Saranac Pale Pale Ale
While the Kolsch was a nice way to kick off this series of Saranc Summer themed brews, it’s this American Pale Ale that was the surprise of the bunch. First off, with a name like Pale Pale Ale, I was expecting something watered down or less than stellar.
This brew is anything but pale and was actually hoppier than the brewery’s IPA (review to be published next week). It was one of my favorite beers of the bunch — crisp, refreshing and, as I stated, surprisingly hoppy. They must have thrown a good amount of Centennial hops at this thing.
It’s not really all that pale
Appearance
See? It’s not really that pale. The rocky white head faded slowly retaining excellent lacing throughout the life of the beer.
Aroma
Light, nutty malts with a slight toast is balanced nicely with citrusy, piny hops.
Taste
And this is were this little beer shines. It’s got a great hop character about it with an earthy pine character with just the right amount of bitterness to balance the nutty presence of the lightly toasted malts. From the crisp mouthfeel to the clean, refreshing finish, I could drink a good amount of this over the Summer days.
Overall
This was certainly the surprise of the bunch in the Summer variety pack. The hop profile on the Pale Pale Ale was a pleasant surprise, hitting the right marks for bitterness and overall citrus character. At 4.7% ABV it’s easily a beer that you can hang out with this Independence Day.
Rating: 3.75/5