Emerson’s APA

Brewed by Emerson’s Brewing Company (Lion Breweries - NZ (Lion Nathan Co.)
Style: American Pale Ale
Dunedin, New Zealand

Serve in Lager glass, Shaker, Tulip

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Deep amber with a minimal head. Smooth and hoppy aroma, full of lychees, peaches and some citrus tang. Well balanced, with some freshening bitterness. Good depth and refreshing carbonation - top stuff

Very hoppy malty aroma with spice and flowers. Cloudy red brown colour with fair head and lacing. Hop flavours that overwhems you. Slight malt flavour with a hint of some kind of chemical? Flat palate.

18 Oct 05 - BIg hoppy fruit aroma. Cloudy brown colour, ordinary head that dimishs quickly. Hughly hoppy and a reasonable maltiness flavour. NIce thickish mouthfeel and big hop bitter finish, leaves a horrible hop chemical aftertaste. Overall, this a beer defintitely for hop heads.

Not a very lively aroma for an APA, strongly hoppy, yes, but not fresh and vibrant. I don’t know how old the bottle was so maybe that was the problem. Cascade hops, crystal malt, full body but lacking that vibrant, floral urge of a good fresh balanced APA.

Bottle. Golden color with white head. The taste is a nice light sweet body with a hoppy finish.

This Kiwi APA stood up well on a group tasting night when there was strong competition from a host of US pale ales. It poured a classic APA burnt orange colour with a thin head. Classic piney aroma, rich and resinous. Very fresh and citric. The body is quite full and chewy. It has real guts, very satisfying. Lots of chewy toffee on the tongue before that big wash of resinous hops. I liked this but I’m not convinced it’s Emersons’ best beer. That accolade should remain with the pilsener IMO. (Bottle, Sydney RateBeer Xmas gathering 2005)

It has taken a while to find this one and I believe it was worth it. When poured it demonstrates a cloudy appearance with a fleeting head. The nose is certainly dominant with a strong peachiness and pine needle hop aroma. My memories of SNPA and oft repeated enjoyment of Little Creatures is borne out by this beer. There is a good depth of flavour here and at 6% the ABV is both obvious and welcome. Enjoyed in good company an so the experience was heightened.

Bottle (RB Sydney XMASG ’05): Another of the highlights of this gathering. Slightly hazy amber with a tight little head. Smells lovely! Tangy fresh orange juice and lychee notes, some pinerfesh herbal echoes. I couldn’t get over how fresh this seemed. Fruity frontal flavours, founded in a slightly smokey toffee base. This had immense length wich evolved from fruits to caramelised spicy anise and faint mince pie fruits. Beautiful and well balanced, although perhaps a touch too smokey in the mouth.

Hazed bronze appearance, creamy, thin layer of froth. Big, fresh aroma, alert and lively, fruity, piney, herbaceous, an intriquing blend of American hops, ...reminds me of my Mama. A burst of fruity hop flavor floods the palate from the start of the sipping. Delicious bitterness, rings loud and full in the mouth, before softly, surely slipping off. Medium bodied, longish, lightly bitter, fruity finish. Slightly oily...almost an IPA, this one, but I understand where they’re coming from in the appelation. (Love the label, too, an American Bald Eagle, wings spread stands in the center, with white red, white and blue stars and stripes all around. A surprise and a treat to see a brewery from across the globe salute the U.S.A. and it’s beer innovations in this way.) Yum, very full of character. If I were a New Zealander, this would be a daily delight for me. Emerson’s quality comes through again! Drinking this from a Summit IPA pint glass, and it reminds me of that same beer, a local favorite of mine. Great big thanks to Danny from Dunedin, who brought his hometown pride all the way from Kiwiland, just for me.

UPDATED: NOV 21, 2005 Bottle. HUGE thanks to Duff for bringing this to me, wouldn’t have dreamed of getting the chance to try this any time soon. Best before MAY 07 0834, is what it says, clearly on the label. Served in my duvel tulip on 11/10/05. Jaw-droppingly intense aroma. Surprised it comes from such an unassuming bottle. Fresh, juicy fruits with a smattering of juniper and other aromatic, fresh, green herbs. Ever so light citrus, just faint sweet tangerines and ruby-red grapefruits. Soft, sugary, light base malts sit on the edge of the tongue, supportive, but not bullying in the least. Deep, hazy-golden-amber appearance. Fine bubbles rising to create an off-white head that is retained at cover with spotty lacing. Plenty of sediment in bottle. Flavor begins with a light malt sweetness (honey, touch of caramel), a dry yeast note and almost a wheaty/oaty/barleyish grainy sort of flavor that I can’t place. Grainy, mildly sour (maybe munich malt) flavor sticks and some hop bitterness mixes with it. Hop bitterness clings to the palate, as does the malt sugar. As it warms, the mouthfeel stays perfectly tight and the texture does not turn watery. Spicy dill and grapefruit on the end. An APA to savor and sip. Exquisitely intricate expansive carbonation. No alcohol apparency. Fresh on draught this could prove to be positively stupefying.