Ommegang, Hop House Pale Ale

From a local brewery in Cooperstown, NY comes a limited edition, Belgian-style, dry-hopped ale entitled “Hop House” released in December of 2013. Aside from being highly aromatic (due to their dry-hopping method of adding hops after fermentation), this Belgian-style ale rivals most with its notes of citrus and fruits and a drying, hop forward finish. The result is a burst of hoppy aroma that balances its maltiness.

Built on an historic hop farm of 136 acres, Ommegang Brewery has certainly captured the essence of hops in their Hop House limited edition beer. Back in the 19^th century, Cooperstown, NY was the epicenter of U.S. hop production. That being said, Ommegang Brewery has quite a reputation to uphold in brewing some of their “hoppy” beers that are obligated to live up to their heritage.

I found this beer to be extremely enjoyable as a stand-alone session beer. Although they food pair it with salads, seafood, or spicy foods, this Belgian-style ale had much to offer in terms of independence and character. It has all the appealing elements you could want from a pale ale minus the typical, standard over-hoppiness I have found most pale ales seem to possess. Up front is a very citrus and/or floral aroma which is followed by a very smooth, hoppy finish. I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor and overall taste of this beer as pale ales and IPA’s are not usually not my “go-to’s”, but this particular pale ale has a lot to offer in terms of its overall color, aroma, and taste. This limited edition beer from Ommegang has perfected balance of hops and malts to provide a delicious edition to their already flourishing repertoire.

So for the fans of Belgian-style ales, I would have to recommend Ommegang’s Hop House as one of the beers you must try, not only because it’s a limited edition, but because it is an easy-drinking, perfectly hopped ale on the side of very enjoyable.

Personal Rating: 8.5/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=649440467631

Terrapin Brewing Company, RecreationAle Pale Ale

For all you Terrapin fans out there, here is the latest and greatest.... RecreationAle. This is the first Terrapin beer to be put into cans. The concept is that this is a beer you can bring camping, biking, hiking or any other outdoor sport. I was able to enjoy this after a long day of running around with the kids (kind of like a sport). It was very satisfying and refreshing but not devoid of flavor.

The brewers at Terrapin made an impressive Pale Ale here. They used Bravo, Centennial, Zythos and Amarillo hops with an addition of Galaxy hops for the dry hopping. It came out at 4.7% abv which is a nice "daytime" beer. The malts used to brew this beer give it a nice medium bodied mouthfeel without being heavy.

I was really impressed by this beer. As a canned craft beer advocate, it is great to see awesome breweries like Terrapin branch out and make a flavorful canned beer. The hops were nice and fragrant with a slight piney and light resiny quality. This is not an IPA, but it still packs a nice hop bitterness to make it a very flavorful Pale Ale.


Personal Rating: 9 / 10
Style Rating: 8 / 10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 
https://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=899539000090

The Lost Abbey | Devotion Ale

Ah... the famed Lost Abbey. To pick up with a bit more of the history lesson started in the review of "Port Wipeout IPA"....... The Lost Abbey is a brand of Port Brewing Company, and they are both brewed in the same brewery. As previously mentioned, that brewery, started in 2006, is in fact the old brewery of Stone Brewing Co. They (Stone) needed to expand and sold their brewery to Port. Though Port and The Lost Abbey share a brewery, the brands are geared at very different markets. Port Brewing is aimed at the American West Coast style of beers, generally very bold and hop forward. Or in the case of their darker beers, just well-made versions of American favorites. Lost Abbey on the other hand, focuses on complex Belgian style beers, many of which are barrel aged, and some are inoculated with a wild yeast strain called Brettanomyces. But, if you're a beer geek like we are, chances are you'll be interested in both brands! Anyway, lets pop the cork on this bottle.

Devotion Ale, the Belgian Pale/Golden Ale from The Lost Abbey. Poured into a Chimay chalice glass, this ale has a very hazy amber color with a big foamy white head. The head recedes pretty quickly with bits of sticky lacing left on the glass. The aroma is very soft and unobtrusive; hints of sweet doughy malt, yeast (very slightly funky), spice, citrusy hop (lemon, orange), and apple. Instead of one ingredient jumping out and punching you in the face, everything is working together in unison.

The taste starts very crisp and lively with notes of grassy noble hops, grannysmith apple, and lemon. Extreme effervescence upfront quickly turns creamy smooth, opening up sweeter bready malt flavors, spice, and oranges. Towards the finish, this ale gets drier and has a bit of a yeasty band-aid funk / tartness to it mixing with more lemon. This might sound a little off-putting to some, but it really makes it quite mouth-watering and refreshing!

The crisp, light, highly carbonated mouthfeel of this brew makes it pretty easy to drink, and there is no hint of alcohol present. At 6.25% ABV, this isn't necessarily a "strong beer," but for how drinkable it is, it can sneak up on you. Although it's quite different from most pale ales we carry in the store, Lost Abbey's Devotion is worth checking out. While not the bold piney west coast IPA type, this beer still showcases noble hop and yeast flavors in perfect harmony. If you liked Brooklyn Local 1, you will definitely like this one. Enjoy Devotion on its own or paired with light fare like cheese, crackers, breads  etc. Personal 8.5/10 for a belgian style pale ale 9/10.

Fegley's Allentown Brew Works | Always Sunny Pale Ale

Fegley's Brew Works out of Allentown, PA offers up their Always Sunny Pale Ale, a west coast style pale ale. Poured into a pint glass, this ale has a very pale golden straw color, and a minimal amount of fizzy white head. There is some sticky lacing on the glass, but that's about all the foam this one's got. The aroma is mainly full of sharp pine and grassy hops with some bitter grapefruit as well.

The flavor follows the nose, starting with refreshing light grassy hop flavor. The grassy hops mix with a very slightly sweet carafoam malt before the more bitter grapefruit and pine hops kick in. These flavors finish it out leaving you with a lingering bitterness.

Always Sunny Pale Ale has a very light crisp body and mouthfeel, which is definitely a plus for making it a session beer. But it's not really that special of a pale ale, and for the price, you would probably be just as satisfied with Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Not to mention saving yourself about $5 for a sixer. Personal 5/10, for a pale ale 6.5/10.

Brooklyn Brewing | Local 1

Brooklyn Brewery's Local 1, the American made "Belgian style strong pale ale" with German malts & hops, raw cane sugar from Mauritius, and a Belgian yeast strain...... yes please!

Poured into a Chimay chalice glass, this ale has a slightly hazy golden straw color, and a big puffy cloud of thick white foam on top. The lacing is very thick, almost like a bubbly spider web coating the whole glass.

The aroma has a very German scent; bananas and spice (clove/coriander) with a yeasty funk to it. Grassy and citrus hops also play a role here, which isn't all that common for the style, but then again this is America, and we love hops. Although the nose is loaded with complex aromas, the variety of fruit is what stands out the most here: banana, orange, lemon, apple, and pineapple.

Very smooth and subtle on the palate. Banana and spice up front with the rest of the fruit bouquet following closely behind. Moderate alcohol sweetness (thanks to that raw cane sugar) is present with a little warmth, but only adds to how delicious this beer is. There is a definite yeast funk in the taste that might be off-putting to those unfamiliar with the style, but it's one of those things that the more you drink it, the more you like it. There is just enough European hop character in here to keep everything perfectly balanced, not too bitter, malty, or sweet.

As light and fluffy as it appears, Local 1 has a decent amount of body to it, and plenty of fizzy champagne-like carbonation. Honestly one of the best examples you will find of a bottle conditioned Belgian pale ale in the US, not to mention on the east coast. If you're taking your beer game to the next level, do not pass this one up, an incredibly exceptional brew. Personal 10/10, Style 9.5/10