Magic Hat Fat Angel

Formerly brewed at Magic Hat Brewing Company
Style: English Pale Ale
South Burlington, Vermont USA

Serve in English pint, Shaker

Bottle: A deep amber hue with a frothy head and okay lace. The aroma has notes of aromatic and grassy hops, biscuity malt, currant and plum, and English Breakfast tea. The taste is a tad fruity and back by layers of muddled bitterness. A flabby beer that does not do much and is even a tad medicinal. In your ambiguous world they gave us this ambiguous beer.

Bottle (12oz). Shared with blankboy, GregClow and tupalev - out of 2005 Magic Hat 12-pack. Poured mostly clear light copper, not much of a head. Aroma of sour, sharp grainy vegetal malt - I didn’t like it at all, although it smoothed out some on warming. Taste of slightly stale grapefruit pith hop bitterness, some very lightly roasted malt, quite a bit of grain - I was suprised that the vegetal nose didn’t translate to the taste. Average body and slightly astringent mouthfeel. Overall, apart from the nose, this is pretty decent.

Poured a copper color with a large, tight, and creamy off white head with a little lacing. Citrus hops, and sweet malt aroma. Sweet malt, with very light bitterness.

I’m engrossed in the film, "American Beer" and had to have another pint, so I cracked open this Fat Angel. It poured a light amber with a thin but firm head of white foam. The aroma is of caramel candy ... almost apricot-like. The flavor is hard to pin down ... the undertow is definitely malty, but the overarching sense is the fruity, apricot jammy fun. What a fun beer. I want more. (#2708, 2/15/2007)

UPDATED: JUN 16, 2004 Solid somewhat spicy hop aroma. Clear golden amber colour with small white receding head with some lacing. Nice malty pale ale with good balancing bitterness and a cereal flavour in the finish with some residual spiciness. Mouthfeel is creamy and fairly full for this medium-bodied beer. If this was available here, I could see myself drinking it with some regularity. A very tasty session beer. It would be nice if it retained a bit more head. On tap at the brewery and bottled.

Absolutely uninteresting; slightly stronger flavored than, say, Bud, but not really more exciting. ’Vermont’s finest’ certainly doesn’t mean this beer; or, in general, this brewer (July 01) Update much the same only this time I found the body really watery -- a weak offering from a very overrated brewer (Dec 01) Update 2 (Apr 02) had this on tap and found it significantly better; still not the most characterful or distinctive brew, but very very fresh, crisp, and with a nice flavor profile that gradually segues (love that word) from fruity (apple?) sweetness into just enough hoppiness to keep you awake. In short, an eminently drinkable lighter Pale.

Poured a clear amber with a thin white head. Big butterscotch/diacetyl aroma. Some caramel underneath. Too bad this wasn’t an ice cream sundae. Butterscotch in the flavor as well with a light bitter finish. Thin body.