Penn Gold - Pennsylvania Brewing Company

DrDemento456

Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Another beer I had on tap at the Restaurant at Penn Brewery.

A - A clear bright golden colored beer with a very sweet half inch of creamy white head. A simple swirl easily brings it back so nicely carbonated.

S - Slight bittering hops, bit of buttered popcorn, and bread with a touch of honey.

T - A very stellar Helles Lager. You get sweet honey like malts, then a surprising bit of bittering hops mild but present, and a finish of buttered bread.

M - It was medium bodied since I was stuffed on the food but it was very drinkable.

Overall one of the best I have ever encountered: good flavor, medium bodied, and sessionable. Would consider trying it again in the bottle to see if it's as good.

Serving type: on-tap

12-29-2011 02:35:01 | More by DrDemento456

mwa423

Ohio

3.23/5  rDev -15.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

On recommendation from a guy at church brew works, I moseyed on down the street to Penn

A - Pours a vry light straw color with minimal head and no lacing.

S - Aroma is light with a bit of grainy malt but little overall.

T - Taste was typical for a helles lager with light malty notes but very little flavor overall.

M/D - Mouthfeel is very light and smooth but watery. Very drinkable in the same way all very light beers are drinkable. Would be a good substitute for a bmc.

Serving type: on-tap

12-28-2010 01:38:17 | More by mwa423

dungledauf

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Presentation: Pint glass on draft at the brewery.

Appearance: Bright, golden color. Very clear. Low carbonation with thin lacing.

Smell: Very malty with faint smell of hops. Clean smell.

Taste: Medium bodied, malt flavor lingers with slight aftertaste which balances quickly.

Mouthfeel: Crisp, all-grain malt, smooth.

Drinkability: This is a very good representation of this style. This one is my favorite Penn Brewery beer since the brewery returned. Similar to Weihenstephaner's Original Lager.

Serving type: on-tap

03-29-2010 16:14:18 | More by dungledauf

goblue3509

Pennsylvania

3.03/5  rDev -20.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours an orange copper color with a slight head. The smell is a little faint, but has the presence of sweet malt and some sweet breads. The overall taste is a little weak as well. There is a grain and sweet malt backbone with some bread taste and a faint citrus hop. The mouthfeel is of moderate carbonation. Overall this is an average beer, you can drink one or two but no more.

Serving type: on-tap

09-14-2009 22:01:45 | More by goblue3509

Redrover

Illinois

3.4/5  rDev -11.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On tap across the street from PNC Park, it was served in a standard pint, the beer is a hazy gold with a smallish bone white head. Nice lacing.

The nose is light grains and a whisper of floral hops. Its really hard to pick-up much of anything.

The taste is a mix of slightly sweet grains balanced with mild hoping.

The beer is crisp with good carbonation and a bit of residual oiliness.

Easy drinker, if they could up the aroma a bit it would be top notch!

Serving type: on-tap

08-27-2008 03:45:16 | More by Redrover

PittBeerGirl

Pennsylvania

4.03/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A- Transparent golden yellow body with thin white head that disappears quickly. Little to no lacing left behind in the glass.

S- Light sweet caramel malt smell. Nutty smell too. Very warm and inviting.

T- Initial taste is somewhat bland. Some hints of light malt. Aftertaste is wonderful. Sweet caramel malt and nutty flavors last and last.

M- Light carbonation and light body. Not watery. Well done since this beer has a very light character.

D- Great. I could session and enjoy this all day. I will get this one again.

Serving type: on-tap

06-18-2007 16:06:08 | More by PittBeerGirl

treehugger02010

Pennsylvania

3.43/5  rDev -10.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I got this on tap at Tank's Taproom in Tampa, Fl. It poured very little head that had a nice slow retention. There was thin to no lacing. The color was a deep gold. The smell had an odd sweet aroma, something that I know I have smelled before, but I cannot place. The taste was the same as the smell but better blended. The mouthfeel was an excelent smooth feeling. All in all a fair drink. Don't drink and review.

Serving type: on-tap

01-06-2007 02:05:26 | More by treehugger02010

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.53/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Very drinkable and contradicting it a harsh acidic lemon finish. Noticeable hops and light yellow with a decent head. hoppy like a pale ale. More bitter than sweet. Perhaps some corn in there. Medium mouthfeel. Refreshing buit reminds me of out-of-date ARizona lemon tea.

Serving type: on-tap

05-14-2006 05:28:26 | More by northyorksammy

JohnW

United Kingdom (England)

3.85/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Had this on tap at a BA recommended bar in Tampa FL. Poured gold, perfectly clear, with decent head. Aroma dry but slight hint of sweetness and grassy fruit. Crisp clean taste, with good balance of dryness and malt, slightly dry finish, very refreshing, but not outstanding. A decent, easy to drink pale beer which is refreshing, clean and enjoyable, and would certainly have it again.
Not up to the standard of the very best in this style, but well worth trying.


JohnW
(B'ham UK, while in Tampa FL May 2006)

Serving type: on-tap

05-11-2006 13:52:17 | More by JohnW

Barraclou

Quebec (Canada)

3.88/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: One of the most wonderful beer appearance I ever experienced. It pours a nice golden colour with a good white head.

Smell: It was malty, but a little too shy.

Taste: That's very hoppy and sweet. It is very addictive.

Mouthfeel: Carbonation is just perfect to me, but its overall mouthfeel is just a little bit over the average.

Drinkability: It was pretty good and refreshing. I had this beer during a Pirates game at PNC park. It was also a very good thing to find local micros there and helped me out to avoid BMC awful macros. Also, its price was about the same thing than the others brands sold on location. If I got the opportunity, I would drink it again.

Serving type: on-tap

05-24-2005 03:58:31 | More by Barraclou

pezoids

Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev +7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Enjoyed this beer on tap at their brewery. This poured a clean deep golden color. The aroma has a chalky maltiness about it. The taste is wonderfully clean and crisp. Soft malts and floral hops meld together flawlessly and finish with a slightly winey, lemony finish. Overall, a very nice, smooth and clean tasting beer.

Serving type: on-tap

07-26-2004 14:50:22 | More by pezoids

Cylinsier

Pennsylvania

4.23/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

12 oz.

Pours a light clear lemony gold, white lacing.

Light grassy nose with some hints of citrus and hops.

Flavor is lightly sweet, honey and floral notes, with some subtle hop balance and grassy malts to base it all on.

Light body with a mild sting of carbonation.

An infinitely sessionable and wonderfully nuanced lager, maybe the best offering from Penn in terms of session candidates. Pairs great with a wide range of foods but tastes good enough to drink on its own too. Excellent balance. Definitely a beer I will return to.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 22:29:50 | More by Cylinsier

Tucquan

Pennsylvania

3.9/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Had this on 2012-12-25 in Columbia, PA

A - Midly-hazy with a 1.5 finger white head that fades pretty quickly and leaves mild lacing.

S - Bread dough, lemon, flowery hops, light yeast.

T - Pale malt, grass, biscuit, lemon, hop spice, light white pepper, good medium-lived tart citrus and bittering finish.

M - Light-medium body and medium-high carbonation. Crisp, sprightly and refreshing.

O - A very well-done Helles with plenty of quality aromas and taste in a session beer. Well done.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2012 23:58:57 | More by Tucquan

ThePaleRider

California

4.28/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Light yellow, fresh straw color. Bright white head, with a variety of bubble sizes, that disappears quickly leaving no lacing.

S - Light fruits, bitter hops, and pilsner malts. Nice scent for the style. Very earthy, like fress fall leaves.

T - Crisp, almost apple cider taste. Malts come in nicely. Pretty amazing flavor and bitter bite for a lager. Takes notes on this one guys, who knew a lager could have such an array of fruity esters and bitter bite.

M - Clean and crisp. Nice carbonation and light bodied.

O - Great lager, nice to drink a good lager every once in a while and this one is really nice.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2012 02:08:38 | More by ThePaleRider

jifigz

Pennsylvania

4.03/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bottle poured into a pint glass.

The beer pours a...well, what do you know, beautiful gold color with a head that doesn't last all that long. The head didn't leave any real lacing as it disappeared. The beer looks very carbonated by the amount of bubbles rising towards the surface. It looks like a pretty standard Helles. The aroma smells mostly clean and crisp with a little bit of "skunk" thrown in there. It smells a lot like an American macro Pilsner but with less grainy sweetness and a little more hop aroma. The flavor is pretty much what I expect out of a Helles lager. The initial flavor has that distinct Helles flavor that I can't really describe, then it fades to some sweetness, then the sweetness mingles with the hops, and then the sweetness kind of takes back over for the rest of the aftertaste. The MF is very light and just what I expect for the style. It finishes dry.

This is a very solid Helles Lager. The beer is crisp, dry, flavorful, and very easy drinking without being boring. Well done Pennsylvania Brewing Co. and thanks for representing my home state with the name of your wonderful brewery.

Serving type: bottle

09-26-2012 15:28:14 | More by jifigz

MirkoCroCough

Croatia (Hrvatska)

4.83/5  rDev +26.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Bottle into pint glass. Freshness date marked on bottle.

Lovely golden color. Left a nice head and lacing.

Fresh delicious clean beer smell.

Wow! Perfect balance of hops, malts, and refreshing drinkability.

Clean and crisp. Excellent refreshing finish.

This is what beer is supposed to be. A straight up no pretense beer. Damn good. Put this up there with Victory Lager in terms of a pure beer. Some of the best beers in the world come out of Pennsylvania.

Serving type: bottle

07-02-2012 01:22:13 | More by MirkoCroCough

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

3.25/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a clean yellow color with a white head. In the aroma, a sweet malt and fresh lager notes. In the taste, a small sweet lager notes, quite fresh and a bit watery. A very small bite, but mainly smooth, and a light bodied mouthfeel, with a small and dry graininess in the aftertaste. Quite fresh, yet a bit sweet, nice, but just about average.

Serving type: bottle

06-01-2012 19:43:40 | More by OWSLEY069

king75

Michigan

4.28/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A-Light gold color, almost transparent. Descent head retention, descent lacing. Nothing to special, almost looks a little watery.

S- Can pick up hints of grain, light maltiness presence, and fragrance of hops is present.

T-Has a great crispness, has a grain flavor that is equally balanced by the hop flavor present. Very light across the palate but yet extremely flavorful.

Wow! this one way surpassed my expectations. When I first poured it I expected it to have a macro watery taste but I was truly blow away by the flavor of this beer. This beer is able to be extremely light across the palate and yet has a great flavor. Quite possibly the most drinkable beer I have ever had due to being overall light in body, full in flavor and low in alcohol percentage.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2012 19:43:43 | More by king75

NardiByNature

Massachusetts

4.18/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

White head builds and falls quickly but leaves a decent cap for the style: a few small islands and a collar. Remarkably clear and light golden golden. Bright? Yes.

The aroma from this is subtly earthy with some fresh grassiness.

Light toasted malts meld nicely with the mildly peppery-bitter hops.

Finishes clean and clear, the carbonation provides a well-placed crispness to divide subtle bitterness from the malt.

VERY sessionable beer in one of my favorite styles. I’m lucky enough at the moment to live in Pittsburgh where Germanic and East European heritage has rubbed off on local breweries like the Pennsylvania Brewing Company and Church Brew Works: they both make nice German-style lagers. I hope to see more lagers from American craft companies.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2012 01:24:53 | More by NardiByNature

Kanyon22

Massachusetts

4.13/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Got a sixer of these on my trip, visiting the family back in OH. Poured in to my Murphy's tulip tumbler glass.

A: Pours a dull goldish color with a white very fading head, with tons of little bubbles riding up the glass. Pretty much on point for style just wished head lasted longer then 20 seconds.

S: As a sweet raw dough smell with a hint of spiciness. Has that typical German beer funk smell I always get in these kinda beers. Has a nice clean smell nothing out of the ordinary

T: Starts out sweet and doughy. The middle it has a spicy kick from the hops and ends with a tart sourish finish. That might sound bad but it all combine for a very pleasant helles. This beer is probably what all the German helles taste like, but unfortunately I've probably never had one this fresh before.

M: Its surprisingly on the medium side which is amazing considering it comes in at 4% abv. Carbonation is high and it has a tart bready flavor that coats the throat a bit.

D: Super high at only 4.00% abv. also very cheap got a sixer for $7.99 and thy go down nice and easy and still has enough flavor to keep you satisfied, what more could you want.

Not an absolute behemoth beer and not one to get all excited about by beer geeks, but truly a wonderful take on the helles style lager.

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2010 19:35:09 | More by Kanyon22

mralphabet

Virginia

3.23/5  rDev -15.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

12 oz bottle poured into pint glass

A: Clear and slightly darker than yellow. Good 1 1/2 head that settled to a ring with very little lacing

S: Very mild, mix of sweet malt, citrus hops and a little yeast.

T: Bready, biscuit like, with a sweetness, followed quickly by so tart citrus hops with just a bit of tartness. Finish is clean with no bitterness...

M: Light bodied with good carbonation. Crisp & Clean.

D: Very easy drinking beer, well balanced low ABV, you could drink quite a few of these... but there is just not enough here for me to buy again and again. Good but not fantastic.

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2010 03:50:08 | More by mralphabet

krausenman

North Carolina

4.25/5  rDev +11%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A-This beer pours a golden color with a white head the fades leaving a lacy ring around the glass. The beer is very lightly hazy.

S-The beer has a very faint malty sweet smell with a very faint herbal/spicy hop aroma.

T-Initially, you can taste the sweetness of the malt but this is then balanced by the low to moderate hop bitterness.

M-Penn Gold has a lighter body that with a moderate carbonation.

D-The beer is balanced and has a good flavor reminiscent of the established german Munich Helles beers. Its lighter body and good balance of flavor makes is a very good session beer.

Serving type: bottle

06-27-2010 00:41:05 | More by krausenman

KTCamm

New Jersey

3.5/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a pint glass.

A kind of run of the mill lager, certainly many notches above anything macro, but hardly memorable.

Hazy brownish yellow with some good foam, active carbonation. Malty/grainy smell, not distinctive.

Taste is a cleanish malty blend with a light hop throughout. Even keeled and consistent. Appropriately carbonated.

Drinkable, and at 4 ABV, easy to pack away a few. A good brew, no complaints.

Serving type: bottle

06-16-2010 11:07:41 | More by KTCamm

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.33/5  rDev -13.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Penn Gold is that beer that most micro breweries feel that they need to produce to make the local American Adjunct Lager drinkers proud. It's fruity notes make the beer seem more like a Blonde Ale or Cream Ale.

A solid golden color shows a lot of carbonation. Froathy white foam rises and falls rather quickly. No lacing.

A malty/grainy aroma swirls in the glass and struggle to hide the scents of corn sulfurs, fruity esters, and grassy hops.

Flavors also show the part-malt, part-grain flavors. A bit too sweet, but the hops have an earthy-grassy flavor and a bit weak in the balance. Light acidity reminds me of green apples and lemon peel (kinda shandy-like). Still the sulfurs leave the lingering taste of corn and matches.

Sweetness clings to the mouth early but the aggressive carbonation scrubs the malts and grains off of the tongue. The acidity helps with the crispness along with the carbonation. But that co2 and sulfur texture scratches a bit in the end.

Serving type: bottle

04-25-2010 21:08:12 | More by BEERchitect

kegger22

Michigan

3.93/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Penn Gold was a clear yellow in color with a half inch, white head that remained as a splotchy skin covering.

The aroma was malt and grainy, pleasant and inoffensive.

The taste was sweet and grainy too, although there were some hops present in the after taste.

The mouth feel was light bodied and amply carbonated.

Drinkability was good. Penn Gold has a pleasing flavor and a very low ABV; you could drink these all day.

Serving type: bottle

02-13-2010 05:23:03 | More by kegger22