Spanish Peaks Monterey Pale Ale

Formerly brewed at Spanish Peaks Brewing Company
Style: American Pale Ale
Bozeman, Montana USA

Bottle: Aroma is mostly malt with caramel, cookie, and light fruit. Slightest hint of flowery hops are there but are really subdued. Pours a transparent orangish-amber with the slightest touch of haze. Insignificant white head diiminishes quickly. Some caramel and toffee maltiness up front. Moderate flowery hop finish with hints of metal.

Pours a lightly hazy copper color with an absolutely prodigious pale tan head that is driven by an incessant over the top carbonation more typical of a Gueuze. Am I imagining it, or is the aroma slightly funky with damp earthy notes. There is a bit of herbal hop notes in the aroma as well. The taste is quite dry and quite fizzy as it hits my mouth. The finish has an interesting metallic note to it. This reminds me a bit of Orval actually, with funky earthy notes, almost a bit musty and a definite hoppiness to it as well. If I had to guess a Brettanomyces strain seems to have grabbed a hold of this bottle, yippee it makes this a bit more interesting. This beer is quite easily quaffable, and the level of funkiness is fairly subdued but noticeable. If it were not for the metallic note this would be a nice beer that was vaguely in the Petit Orval style of things. Too bad the brewers did not do it on purpose.

Bottle, thanks to slob! Pours hazy amber with a small off-white head. Aroma is sweet and lightly fruity, apple juice and floral hops. Flavor is sweet and souring fruit, tastes like it’s about to turn - but maybe that’s how it’s supposed to taste - also has a nice crisp hoppiness with some citrus and hints of pine. Light body and tingly carbonation.

Boring aroma, insipid flavor, harsh palate. What the heck. How can you mess up an American pale?

12-oz. bottles sampled 23-27 June 2005. Have to admit that I really didn’t like this brew -- even after trying it on different occasions. It had an odd "soapy" taste that I didn’t find appealing or enjoyable at all.

Light amber and orange color. A thin white head on top. The aroma is Oranges with some vanilla and oaky vanilla. The taste is smooth and smoky grapefruit juice with some pine in the finish. An interesting APA.

This was purchased at the Caboose in Ashland, Va. It had good head formation and some lacing. The color was a hazed amber with noticable hop aroma but not overpowering. The hoppy bitterness was well balenced. This is good Pale Ale.

I really enjoyed the aroma of this -- it smelled like a malty, lemony iced tea. Clipart label, but it has an overall good effect. Little floaties in a bright gold beer. Very tart, very much like it’s had a lemon squeezed into it. A nice interpretation of a common style.