Samuel Adams LongShot Grape Pale Ale

Brewed by Boston Beer Company
Style: Fruit Beer
Boston, Massachusetts USA

Had this a party where somone told me it was the best long shot they’d ever had. Unfortunately it didn’t quite live up to the hype. Poured a nice copper color. The aroma was challenging which was kind of fun. There was something there that reminded me of pancakes which I thought was weird until I read the bottle and saw that there was maple syrup in the beer. Flavor was ok. Nice malt presence, but the maple syrup/grapes combo wasn’t quite doing it for me. Kudos for creativity though.

12oz bottle. Pours a light orange with highlights of gold and brown. A thick, white head forms, but quickly dissipates. Very little lace is left on the glass. The aroma is very malty and toasty. There is a slight ester character to the smell, from what seems to be English ale yeast. There are also notes of English hops, but the bready, toasty malts win out. No fruit aroma to speak of. The flavor is light and very toasty. There isn’t a real grape character to the flavor. It tastes like an English Best Bitter (I guess an American-style pale ale would have too many hops to accept any sort of grape flavor). By mid-palate, there is a slight fruitiness - above and beyond the esters that are reminiscent of sweet, white grape juice; but that character is very mild. The finish is bready with a touch of bitter hops and some acid that could be from grapes (I suppose it could be called almost wine-like). The mouthfeel is medium in body with a nice, spritzy but not over-the-top carbonation. Overall, a very plain but drinkable beer. Nothing truly special. I’m upset that Mike McDole’s Double IPA didn’t win - that would have been a much better pale ale than this one.

Wow, this is horrid. Why even put out such a mess? I don’t even know how to decribe this other than to say it doesn’t even taste like beer.

12 oz bottle: Aroma is bready,definite malt characteristics, maybe a slight amout of grapes but not noticeable. I can detect a bit of roasted malt and it’s very lgihtly hopped. Appearance is golden/amber clear with a huge sized white head that lingers. Taste is lightly hopped, nicely bitter, I do find the green grapes on the back end. It’s slight but not overwhelming whatsoever nicely done. I like that this isn’t just a in your face grape flavor. It’s Beer first and some grape in the taste but not the whole taste. I like it in my opinion.

Pours copper, clear body, colored with a small white head, and some lacing. The aroma has notes of caramel and bready grains, light white grapes, some floral esters and yeasty. However the flavour was of sweet malts, some balancing hop bitterness, and faint tannic astringency. Aroma and flavours are mixed, all over the place. Just doesn’t add up.

This beer carries a small head , slight lacing on the glass and a light amber color to it. The overall aroma has a hint of maltiness mixed with a little bit of grape. The flavor carries a malt flavor and finishes with sweet taste of green grape at the front of the tongue that sticks around for a good amount of time. I am not too impressed with this offering from Sam.

12oz bottle part of this year’s Longshot 6 pack purchased at Lou’s in Augusta. Pours a clear golden amber body with a good inch of offwhite head. Smells like citrusy hops, malt, and some grape. Tastes fruity, with some biscuit malt and hints of hops. Fairly light in body with ample (but not overpowering) carbonation. An easy-drinker for sure. Nothing wrong with this brew - flavorful, unique, and very drinkable. Not bad.

The color was light golden/orange. The head was thin, cramy, and off-white. The aroma was light grape, tart, and caramel malt. The flavor was bran, copper, and very light grape. The palate was thin. The finish was waxy.