Deschutes Brewery Mirror Pond Pale Ale American Pale Ale at 5% ABV ($3.50 at South Trail Co-Op, 355ml, best before 18-Mar-2015)
Pours clear pale amber with two fingers of rocky ivory head, excellent retention, good lacing. (4/5) Nose is muted, citrus and pine, caramel malt. (7/10) Taste is mild sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (3/5)
Quite nice. The aroma, though somewhat less muted than other APA’s, is pleasantly hop forward, but nicely balanced by caramel malt. The taste is again very well-behaved, balanced more towards hop bitterness, but with sufficient malt sweetness to support it. The finish is the only relative weak point in this brew, with just a little bit of an unbalanced astringency in the aftertaste. Other than that, a very mild and drinkable APA. I guess the solution is to not stop drinking them? (14/20)
7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
