Iron Hill Belgian Pale Ale

Brewed by Iron Hill North Wales
Style: Belgian Ale
North Wales, Pennsylvania USA

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   add pic

This is an excellent brew, and definitely one of my favorites. There are so many layers of flavor - it is like a party in your mouth. It is slightly bitter at first like a pale ale should be, but then gives you kicks of sweetness, caramel, and other subtle flavors that make it a joy to drink.

Appears a hazy, light gold with a small white head that seems to fade out quickly. Little spots of lacing quickly slip back down the glass and into the collar. Smell is of honey, bubblegum, light caramel, light spice, mild bready yeast. Taste is of the mentioned aromas with a definite Belgian strain that is subtle and flavorful. Mouthfeel is light bodied, gently spiced, and smooth in the finish. Well done

This was a cloudy orange color...tough to evaluate in lighting conditions. My thoughs on this was that this was too weak of a beer for me. There was not much body to it, and the flavor was slightly lacking with an emphasis on the hops, which left a grass, lawnmower taste to the beer. I expected a lot more from this beer...I just did not get the fruitiness out if it. Maybe this could have benefitted from some more aging.

Copper gold in color with small off whitw head. The taste was like the aroma fruity and smooth. A medium bodied brew. Very good.

Draft at P-ville. Poured turbid deep coppery, going toward brown, with a lingering off-white head. Aroma of caramel malt, some fruit, and some bready spiciness. The taste was definitely Belgian inspired, with some spicy clovey, malty, and fruity notes intermingling with the crisp hop presence. It was very complex.

Draft @ North Wales. Golden-amber color with a smallish head. Aroma is thick and bready with just a bit of hops in the nose. Flavor is full and pleasant - like taking a big bite of good pre-meal dark bread when you’re really hungry. Bits of rye and smooth grain in there too. The best part is that this is my post-meal beer and it beats out the Saison and Biere de Mars at North Wales. Surprising - and very good. My new favorite <5% abv beer.

Tap at Blind Tiger. Pale amber beer, thin white head. Aroma is fairly spicy, with a soft spicy rye character and light toasted malt. Crisp minerally aroma, a bit of banana, clove and a lovely bready malt character. Earthy hop flavour over a spicy malt and yeasty components. Great balance, refreshing spiciness set against pale Belgian malt and light rye/wheat spiciness. Light sulphury yeast component, noble/spicy hops. Lingering clove and banana. A beer I could drink all day.

On tap at the Blind Tiger in NYC. Poured an amber color, nice generous initial head, good lacing. A nice spicey (coriander? Not totally sure.), dry yeasty, bready aroma. Flavor was wheaty, dry yeasty, bready, phenolic spicing (pepper and coriander), a touch of fruitiness, and a darker malt flavor, more than caramel, short of chocolate, maybe some dark fruitiness, odd for the color, yet quite nice. Mouthfeel was hearty and full, finishing with carbonation and dryness, a very refreshing beer. If this is another North Wales IH production, man they sure can brew there!!!

On tap at North Wales. Pours out a clear effervescent deep gold with a nice fluffy lasting white head. Aroma is lightly spicy, hints of phenols, belgian yeast, - has a nice modest belgian character without getting too wild or out of control. Good bready flavors, yet crisp and clean subtle hops in the end- more belgian yeast character but is restrained enough not to become dirty. Clean finish, very drinkable. Nice.

On tap at the North Wales location. Poured a medium and clear golden color with a smll sized white head. Aromas of caramel, yeast, and lightly fruity. Tastes of caramel, general fruitiness, and lighlty spicy. Thinner body.