pours golden straw, cloudy, 1 finger head, disappears to a film. As time passes this beer has turned completely clear.
Aroma: Very apparent, grainy, bready, yeasty smell, maybe hops – but not a hop dominated aroma at all. A bit fruity, maybe peach or apricot notes, pleasant.
This beer tastes very similar to how it smells, just more distinct. Malty, with a more pronounced hop presence but the malts definitely dominate. Clean, drinkable, a bit grainy in flavor and possessing some floral notes.
This beer surprised me the first time I had it. It was not what I expected – walking into this beer I was thinking California: big, over the top, hoppy and limit pushing. This beer is none of those things. Instead it’s a refined, clean, reserved and unique version of the wide style range we call pale ale. Thankfully there is plenty of room within the style guidelines for a beer like this. North Coast gets my vote again – now I want to find the Acme IPA and see their take on that. Good beer, great brewery.
ABV: 5%
Grade: A-
In my notes, dating back a year ago, I gave this beer a higher rating than the Acme IPA by a half a letter grade. I’m eager to see what you think.
I was also expecting it to be a lot more hoppy (hoppier?). I liked how malty it was. Good review.