Sierra Nevada Pale Ale Review

Name: Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
ABV: 5.6%
IBUs: 38

During the first four years I was doing this blog, I reviewed many beers but there were some that I simply missed for reasons that are beyond me. I’m not speaking of rare beers but craft beers that are widely consumed. One of those beers is Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, a beer which I remember from my dad’s old company picnics from back in the mid-90’s as it was one of the beers of choice of my Dad’s younger co-workers who were fresh out of college.

Now I’ve reviewed quite a few beers from Sierra Nevada but never this one and my reason is because….well, I though I already reviewed it. That is, until, I dusted off the website and looked at the archives. Am I ashamed? No, but just a tad bit embarrassed.

Appearance – Dark orange with a mild amount of haze to it, along with some abundant carbonation. The head itself is pretty foamy and there's a healthy amount of lacing left behind.


Aroma – Caramel malts dominate the nose but behind that are some bitter and light piney hoppiness.


Taste – Much like the nose, the caramel malts hit you on the front of the palate. This gives away to the bitter and light piney hops in the back with the malts taking a back seat. The aftertaste has a lingering hop bitterness along and a light maltiness.


The balance of hops and malt is optimal here and while it’s nothing new, it’s a very easy drinking beer. As such, I can see why this is a standby for many beer drinkers everywhere; Myself included. As the old saying goes: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Flat 12 Walkabout Pale Ale Review

Name: Flat 12 Walkabout Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.3%

Tonight I have yet another Indiana beer that I will be reviewing that is not from Three Floyds. This time, it's from Indianapolis-based brewery Flat 12 Bierwerks with their Walkabout Pale Ale. Since Three Floyds is synonymous with Indiana beer, I'm very curious to try beer from the other breweries in The Hoosier State.

Walkabout Pale Ale pours a very hazy dark yellow color with a very foamy head; We're talking Brewery Ommegang calibur head here. I made the mistake of aggressively pouring it for not even 2 seconds before the head started started pouring over the sides of the glass. I had to spend 10 minutes trying to pour this beer before taking the photo out of fear that it would happen again. Once the head does settle down, there is no lacing to speak of along the sides of the glass with very little in terms of visible carbonation.

The nose is pretty citrus hop forward with some yeasts, toffee sweetness and mild floral hops at the back end of the aroma. Pretty standard smelling in terms of APA terms.

The flavor is very hop forward much like the nose, but it's split down the middle between citra hops and bitter piney hops with a fair amount of yeastiness. The aftertaste is a very bitter resiny flavor and possesses a mild amount of toffee maltiness.

The palate has a very thick body and is quite heavy. The carbonation is pretty light though, which makes this a relatively easy drinker.

Extremely foamy head aside, this is a very well put together APA. It doesn't break the mold too much but with its solid flavor and easily drinkability, it's very easy to recommend. Should I get the chance, I would love to try out more beers from Flat 12 in the future.

Flat 12 Walkabout Pale Ale - 8.5/10

Three Floyds Pride & Joy Mild Ale Review

Name: Three Floyds Pride & Joy Mild Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5%

I've got a couple more beers that I have left in my beer mail package. Next on the list is Three Floyd's Pride & Joy, which is yet another American Pale Ale (APA) from the brewery. What makes this different from the other APAs I've have from Three Floyds is that this is their session Pale Ale, hence the "Mild Ale" portion.

I recall seeing this beer on the shelf at Casanova Liquor in Hudson, WI when I was down in the Twin Cities a few months back, but I passed since the asking price was a bit too high for my liking. I've never really had anything sessionable from the brewery before and Three Floyds isn't exactly well known for making session beers, so let's see how this is.

Pride & Joy pours a very hazy orange color with a foamy white head but with some soapy lacing. As for visible carbonation, I'm not picking up on anything in particular.

The nose has a surprisingly strong citrus hop and grapefruit forward but I'm also picking up on some piney hop bitterness in here too. There's also some nice caramel/toffee sweetness in here as well as some light yeastiness. For a session ale, this smells like a very solid IPA.

The flavor starts out with some prominent grapefruit notes and bitter piney hoppiness. The malty backbone that was present in the nose starts out strong initially but fades away on the back of the palate. As for the aftertaste, it consists mainly of piney hop bitterness.

The body lands somewhere in-between light and moderate, in terms of weight with just a touch of thickness. The carbonation is on the mild side, which makes this pretty easy to drink.

Pride & Joy is definitely one of the better session ales that I've had due to the fact that it possesses that flavor punch that a good chunk of session ales lack. The best way to describe Pride & Joy is that it's a session ale dressed up for an IPA audience and, for the most part, it works. Check it out if you get the opportunity.

Three Floyds Pride & Joy Mild Ale - 8.5/10

Three Floyds Alpha King Review

Name: Three Floyds Alpha King
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 6.66%

Recently I received a beer mail from Jared in Indiana, who was kind enough to send me a Three Floyds Brewing care package, along with a couple of extra goodies which I will get to later. The first beer I'm going cover is Alpha King, their American Pale Ale which is considered by the brewery and many others to be their flagship beer. It is also considered by many beer lovers to be the best APA (American Pale Ale) in the country, ranking right up there with the ranks of Zombie Dust (another Three Floyds beer) and Toppling Goliath's Pseudo Sue.

Now in terms of the brewery's APAs, I've never had Alpha King before I have had their Zombie Dust before which I have mentioned in a few previous posts that I regard Zombie Dust as my all-time favorite APA. Let's see if Alpha King can claim that title.

Alpha King pours a very hazy orange color with a low amount of visible carbonation. It possesses a very foamy head but pretty soapy lacing.

The aroma is very piney hop forward with some light grapefruit notes and an emphasis on the caramel maltiness. There is also some mild but noticeable hints of citrus and floral hops in here as well.

The flavor flips it around as it's very citrus and floral hop forward with some grapefruits, yeastiness and some solid caramel maltiness; All of which are very vibrant in their own way. The aftertaste is a resin piney hop bitterness, which was most prominent in the nose.

The palate has a very moderate weight to it but with some mild thickness to it and some light carbonation. It goes without saying that this is a very easy drinker.

You know, after having Alpha King, I'm strongly considering making this my new favorite American Pale Ale. It's flavor is rich, extremely vibrant yet the palate makes it very drinkable all at once. Having this beer makes me wish that I had the same availability right now, just like back when I lived in Chicago. Any beer lover absolutely owes it to themselves to try this out!

Three Floyds Alpha King - 9.5/10

Goose Island 312 Urban Pale Ale Review

Name: Goose Island 312 Urban Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.4%

It's time to look at another fairly recent addition to Goose Island Brewing's lineup. I give to you 312 Urban Pale Ale, an American Pale Ale that takes it's naming cue from 312 Urban Wheat. I do have to admit that the updated label art for both new and existing Goose Island beers is quite nice and easy on the eyes, and this beer is certainly no exception. Like some Goose Island beers I've looked at before, it once again likes to remind us it's a Windy City-based brewery.

312 Urban Pale Ale pours a clear orange color. I am picking up on a small amount of carbonation bubbles making their way from the bottom of the glass and the head is fairly thin but with decent retention. A bit of lacing here and there along the sides as well.

The aroma starts out with some floral hops, a bit of piney bitterness and toffee sweetness. There is also some encompassing dry hoppiness that lingers throughout the nose.

The taste starts out with some floral hops and dry hops which are a bit more present than they were in the nose. There's also some citrus hoppiness in there and a bit of toffee maltiness too. It does have a bit of a grassy earthiness and a bitter resiny finish.

The body is pretty moderate in terms of weight and the carbonation is pretty light; A slight bite to it but not enough to make it moderate. It does feel pretty crisp though.

312 Urban Pale Ale is a fairly run-of-the-mill APA that doesn't do anything different. At the same time, if you're debating amongst yourself what to get next time you're at the store, then I suppose this would be worth checking out

Goose Island 312 Urban Pale Ale - 8/10

Odell St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale Review

Name: Odell St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 6.5%

It's been a busy past couple of days with the 4th of July and getting more stuff moved into my new place, so I'm going to be playing catch-up with some review drafts that I have.

As such, the first beer of the day that we will be looking at is St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale from the Odell Brewing Company based out of Fort Collins, Colorado and is listed as Summer Seasonal by the brewery.

St. Lupulin pours a fairly clear orange color with just a slight haziness. The head, while starting out fluffy, becomes quite thin but stays that way. There is also some decent lacing to be had here as well.

The nose has a very sweet kick to it in the form of freshly peeled oranges and a bit of floral hoppiness hanging off of that. There is also some mild caramel mild sweetness in there but it's quite secondary compared to the rest of the aroma.

Flavor-wise, it's very citrus hop forward but not in the overpowering sense but rather that freshly peeled orange sort of way. With it are some floral hops, mild bitter resin hops and a malty backbone, which is more prominent here than it was in the nose.

The palate is fairly moderate in terms of body weight with a bit of thickness to it. The carbonation is fairly mild and a creamy-like texture which makes it fairly easy to drink.

I found St. Lupulin to be a very good American Pale Ale. While some people may find the flavor a bit one-sided because of the strong citrus characteristics, I found that to be it's strength and I think that makes it stand out amongst other APAs. If Odell were to make this a year-round offering, I would definitely be finding myself having this again.

Odell St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale - 9/10

Fargo Brewing Iron Horse Pale Ale Review

Name: Fargo Brewing Iron Horse Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5%

Tonight is a fairly special review because it's a beer from a brand new brewery called Fargo Brewing. As you may have guessed from the name, it is based out of Fargo, North Dakota. This will also be my first time trying out a beer that is made in North Dakota.

At my local liquor store, they just started carrying this in six-pack cans. Since I'm always looking to try out the latest beers, I picked up a sixer of Fargo's Iron Horse Pale Ale. On the can it's described as a "great, sessionable, hoppy pale ale that makes hop lovers go crazy." At 5% ABV, I think that is pushing the boundary of what I consider a "session ale" but let's try this out to see how it is.

Iron Horse pours a hazy orange color with a very frothy head. I'm not picking up on any visible carbonation and the lacing is sticky and moderate.

The aroma starts off with a prominent caramel maltiness and citrus hop sweetness, showcasing the Falconer's Flight hops very well. There's also a light touch of toffee thrown in for good measure. If you were to put a blindfold on me, I would think that I was smelling an IPA.

The flavor is surprisingly floral hop forward with some caramel maltiness and a bitter dry hop aftertaste. Interestingly enough, it's fairly subdued compared to what the aroma showcased.

The body is fairly lightweight and the carbonation is also very subdued as well, which makes this a pretty easy to drink beer.

Iron House is no doubt a good beer, but the flavor feels a just a little bit one-dimensional in comparison to the nose. While seasoned Pale Ale fans aren't going to find this groundbreaking, it's still pretty tasty and I think this is a great beer to introduce someone to the American Pale Ale style. On top of that, it is a good sessionable beer that manages to achieve a reasonably good flavor profile that can be enjoyed throughout the evening.

Fargo Brewing Iron Horse Pale Ale - 8/10

Two Brothers SideKick Extra Pale Ale Review

Name: Two Brothers SideKick Extra Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
ABV: 5.1%

I've been on sort of an APA streak as of late and tonight I'm going to reviewing a beer that was actually recommended to me by Seth from Regular Guy Brewing, which is the Two Brothers Sidekick Extra Pale Ale. Seth happens to be a big admirer of Summit EPA and likened the the aforementioned beer to SideKick. As luck would have it, my local store recently started carrying Two Brothers so I'm able to see just how good this is.

SideKick pours a clear yellow color with a fairly foamy white head. The visible carbonation is rather mild and lacing retention is decent.

The nose starts off with a potent floral hop & yeasty scent, which are backed up by a toffee sweetness and a pale malt noticeable pale malt backbone.

As such, the flavor is not too different from the nose. There is a nice balance between the malty backbone and the floral hops and yeasts. I would say the only noticeable difference here is that it's more resiny than the nose leads you to believe and is most noticeable in the aftertaste.

The palate possesses a fairly light body and the carbonation is also very mild as well. As such, one should not have any trouble drinking this.

While the flavor plays it safe for the most part, SideKick is a textbook example as to how to make a good & balanced APA. If you're not really too sure about what to get on your next trip to the grocery/liquor store, you're not going wrong by trying this out.

Two Brothers SideKick Extra Pale Ale - 8.5/10

Deschutes Armory XPA Review

Name: Deschutes Armory XPA
Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
ABV: 5.9%

Originally I was going to continue going through the beers which I received via mail but in a twist of events, a challenger has appeared. For you see, I am not the only beer blogger in Duluth; Quite the opposite. He goes by the moniker Duluth Beer Snob and he also reviews beers but with a Gonzo-esque narration and definitely worth reading!

This morning before I left for work, I was checking out his latest post that focused on the latest offerings from Deschutes Brewing. As I was coming to the end of the post, he was talking about how tasty the Armory XPA was when he mentioned:

• I cannot imagine how good this would be on nitro at the pub. If I were Nick, I’d give it 10/10.

I noticed three things:

1. My name is Nick!
2. The name is hyperlinked!
3. That's my rating system!

So imagine my shock when I clicked on the link and it sent me....to my own front page! Was this a challenge? If so, I accept that challenge! I have to admit it's a pretty bold one considering that I've only given one 10/10 rating since starting this blog up. I just so happen to have bought a bomber of XPA last week, so tonight's review will be Armory XPA. The XPA stands for eXperimental Pale Ale as it was the first beer brewed at Deschutes' Portland location.

Armory XPA pours a hazy orange color with some mild visible carbonation and a soapy head. There is also no lacing to speak of along the sides of the glass. 

The aroma has a rather pungent floral hop and yeast scent that is complemented by some orange peels and pale malts. I do have to admit that it's rather vibrant smelling even for an APA.

The flavor is a lot more floral hop forward with some strong bready yeasts, mild citra-hops, yeasts and a solid pale malt backbone. Much like the nose before it, it's got a very vibrant taste even by APA standards

The palate as a whole is moderate in terms of both body weight and carbonation intensity. It's part-crisp and part easy-drinker.

While I think Armory XPA is an excellent and vibrant tasting APA, it doesn't quite match the complex flavors that I got from 3 Floyd's Zombie Dust, which I consider to be my all-time favorite APA. With that said, this is still a very flavorful beer and it's got a very decent price tag as I only paid about $4.50 for this so you're for sure getting your money's worth here.

Deschutes Armory XPA - 9.25/10

You can also check out the Duluth Beer Snob at www.duluthbeersnob.tumblr.com

AleSmith X Extra Pale Ale Review

Name: AleSmith X Extra Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.25%

I've already reviewed a couple of beers from AleSmith Brewing Company, a brewery known for their strong beers and found them to be very good (especially the Wee Heavy.) Today I'm going to switch it up a bit and take a look at one of their lower-calibur beers and I've decided to go with AleSmith's X Extra Pale Ale, though part of my brain wants to interpret the "X" as ten.

AleSmith X pours a hazy yellow color with a white foamy head. The visible carbonation is pretty high carbonation and the lacing left behind is surprisingly abundant and sticky.

The aroma kicks things off with a nice floral hoppiness, a solid pale malt foundation and a light yeasty scent.

The flavor accurately reflects the aroma. The flavor starts out with a solid floral hoppiness and the pale malt backbone is carried over wonderfully from the nose along with the yeasty aspect. There is also a light caramel sweetness in here too which helps out the flavor quite a bit.

The palate as a whole is moderately weighted with some light carbonation. Overall, this is very easy to drink!

It's a relief to see that AleSmith can tackle the lower ABV beers with ease. AleSmith X is a very tasty American Pale Ale and it's very easy to drink! I picked this up for around $5 and you're getting more than your money's worth here!

AleSmith X Extra Pale Ale - 9/10

Deschutes Red Chair NWPA Review

Name: Deschutes Red Chair NWPA
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 6.2%

It's time to look at what I consider to be Deschutes Brewing's most popular Spring Seasonal offering: Red Chair NWPA, which is classified as an American Pale Ale. NWPA is an acronym for Northwest Pale Ale, but I'll be sticking with NWPA because it's easier to type.

I remember having Red Chair NWPA on tap a couple years ago down in Cannon Falls, MN after touring the Cannon River Winery, who by the way make fantastic wines. This is my first time having it in a bottle so let's see how this holds up.

Red Chair NWPA pours a hazy orange color with a thin soapy head, which has pretty good retention. The visible carbonation is quite high and it's leaves behind some pretty good lacing!

The nose is quite citrus hop forward with pale malts, light toffee mild floral hops and yeasts. If it weren't for the yeasty aspect, I would say this smells an awful lot like a traditional West Coast-style IPA.

With the flavor, I'm picking up on some pungent citrus hop notes, toffee, yeasts, and pale malts. The aftertaste is a bittersweet citra-hop flavor. The palate with this one is quite heavy body and moderately carbonated.

When you consider everything: The aroma, flavor and even the palate; It's pretty much got one foot already inside the West Coast IPA territory, with the other being in American Pale Ale. With that said, Red Chair NWPA is still a very good beer that's worth checking out.

Deschutes Red Chair NWPA - 8.5/10

Goose Island Ten Hills Pale Ale Review

Name: Goose Island Ten Hills Pale Ale
Style: America Pale Ale
ABV: 6.2%

Goose Island Brewing recently added new beer to their lineup called Ten Hill Pale Ale. The story behind the name is the hops, which come from the "first ten hills" at the Elk Mountain Farms in Idaho, a hop farm which supposedly is quite reputable when it comes to making hops. Although upon closer inspection, I found out that Elk Mountain Farms is actually owned by Anhuaser-Busch, which is the parent company of Goose Island.

Also, I don't remember luscious hop farms being THAT close to downtown Chicago. In fact, I'm fairly certain that given the positioning of the skyline in the background, the hop farm would be located right smack-dab between Melrose Park & Lombard and there are definitely no hop farms in that area. Alright, enough nit-picking, let's get to the beer

Ten Hills Pale Ale pours a mildly hazy orange color with a high amount of visible carbonation.The head is quite soapy but the lacing is pretty good.

The nose has some nice orange peel and floral hop notes with some nice caramel sweetness and even a decent pale malt backbone thrown in for good measure.

The flavor is mainly floral hops, pale malts, mild citrus, lemon zest and a mildly bitter/resiny aftertaste but is otherwise fairly dry. The overall palate is pretty lightweight and comes along with some moderate carbonation, giving it a nice crisp feel.

All and all, I think Ten Hills Pale Ale is a solid addition to the Goose Island lineup and it's got a good enough flavor profile that I would have no problem buying this again if given the choice. Check it out for yourself and see what you think.

Goose Island Ten Hills - 8.5/10

Lucid Dyno Review

Name: Lucid Dyno
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.2%

Lucid Brewing is a newer brewery that opened it's doors here in Minnesota in the past couple of years. What's unique about this brewery is that they share the same space with another newer Minnesota brewery: Badger Hill Brewing, whom I have reviewed a couple of their offerings before.

For my first review from Lucid, I'm going with Dyno, their American Pale Ale style beer.

Dyno pours a hazy orange color with a foamy head. The lacing is quite abundant and possesses some mild carbonation.

The aroma is rather yeasty, with notes of floral hops, caramel and barley.

Taste is fairly identical to the aroma but with more of a resiny taste. Aside from that are floral hops, yeasts, biscuits and mild caramel maltiness. It tastes a lot like another well-known Minnesota beer: Summit Extra Pale Ale.

The palate is moderately weighted and mildly carbonated. It's somewhat crisp but very easy to drink.

They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, which holds true in this case because Lucid Dyno is strongly resembles Summit EPA. From the flavor right down to the ABV, it's hard not to draw comparisons between the two. Regardless, it's a solid American Pale Ale that's worth checking out.

Lucid Dyno - 8/10

Third Street Brewhouse Three Way Review

Name: Third Street Brewhouse Three Way
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.2%

I picked up a couple more offerings from Third Street Brewhouse a couple of weeks ago. As some of you may know, they are the offshoot of Cold Spring Brewing based out of Cold Springs, Minnesota. Lately they have been releasing a wider selection of beer styles and Three Way Pale Ale is one of their newest entries. For those with a dirty mind, the name Three Way refers to the 3 types of hops used in the beer.

Three Way pours a dark hazy orange color with a semi foamy head. The carbonation is fairly high and it has some good lacing retention.

The nose starts out with a strong lemon zestiness with some bready yeast notes to compliment it. To round it out are some floral & piney hops.

The flavor takes on more of a bready characteristic with floral & citrus hops and pale malts. The aftertaste is mainly floral hoppiness and lemon zest; Almost reminds me of a pilsner.

The palate is fairly moderate in terms of weight and carbonation, as expected, is quite high. These qualities give it a fairly crisp feel.

Three Way likes to call itself for a sessionable ale and I think it does a pretty good job of doing just that. The flavor isn't particularly complex, but it is good enough to the point that I would consider buying it again.


Third Street Brewhouse Three Way - 8/10

Deschutes Hop Trip Review

Name: Deschutes Hop Trip
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.5%

You know the old phrase "If you love it so much, why don't you merry it?" Well I might as well be asking Deschutes Brewing this very question because in the past 7 months I have reviewed two other fresh hop beers from them: Fresh-Squeezed IPA and Chasin' Freshies. What I have here now is the trifecta of fresh hop beers from Deschutes: Hop Trip. Unlike the previous fresh hop beers, both of which were IPAs, this beer is an American Pale Ale.

Hop Trip pours a hazy orange color with a foamy head. The lacing is quite abundant and the carbonation has a mild appearance.

Citrus hops and grassiness are quite prevalent in the aroma upfront, with some lemon zest and mild toffee notes. I'm also getting hints of yeast in here as well.

The flavor takes on more of a piney hop characteristic and putting the citrus hops more in the background. Just like in the nose, the lemon and toffee-malt notes are still present here. There is also a bitter resin quality which makes up the aftertaste.

The body is quite heavy along with some stronger-than-normal carbonation. It's a little harsher on the palate than desired but nothing that isn't manageable.

Out of all of the fresh hop offerings from Deschutes, this one is the runt of the litter. It's got a good taste and you're making a bad choice by trying this out, but it lacks the vibrancy & complexity of it's counterparts.

Deschutes Hop Trip - 7.5/10

Southern Tier Live Review

Name: Southern Tier Live
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.5%

Southern Tier is best known for their stronger interpretations of traditional beers (pumpkin, helles, etc.) but it seems that this offering is more traditional in terms of style. Named "Live" for it's.......liveliness or something, is an American Pale Ale, which according to the brewery, has strong citrus hops balanced with malt breadiness.

Live pours a darker hazy yellow color with a foamy head. The lacing retention is good and the carbonation is mild in appearance.

Bready yeasts permeate the nose along with lemon zest, citrus & piney hops, and pale malts. There's a bit of a Pilsner influence in the aroma that's pretty easy to distinguish.

Flavor-wise, it's got a surprisingly potent floral hoppiness and lemon-zest. This is all followed up by yeasts, barley and pale malts. It's a bit earthy overall and the citrus hops are mysteriously absent.

The carbonation is somewhat moderate in intensity but the overall weight is rather light, giving it a nice crisp feeling.

Though it lacks the citrus hoppiness touted in the commercial description, Southern Tier Live is still a good American Pale Ale. Check it out if you see it!

Southern Tier Live - 8/10

Grand Teton Sweetgrass Review

Name: Grand Teton Sweetgrass
Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
ABV: 6.0%

Idaho's own Grand Teton Brewing has been popping up all over the midwest as of recently. For a state mostly associated with Potatoes and Napoleon Dynamite, they've made quite a name for themselves in the past few years. Earlier this year I reviewed their Pursuit of Hoppiness and found it to be rather good so I figured I should check out their Sweetgrass APA to see how it is.

Sweetgrass pours a bright hazy orange color with foamy head, some decent lacing and mild visible carbonation.

Floral hops and yeasty notes starts things off in the nose, followed by some grassiness, caramel, and pale malts. A bit earthy smelling for an APA if I do say so myself.

Flavor consists mainly of floral hops, caramel, grassiness, pale malts, and bitter resiny aftertaste. Overall, the flavor is rather bitter even by APA standards.

It's got a fairly light body and the carbonation is pretty moderate, giving it crisp feeling on the palate.

For a beer with the word "Sweet" in it's name, this is a pretty bitter tasting beer. All and all, it's not a terrible beer but there are much better APAs out there than this.

Grand Teton Sweetgrass - 6/10

Oskar Blues Dale's Pale Ale Review

Name: Oskar Blues Dale's Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 6.5%

Dale's Pale Ale, one of the staples of my beer fridge while I was living in Chicago! What I lacked in Surly, it was made up for in Dale's Pale Ale. Now that I'm back in Minnesota and right across the bridge from Superior, I now have both. It's like karma has rewarded my good deeds with beer and now both Surly & Oskar Blues are now regulars in my fridge.

Oskar Blues is a brewery based out of Colorado and are available in several states, though I've heard whisperings and rumors on Beer Advocate that they will distributing here to Minnesota sooner than expected on account of Oskar Blues being a guest tap down in Minneapolis. We shall see for the time being.

Anyways, let's take a look at Dale's Pale Ale!

Dale's Pale Ale pours a mildy hazy orange color with a fairly foamy head, good lacing and some mild carbonation visible on the sides of the glass.

The nose has a fairly prevalent not overly strong floral and piney hoppiness up front to go along with the caramel malts and grassy scent. There's also some mild apricot fruitiness in the aroma as well.

There is a sudden citrus hoppiness in the flavor complimented by grapefruit, apricot, floral hops, and caramel malts. The grassy/earthiness that was in the nose is nowhere to be seen here. There is a fairly strong resin & malty aftertaste that is surprisingly balanced.

It terms of weight, it's a couple sets above moderate and has a slight thickness to it, but the carbonation is very light here so you're able to take in all the flavors without having to worry about irritating your palate.

To me, having this again is like hanging out with an old friend, spending the afternoon together, having lots of fun and realizing why you guys used to hang out together so much in the first place.

It's a very well rounded and balanced pale ale. It's well balanced profile of malts, fruitness and hops make this an extremely easy beer to recommend. It's not "Zombie Dust" caliber by any means, but it's good enough to keep me coming back for more. It's also decently priced so that also works!

Oskar Blues Dale's Pale Ale - 8.5/10

Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale Review

Name: Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
ABV: 5.9%

Earlier this year, Kona Brewing started distributing to Minnesota and they are the first brewery from Hawaii to be available commercially here. I've had a few of their beers before and thought they were good but I never got a chance to review them. To my knowledge, they are the only major brewery in Hawaii that distributes out of state.

Tonight, I'll be reviewing their Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale. Like most of their lineup, the beers constantly remind you that it's from Hawaii with most of their beers being named after things in Hawaii....and serves as a reminder that I will probably never visit Hawaii in my lifetime...

Kona Fire Rock pours a reasonably clear yellow color with a very slight haze. The head has a very filmy appearance which has pretty good retention with lots of lacing and some mild looking carbonation.

Floral Hops & yeasts are present in the nose along with some pale malts, slight toffeeiness, and mild resin.

The flavor starts out with some noticeable piney, citra, and dry hoppiness before settling into a yeasty and somewhat malty finish. The aftertaste has a light citrus characteristic to it.

The body is more on the lighter side with a very thin watery feel to it. The carbonation is in-between mild and moderate so it gives it a crisp feel.

While it doesn't do anything out of the ordinary as far as APAs go, you really can't go wrong with it at the same time. Kona Fire Rock plays it safe and the end result is a pretty good American Pale Ale.

Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale - 8/10

Summit Extra Pale Ale Review

Name: Summit Extra Pale Ale
Style: English Pale Ale
ABV: 5.2%

When Summit Brewing Company first opened it's doors, no one would've imagined that they would've grown into one of the largest craft breweries in America (Ranked 23rd as of 2012) and 2nd largest brewery in Minnesota behind August Schell Brewing Company. In fact, when the local NBC affiliate KARE11 did a piece on the brewery's grand opening back in 1986, they featured a very familiar beer that Minnesota holds dear to it's heart as you will see in the video here.

The first beer that Summit ever released, Extra Pale Ale (EPA), has continuously been their best selling beer and like Spotted Cow in Wisconsin, you can find it literally anywhere in Minnesota, whether it's in a bottle or on tap. Like Sierra Nevada, it's also one of the first craft beers I ever took note of thanks to my Dad's company picnics when I was younger; It was the beer of choice amongst my dad's co-workers, beating out Budweiser & Miller Lite as they sat submerged in ice.

Since I've already reviewed quite a few of Summit's offerings, I figured now would be a good time to look at Minnesota's own flagship craft beer.

Summit EPA pours a mildly hazy dark orange color with a foamy head and good lacing along the sides of the glass. There's also some light carbonation visible as well.

The aroma gives off a strong baked bread & yeasty scent. In the back are some floral hop, pale malts & barley notes which add a nice touch to the aroma.

The flavor is a bit more well rounded with yeasts, floral & dry hops, pale malts and barley. Aftertaste is a mild floral hoppiness with just a teensy bit of resin.

As far as the body goes, it's fairly moderate in weight and while the carbonation starts out in the middle, it does mellow out the more you drink it.

It's a staple of the Minnesota beer scene and it isn't hard to see why that after 27 years, it still holds up nicely. You've got a nice flavor that aims to please and it's a beer that's perfect for any occasion. Sure, it's not going to knock your socks off with it's flavor but at the same time you definitely aren't making a mistake by drinking this either.

Summit Extra Pale Ale - 8.25/10