Ballast Point Even Keel

Brewed by Ballast Point Brewing Company
Style: American Pale Ale
San Diego, California USA

Serve in Lager glass, Shaker

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Sampled 1702, Tucson AZ; August 2009
This beer arrives from the tap a darker color than I was expecting; it is an amber, lightly hazy hue that is topped by a thin, pale tan colored head that is typical for a tap pour. There is a nice, clean hop citrus aroma to this that has notes of orange zest, some bright tangerine character, grapefruit, and a solid lychee note. There is a hint of crystal malt character here in the nose that adds light notes of toasted grain and caramel.

This has a nice biting bitterness to it as it first hits my tongue. It is quite dry which mutes the citrus hop flavors, but not completely as notes of grapefruit, tangerine, spicy citrus oil, a touch of lychee and a lingering apricot note in the finish are all noticeable. This is nice and light feeling on the palate, the hops actually provide some astringent mouthfeel that makes this beer seem a bit fuller than it actually is. Some pine and menthol flavors are also here and help to add to the hop complexity. There is just a hint of malt backbone here with notes of toasted grain and a touch of caramel.

This is very nice, I could drink a lot of this if the alcohol is anywhere near 4%, unfortunately there seems to be quite a bit of conflicting information on the actual alcohol content of this beer. This is perhaps not complext enough, but the mix of dominant hop character and light malt backbone in a low-alcohol form makes for a very nice beer.

Tap in the Ginger Man, NYC. A mid amber coloured ale with a small head. Aroma is fruity, hops but also something a little sweet. Taste follows, a nice easy drinking hoppy ale. Not the most complex, the best bitters (even hoppy ones) of this strength have more malt balance.

Half pint at brewery. Good aroma, sweet, nutty, in the yeasty kind of way. Brownish orange color, ok head and lace. Bittersweet flavor. Medium body creamy mouthfeel, bitter finish. Nice session ale.

Amber honey white head. Aroma of pine citrus grass and some caramel malt. Taste is of citrus pine caramel bread. Has medium body slightly creamy mouthfeel. Dry slightly bitter finish Overall a very nice session ale.

On tap at old grove. Dark pale with foamy head. Some slight hints of fruit aroma. Easy to drink beer with classic bittering hops to finish. Good example of a session beer

Tap at the brewery. Some interesting floral hoppiness in the flavor and aroma. It reminded me of geraniums. Beer is lighter in body and a tad watery, but not in a bad way.

Clear light amber color with white foam. Subtle pine, floral aromas. Light bodied. Grainy pale malt flavors with a massive bitter finish, no hop flavors--weak

Light amber pour, white head. Lots of hops in the nose, some citrus and grass with a caramel note. Flavor is big on the hops, caramel notes come through and hard to imagine its only 3.5. Nice.

Caramel orange, off white cover. The aroma is toast, perfume, citrus hops. The taste is largely the same, very floral and perfumey, light bodied but expected at the ABV level. This beer is fantastic and would make an amazing session if it weren’t for the $5.50 price for the pint.

On tap at Ballast Point (Old Grove) with Andy, James and Dallas for Dallas’ bachelor weekend. Glassy-hued, deep golden pour with no apparent head. Flour, light hops and bread crumbs on the nose and noticeably dry on the tongue. Nice finish. Solid, but nothing great and not very complex.

On tap at the brewery with the bros for dallas’ bachelor party. Light hops in the nose.. Amber body. Unmemorable.