Pale Ale - Brickstone Restaurant & Brewery

kawilliams81

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 64 oz Brickstone growler into a Jester King pint. Thanks mom & dad!

A- pours a dark caramel with a 1 finger off-white head. Small bubbles of lacing linger on the glass.

S- nice caramel, big citrus aromas, some spice and pine in there as well.

T- nice caramel, biscuit, some spice almost rye like?, some citrus but more pine from the hops than citrus.

M- medium body and carbonation. Big malt body, slick and smooth.

O- #1 Pale at GABF 2012. Not better than ZD in my book but not far behind either. ZD has more citrus flavor. Opened growler after about 48 hours and not a very crisp feel, but not sure if this is from that or just how this beer is.

Serving type: growler

01-08-2013 02:24:39 | More by kawilliams81

enelson

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev +11.1%

04-22-2013 15:07:34 | More by enelson

Drucifer

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev +11.1%

04-21-2013 03:41:07 | More by Drucifer

BeerOps

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%

03-21-2013 13:50:10 | More by BeerOps

TMoney2591

Illinois

4.43/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Served in a tumbler.

Lot o' fanfare surrounding this brew...not sure if I should gird myself for disappointment for rapture. Maybe both, hoping the two will cancel out... Anyway, this stuff pours an ever-so-slightly-hazy sunrise golden-amber topped by a finger of lightly off-white foam. The nose comprises bright grapefruit zest, light white grape, light peach, light pineapple, soft pine needle, light honey, a hint of sweet biscuit, and a twist of lemon. The fruit potpourri is intoxicating enough on its own... The taste brings in more of the same, with the pine taking a slightly stronger leadership position vis-a-vis the fruit salad, but not by very much. Still plenty of tropical fruit accents, a UNGA meeting of citrus and whatnot. The body is a light medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a sorta/kinda drying finish. Overall, a damn fine pale ale, something I may have to grab more of in the near future to show people that more, indeed, exists beyond Daisy Cutter and Zombie Dust. Get some.

Serving type: on-tap

03-14-2013 14:44:45 | More by TMoney2591

Gonzoillini

Illinois

4/5  rDev -1.2%

02-20-2013 00:26:38 | More by Gonzoillini

brandoman63

Illinois

3/5  rDev -25.9%

01-29-2013 04:44:27 | More by brandoman63

C-Dog

3.25/5  rDev -19.8%

01-25-2013 21:55:48 | More by C-Dog

WolfsbaneBloom

Illinois

4.75/5  rDev +17.3%

01-10-2013 00:41:42 | More by WolfsbaneBloom

evilhorse

4.79/5  rDev +18.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

An amazingly hoppy APA. This beer tips towards the top end of the style at 6.25% but it's hoppy magic in a glass!

Serving type: on-tap

01-08-2013 17:25:25 | More by evilhorse

mdaschaf

Washington

4.43/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Had at Brickstone. The keg had kicked, but they were nice enough to open a bottle for me.

A: Pours a clear orange/golden color with a foamy white head on top with great retention and sticky lacing forming all the way down the glass.

S: Very fruity and tropical, plenty of grapefruit, mango, pineapple, and guava. Very faint grainy malt, but the fruit aromas dominate.

T: Similar to the aroma, more grapefruit, pineapple, and tropical fruits. A little bit of grassy and a touch of pine to top it off.

M: Medium bodied with medium carbonation. Extremely easy drinking with very light bitterness.

O: Very happy to have gotten to try this beer, it was great. Truly a beer I would be thrilled to drink all the time and keep stocked in my fridge.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2012 00:15:19 | More by mdaschaf

zonker17

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%

11-18-2012 18:41:41 | More by zonker17

emerge077

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Headquarters, served in a footed tulip glass. Had this before at Fountainhead, and wasn't compelled to review. Seeing as this won GABF gold recently, had to try again and reassess.

Bright orange with a thin skim and larger bubbles on the surface, nice saturated color, not much head unfortunately but it's minor in the scheme of things.

Big citrus aroma, some marmalade and light apricot fruitiness.

First sips are a little thin and light, malt comes through in a big way, though there's more orange rind and citrus notes in the flavor, just more subdued than the nose. A light level of hop bitterness, bready middle, dry finish. Light bodied and smooth, very sessionable, though ultimately not earth-shattering. Just a well put together, balanced APA. Zombie Dust is still the #1 APA in my eyes...

Serving type: on-tap

11-14-2012 22:19:06 | More by emerge077

312HopBomb

Illinois

4.83/5  rDev +19.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Growler poured into a Brickstone pint glass.

Moderate pour produces a frothy head and ringed lacing. The brew is clear and glowing apriciot. Very appealing.

Smell has nice mango, guava, orange and grapefruit and light honey malt.

Taste has a less tropical but still full fruit flavor mixed with some pine. These are balanced against a slightly sweet malt flavor. Low bitterness in the finish. Each burst of fruity hop flavor encourages another taste.

Mouthfeel is smooth and oily with flavor that coats the palate. Low/medium carbonation.

This is a top notch APA. We met owner/brewmasters George and Tommy and chef Dino who were very generous with their time and "samples". They run a great establishment that is well worth the scenic drive from Chicagoland. Congrats on your medals as this is a very worthy example of the APA style.

Serving type: growler

11-11-2012 19:59:34 | More by 312HopBomb

ROGUE16

Delaware

2.75/5  rDev -32.1%

10-09-2012 09:57:22 | More by ROGUE16

AleWatcher

Illinois

3.9/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Light golden body with a 2 finger white head.

Lightly sweet malt touch with a decent Amarillo hop bite.
Honey touched golden bready malts with some nice citrusy hop notes.

Pretty light feeling body with plenty of carbonation.

Overall-- quite decent little pale ale. Nothin special, but I easily enjoyed a 23 oz draft. This seems to be the best beer here.

Serving type: on-tap

01-17-2012 21:53:18 | More by AleWatcher

cmsimeur

Illinois

3/5  rDev -25.9%

12-13-2011 19:51:01 | More by cmsimeur

barnzy78

Illinois

4/5  rDev -1.2%

11-22-2011 05:26:49 | More by barnzy78