Berghoff Pale Ale

Brewed by Minhas Craft Brewery
Style: American Pale Ale
Monroe, Wisconsin USA

Serve in Lager glass, Shaker

Date: 08/19/2007
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Ticker Tasting

crystal clear copper, fine beige head, drippy lace, sweet cereal malt aroma with citrus hops, lots of grain flavor, touch of caramel sweetness, well balanced by floral and earthy hops, nice bitter finish,

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 11/20
Rating: 3/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: *4

Appearance: Pours a clear, light coppy body with a wispy white head. Smell: Faint, almost unappealing aroma of musty grains and a drop or two of lemon. Taste: Mild grainy taste and caramel, though the latter doesn’t impart much sweetness. Light citrus hop flavor. Finish provides a subtle bitterness. Mouthfeel: Medium-thin body. Medium carbonation. Drinkability: Pretty dull, even for a pale ale.

Pours a transparent light copper bronze with a thin, wispy-lacing white head. Aroma of very mild, citrusy hops with a touch of pale malt. Body starts fairly weak in flavor with a light bittersweetness throughout, a hint of toasted grain and grapefruity hops. Pretty bland overall.

Finally some hops in a Berghoff beer. While not great this one is more tolerable. The aroma and flavor are improved but the watery palate and metallic taste are still here. It actually gets worse the more you drink it.

12 oz. bottle, It’s a $5 sixer sale from Sam’s on Clybourn, and I don’t mind stocking up cheap lawnmowers in the summer. A nice beer smell as soon as I twist the cap. Widens to include a surprise whiff of hops in the glass. And here’s another surprise: it actually looks like a pale ale when poured: coppery orange body, stiff eggshell colored head. And the taste is actually pretty good. A nice hop bill with some cirus, pepper and a touch of pine. Hops actually overpower a slightly lessened caramel malt base. Unfortunately for the brewer, that’s not enough to compete in a field dominated by the likes of Alpha King and Sierra Nevada. So I’ll call this "good" and have some out on a hot day like today.

Bottled from Whole Foods. Light brownish color upon pouring. Sweet fruity aroma with a little malt. Taste is sort of like a bitter more than an APA. Not a good one though.

Lighter amber pour with nice white fluffy head. Malty aroma. Little to no carbonation. Great big hop flavor with carmal malt finish. Would be much better if the carbonation was stronger. Pretty decent for what it is. Could be excellent with some better yeast/sugar.

I usually hate this style but this like Bass is mild and tasty. A little hint of bitter but mostly roasted flavors take center stage. A little carmel. Berghoff’s are so underrated.