Shipyard Chamberlain Pale Ale

Brewed by Shipyard Brewing Company
Style: English Pale Ale
Portland, Maine USA

(22 oz bottle: Obtained in trade with BierBauch, thanks Ron!) This is a pretty nice beer. Very solid nuttiness jumps right out from the first sip of this lightly sweet beer, but moderately bitter hops comes on toward the finish and provides the perfect balance. And it actually tastes like hops, not just some random bitterness. The nose is also very nutty, plus somewhat grassy as well. Body is medium, but the oily mouthfeel is very slick and smooth, and the finish is dry and fairly crisp. Amber, slightly hazy body is nice but the bubbly, off-white head is the real show here. It pours to over two inches in height and takes several minutes to subside to a quarter inch, leaving many patches of dense foamy lace on the glass. Not a great beer, but the pleasant flavors and solid balance make this an enjoyable and well-crafted beer.

The aroma has a nice hops to malt balance. The appearance is amber with a large head. The flavor is also balanced. The hops give it a mild bitterness that goes well with the slightly sweet malts and a hint of spice. The palate is thin. Nice pale ale.

An incredibly solid and drinkable craftbrew. Great label, light PA and seafoam camel-colored head with flecks. Lots of English PA character -- buttery, fully-brewed hops and a good overall ale flavor schedule -- a little tannic, well-hopped without being crude or edgy. The foam tastes a little brassy. I was very impressed with the palate and the finish -- proper CO2. Enjoyable and very highly recommended. (This rating just goes to show you the difference between the APA hophead culture and a true English-style PA appreciation...)

Disappearing head, dark orange body. Sweet toffee aroma, somewhat sticky and cloying. Sweet toffeish at first in the flavor with some bitterness knocking on the door. Not very interesting.

Bottle shared with GregClow, Hogtown Harry, Blankboy, and Jerc, courtesy of me via Big Red and K. Dark yellow, small white head. Mild aroma of caramel malt. Mild malt taste as well. Almost borders on o Canadian cream ale sort of thing - not bad, just ok.

Appearance: Light, clear brown body with a small, fizzy ivory-colored head. Smell: Ringwood aroma with light, buttery notes. Faint caramel. Herbal hop character. Taste: Light caramel maltiness with a hint of butter. The hops impart flavors of citrus and herbs. Mild, lingering bitterness emphasized by the prickly carbonation on the finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Moderate carbonation. Drinkability: Union General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was a badass. This beer, not so much.

12oz bottle best before Mar 08. Sweet mals along with some corn for aroma. Gold body with white head. Flavor was just an avereage pale ale with decent sweet malt and some hops. Alright on the palate but the malt was more dominate and somewhat had a stale aftertaste.

Has a pretty good smell. A very thin pale ale, part of why I don’t like the English version too much. The flavor is pretty weak and a little metallic. Not so good.