Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (Draft)

Brewed by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Style: American Pale Ale
Chico, California USA

Draft. Grapefruit Citrus hop aroma with some sweet/pepper notes. Copper/Orange in color with a short living white head with some lacing. Starts off sweet and finishes with a lingering dry hop finish. Still a good beer. Heck its a classic.

On tap at the Crescent Moon Alehouse. I did not realize that the draft version was now being considered a different beer than what is bottled until I went back and reviewed my original listing for this. This makes me feel good about my beer-judging skills because I think the bottled beer is vastly superior! Originally, I thought that something was wrong with the SN at the Moon. Pours very light in color. Completely flat with no head. No malt body as the beer seemed very light. Strong hop flavor, but no balance. I asked the waitress if they could possibly have the wrong keg hooked up, or if something was wrong with the dispensing equipment, but she denied the possibilities. I knew this tasted differently than the SNPA from the bottle that we all know so well. Justification!

As with all beers, they are better on tap. This one proved to be excellent on tap. The spiciness really seemed to come out more. Palate and aroma were about the same, but the taste was much better. Hard to make too much of an improvement on the bottle, but the draft is something all should try!

Draught (of course). Pours copper with thin white head. The aroma is very smooth, blending the hops and malts into a single entity. The flavor is very mild hops throughout, over a mild malt underpinning. Makes a pretty good casual beer.

I was curious just how different this would be from the bottle, and it is quite noticeable indeed. This turned out to be a much tamer brew, lending itself to be a good session beer. It sits in my glass with a rich amber hue which is pretty transluscent and maintains a whispy white head. There’s some grains and a surprising amount of caramel sweetness for a pale in the nose. Flavor is similar: sturdy sweet base, bit of pear. This finishes bright and puckering with plenty of bark and pine, though just a notch less zesty than the bottled version.

Similar impression to the bottled version, but with a slightly fresher hue to the hops. <From bottle:>Amber, slightly cloudy color with an even, frothy white head. Nose is nicely floral with hops and a small bit of sweet grapefruit. Flavor is smooth and slightly buttery with a clean, hoppy finish. Very good beer to have around for an all-purpose everyday drinker.

Draught at Old Chicago in Colorado Springs. Pours coppery orange with a small frothy off-white head and some spotty lacing. Hoppy aroma (citrus and pine) with yeast (sweat) notes and some caramel malt. Yeast and hop compete for time as to flavor, sweaty and sour yeast with some pine and citrus hops, faint malt notes. Medium bodied and fizzy, refreshing palate.

Sierra Nevada Draught Ale is the draught version of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, the bench mark example of American Pale Ale. This beer is SN’s most popular product, and it has become one of the few craft beers in the United States that has become main stream. Go pretty much anywhere these days, and you will find this beer. This is a wonderful pale ale with excellent pale malt flavors, a very vibrant hop character in both aroma and flavor, and the classic example of this style. American pale ale is know for its signature citric hop character from the use of Cascade hops, and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale is the standard by which all great American pale ales are judged. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale pours to a beautiful, bright, pale gold color with a nice white head, and a vibrant carbonation. Carbonation is a bit more vibrant in the bottle as it is conditioned with the addition of yeast for a secondary fermentation. The nose is very fragrant with zesty, cirtic/lemony Cascade hop aromas. The palate is very firm with plenty of good biscuity pale malt flavors pair with estery fruity flavors, to balance out the assertive hop character of this beer. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale finishes with a very long, dry, citric hop bitterness that lingers.