Alpha Pale Ale - Matilda Bay Brewing Co.

brendan13

Australia

3.5/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Orange amber with a few centimetres of head that falls away quite quickly.
S - Citrus hops with a floral soap hint.
T - The hops are there along with some sweet maltiness.
M - Medium carbonation with a slick, resiny mouthfeel.
D - Nothing too bad about this beer but I know there are others out there that are similar yet better.

Serving type: bottle

07-25-2007 09:31:30 | More by brendan13

joecast

Australia

4.13/5  rDev +9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

best before 06/07. 5.2%abv. 345 ml brown bottle.

clear amber with a slight orange tinge. low to medium carbonation. just off white head starts out rather large, a good three fingers high, from a vigorous pour but settled nicely. good retention and lacing.

full hoppy aroma. sharp citrus, floral and some sweetness from the malt. all parts of the aroma seem almost concentrated so they are all pretty full on. a little bready yeast comes about as it warms.

light bready malt hits the tongue first and is followed quickly by some hop flavor. that is all quickly cleaned up by a strong dose of bitterness. ALPHA for sure!

mouth feel is a bit heavy, leaving the mouth with a slick feeling, and sweet taste. probably this brews only real drawback. however, this also harms the drinkability giving a fuller feeling in the tummy a bit quicker than i would like. though the bottle did go quickly.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2006 09:30:11 | More by joecast

jarmby1711

Australia

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Deep tan to amber in colour Good white head and a small amount of carbomnation Essentially clear.
Plenty of fruity hops to smell , exactly what I was expecting.
The label promises alpha bitterness and a bitter finish It also promises citrus tones and a malt balance.
It delivers it all The label was accurate.
I think that this is a seriously good beer
It maybe lacks a touch of complexity if inevitably compared to LCPA , but a great companion to it

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2006 02:01:01 | More by jarmby1711

ohitsbrad

Australia

3.7/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

19 November 2005, Best Before Jan 06

Appears clear golden-brown with a small head and a little lacing. Medium mostly hoppy aroma and the typical grapefruit smell of some pale ales, some other fruity aromas too. Taste is obviously hoppy and fruity with a light malt flavour, but has a more honeyish, nectary, flowery, and quite bitter finish. Overall very easy to drink and I'm glad it's bottled.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2005 18:22:26 | More by ohitsbrad

diablo14

Australia

3.03/5  rDev -20.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

ill say this much for alpha pale. there are far far worse beers getting around out there. but really, its mutton dressed as lamb. a beer that for all the world wants to be a real APA, but doesnt get within an elephants trumpet of it. the sierra nevada pale ale i had when i got home put it well and truly in perspective.

the color is of a deep golden hue, lots of fizz, and a repectable head which does maintain. the smell was indeed hoppy, but not necessarily top shelf hops. was back with a slightly adjunctly smell and the barest trace of malt. not a lot to the taste. again the barest trace of malt, hints of citrus, and also some floral tones. the finish was passable but not outstanding. above average level of bitterness on the back palate, but nearly gets that raspy dryness at the end that i totally despise. just manages to hold off enuff for me not to slam it. all that said, it does have a certain crispness which is a redeeming feature. i could drink this if there was nothing else around, but i wouldnt keep going if i didnt have to.

alpha is defiantely better now than when it first came out by a long way, but its still only so so at best. at no stage would i be breaking my neck to have a pint of this. just sits on the fence a bit too much for my liking.

Serving type: on-tap

11-30-2005 13:02:59 | More by diablo14

DaveFL1976

Florida

4.05/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Matilda Bay Alpha Pale Ale
Sherlock Holmes September 7 2005
A hard to find beer, I finally ran across Matilda Bay’s Alpha Ale on tap at Sherlock Holmes Bar on Colins Street. Alpha pours a nice golden colour with a bit of a carbonated head that settles down in relatively short order. The smell, as expected is heavy on the floral hops (just the way I like it). Upon first sip, the malt and hop combination is pretty well rounded. You’ll taste the sweetness of the malt, and then the hop bitterness hits the back of your tounge. This, in my opinion is a better beer than, say James Squire IPA. The mouthfeel is more full and flavourful. It seems to have a bit more body than Little Creatures Pale with about the same hoppyness. (not as well balanced, however)
Carbonation on this draft is near perfect for my tastes. My only complaint with this beer is the weak head and minimal lacing. All in all, I’m impressed with this beer, and will gladly order another.
Appearance: 3.0
Smell: 4.5
Taste: 4.0
Mouthfeel: 4.0
Drinkability: 4.0

Serving type: on-tap

09-27-2005 22:24:59 | More by DaveFL1976