Rome Pioneer Pale Ale

Brewed by Rome Brewing Co.
Style: American Pale Ale
Roma, Italy

Sampled at the breweries sampling cafe in Rome, Italy. Boy oh boy was I excited for this beer. I had been in Europe for about month before I came to Rome and hadn’t had an IPA or anything hoppy for that matter since London which was the first few days of my trip. I needed something hoppy and I needed it then! When I tasted it I knew it was an IPA then I asked and sure enough it was! Just imagine my excitement. Light Bronze. Cascade aroma. Spicy with citrus notes, mainly lemon and grapefruit but also a hint of pine. Hop Heavy. Biscuit and caramel like malt in the backround behind hop notes of lemon peel, orange, spices and grapefruit. Mouthfeel is big and creamy. A great beer from a great brewer. Thanks Michael.

Pours clear and golden orange with a lacing white head. Light fruity and hoppy aroma. Peachy fruity hops flavour with a velvet smooth and sweet malt base. Solid dry bitterness into the finish. Nice and smooth, very nice peachy beer.

Bottle. GBBF 2004. A real treat; Duff, Chris_O and myself were introduced to the brewer Michael Murphy by either Martin Kubert or Ungstrup - can’t remember which . Michael is an American living in Rome and brewing American type beers although it appears from the website he may be moving on in a month or so. The beer has a golden brown colour and a very sweet hoppy aroma. There is a lot going on: Sweet hops, parma violets by the handful caramel syrup etc. It is quite thick and very tasty. A good beer. I did have a mouthful of the stronger beer the next day. That was also very good.

Draught. Strong citrus nose, lemon and orange hop aromas. Slightly cloudy yellow with a nice head. Strong lacing. Good balance upfront, hops come through in the finish. Almost candy-like orange sweetness. Good palate, dry finish.

Bottle conditioned?, bottle bought at GBBF 2004. Hazy amber orange, minimal head and low condittion. Excellent orangy citrus cascade hop and gentle grainy malt aromas, very obviously American influenced. Gentle sweetness balanced by nicely judged piney resinous hop and more citrus notes in the mouth. Some yeasty bitterness in the finish before the hops take over again.

[Draught at the brewpub] Clear orange/amber. Striking hop aroma of lychee and hay. Dryish with lioght, rounded mouthfeel. Aromatic and hop driven with a touch of caramel. Medium bitterness.

A hazy amber beer with an off-white head. The aroma is very hoppy - and not much else. The flavor is sweet hoppy with notes of sirup leading to a dry end.

Having been introduced to the brewer, Michael Murphy - an American living and working in Rome, we had to give this a go. I can confidently say that this leaps straight in as my number one Italian beer, not that the opposition is up to much. Clearly American in style, it has typical resinous hops in the aroma and more fruity hops on the palate, with some balancing malt. A very good effort. My only minor criticism (and this could apply to many US style beers) is that the hopping imparts a rather sticky, sweetish character compared to the crisper bitterness that us Brits are used to. Here’s wishing Michael every success with his venture. Bottled at GBBF 2004.