Acme California Pale Ale

12 oz bottle. Pours cloudy orange with 2 cm of nearly white foamy head that is mostly diminishing. Aroma of citrus and bread. Initial taste is sweet with malt and citrus, but changes to a more balanced flavor with hops and bread flavors. Light body, not particularly having an alcohol presence, moderate lacing, and some aftertaste. Overall, doesn’t compare to the other beers in this category.

Mild biscuity malts beneath orange citrus hops with some honey-like mustiness. Hazy golden body is topped by a low white head that recedes to a lasting cover. Pleasant biscuit malt flavour with moderate bitterness and peppery, spicy hop flavours. Quite dry medium body with moderate carbonation. Pretty middle of the road and certainly tame by California-style pale ale standards but still a very drinkable beer. Tulip glass. Just above fridge temperature. Bottle (Bottleworks, Aug-08).

Bottle. light to moderate malt notes of grain and cereal, moderate herb note for the hops, very light hint of sweat for the yeast, and background notes of allspice pepper and paper. Head is average sized, frothy, white with good lacing and is fully lasting. Color is slightly hazy, yet sparkling, amber. Flavor starts moderately acidic and finishes moderately acidic and bitter. Palate is light to medium, watery almost creamy, and has a lively carbonation. It finishes lightly astringent. A fairly good Amreican Pale with one or two slightly off aspects.

Totally average. Light orange pour, little to no head. Good aroma, floral sent. Flavor is unimpressive, slightly flat.

12 oz. bottle. Body toward the lighter side of the style, lots of bubbles, and a decent, frothy head. Not a big hop nose to start, but a good malty smell with some bitterness. Taste shows it to be very sessionable. It’s more of a standard pale ale with American hops than an überhoppy Alpha King type. Mostly malts over a bed of decidedly piney Pacific hops. Interesting variation that won’t frighten the newbies away.