Oak Pond 5.2 GPA Pale Ale

Brewed by Oak Pond Brewery
Style: American Pale Ale
Skowhegan, Maine USA

Draught pint at the Granary on 5/29/06. Deep golden-amber with a strong caramel-orange highlight. One-finger of off-white head is foamy, fairly well-retained and creates a medium amount of webby lacing. Very high clarity. Soft, English-like hops add some dustiness, a light hint of lemon and other soft fruits. Nutty, lightly grainy malts in the background are quite lean. Fairly fresh yeastiness as well, is dry, somewhat bland and nutty. A little bit of melon, maybe some light biscuitiness. Dry, with some very light crystal malt hardness. More hops come to the forefront in the flavor, rising up with playful orange, lemon and just a hint of tangerine. A touch of lemon icing is fleeting, providing some light body (pale malts) while the crystal malt seems to be quite hard and lacking of much of any caramel sweetness. Hard mouthfeel, lean and lightly grainy malts, with a fair proportion of water. Rather simple overall, especially in the hops category. Bitterness could use a boost, especially on draught, with the large-bubbled carbonation creating the looser than average mouthfeel.