ParTea Pale Ale - Prism Brewing Company

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.2/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

First had: on tap at Prism

I didn't really think this one was too bad in and of itself. Is it something I'd drink more than once? Probably not. But in the unlikely chance a beer-tea hybrid appeals to you, then this one delivers. Poured a hazy copper color with a white ringlet. Aroma of pale malts, tea, light citrus, mildly soapy. The tea comes out in a big way in the taste, and pretty much overpowers all else, with some crackery malts and earthy / herbal hops in there. Mouthfeel was light and crisp, and you almost want to put ice cubes in the glass and garnish it with a lemon. But then that raises the question, "why not just get an iced tea?" Or a Twisted Tea for that matter. Sure, there's a bit more of a craft aspect to this beer, than the macro staple, but all in all, something like this just appeals to a niche market. I think the main problem here is a sub-par base beer. Add tea to a good quality pale ale, and it's much more successful.

Serving type: on-tap

02-09-2013 20:52:50 | More by Rifugium

MusicaleMike

Pennsylvania

4.16/5  rDev +40.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked up a six-pack from Whole Foods. Package says it is best before 3/27/13. Poured into a balloon glass.

ParTea pours a vibrant orange color that is topped with a peach colored crown of foam that settles down to a thin layer and leaves rings of lacing on the side of the glass. The beer looks raw and unfiltered, which is fine, but I prefer my APA's with a bit more clarity. The head could use more staying power in my opinion.

The aroma is wonderful. You can easily pick out the black tea, with a little bit of light citrus aroma. Notes of vanilla, honey, clementine, and obviously black tea, which comes across as somewhat earthy. The bottle says this is brewed with Orange Pekoe Tea. Despite the unique twist, this aroma doesn't seem very odd for a Pale Ale. In fact, I think this is a welcome departure from the typical American hopped APA.

The taste is quite similar to the aroma. There is a sweetness here that echoes the aroma with hints of honey malt and light vanilla. Mild citrus hop bite up front, with orange and lemony notes. The tea brings out a very mild astringency in the finish that leaves the impression of dryness, re-setting the palate and making me want another sip. Again, this is very unique, but not in a bad way. I cannot imagine a better integration of tea in a Pale Ale. Very well done!

The beer has a medium body, and a good level of carbonation that creates a very smooth texture. Slightly dry finish. Refreshing beer.

I am kind of surprised by how much I like this beer. I picked it up without many pre-conceived notions, I just liked the packaging. It takes the APA style and puts a unique twist that doesn't offend at all and in my mind take the style to a different place. I would love to see some "Tea Variations" here and see what other flavors they could conjure up. Glad I have 5 more bottles...

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2013 19:29:57 | More by MusicaleMike

micromaniac129

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev +1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Seen this at the Wegmens and thought I'd give it a try.
Pours a cloudy amber color with a super tall off white head. It's very much carbonated and thus the head never fades.
Aroma was malts and sort of a strange weird smell that was off putting.
Taste bad
I like to support the local bew brewers in the SEPA area but this just a bad beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2012 14:20:06 | More by micromaniac129

justintcoons

Pennsylvania

3.1/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pint glass.

Appearance
Slighty hazy gold with 2 fingers of head. Low carbonation and nice clouds of lacing.

Nose
Very strange apple juice aromas.

Taste
Again, these apple juice aromas are in the forefront. Dirty caramel backing. Earthy hop flavors along with notes of lemon zest. Whoosh! There it is! Earl Grey Tea! There also seems to be touches of tangerine, grape and bubblegum.

Mouthfeel
Medium bodied, crisp and clean. Light-medium bitterness.

Overall
This is a pretty strange beer but give it a chance. The more I drink, the more it grows on me. Those weird apple flavors slowly fade and it starts tasting more like an English Style Pale Ale. The tea flavors slowly strengthen. Very earthy and refreshing.

Serving type: bottle

11-16-2012 02:36:54 | More by justintcoons

IamMattMoses

3.85/5  rDev +29.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

well this is interesting, a beer made with tea how fancy. But keep your pinky-finger down please. This is a very refreshing and crisp Pale Ale I love the subtle tea aroma and flavor and the taste of the good stuff behind it. I enjoy this ale even more as a 'Shandy' an Arnold Palmer (ParTea Pale Ale with Lemonade). You can say what you want about golf and Shandy's but on a hot 110 degree day in PA this drink just hits the spot. My lady friend loves it more than I do and I am o.k. with that at least she is not scarfing lemon rasberry cottone candy choco malt and fruitly tinis. No Sir, she is a real woman with the grace of a gazellle grazing in the open fields of Africa. A lion approaches, it leaps only to be be back kicked in the face as the mystic gazelle escapes. The lion returns home only to be ridiculed by his wife...the Lion retires to the local pub to have a load off. The bartender asks what the Lion is having. The Lion responds ParTea Pale Ale.

Serving type: on-tap

07-13-2012 19:28:31 | More by IamMattMoses

nrs207

Pennsylvania

1.4/5  rDev -52.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 1

A - I drank a little from a bottle before drainpouring. Appearance gets a 3.0 because I couldn't really see it.

S - Some tea, not really many beer scents. Not a fan.

T - Atrocious. The worst beer I've ever put in my mouth. 2 friends tried it and nearly gagged. It's disgusting how bad the aftertaste is. There are tea flavors and some generic beer flavors. I don't even now how to describe it. Just some malt mixed poorly with tea I guess.

M - Carbonated fine, no alcohol. Just unpleasant aftertaste and taste in general making the whole thing unpleasant.

O - Worst beer I've ever had. At least macros are tolerable since they don't taste like much. This stuff tastes horrible. Never try, and certainly never buy.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2012 03:55:38 | More by nrs207

jmdrpi

Pennsylvania

3.13/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

served on tap at the brewery taproom, in a shaker pint glass.

appears a dirty copper/orange/light brown, with white head. aroma is a bit herbal and fruity, decent. taste is dry, with some lemon and a bit of the tea flavors coming through. thin to medium body, and medium carbonation.

overall, probably the weakest of Prism's offerings.

Serving type: on-tap

11-28-2011 01:39:29 | More by jmdrpi

BigMike

Pennsylvania

2.68/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Quite dark for a Pale Ale. Almost the color of watered down iced tea. AN off white head tops it off. One fingers worth.

S: Light herbal notes on the nose. The hops come through but are in the background. Light orange and grapefruit along with the herbals.

T: Taste is a bit off. I can't quite pin point it but i thinks it's from the tea that's used. It's almost an astringency that out shines any hop profile thats present. Like with the nose, there's an herbal quality in the forefront.

M: Medium bodied. Seemed a bit heavy for the style. Carbonation was good.

Overall: Not a great beer. Maybe a recipe tweak would help. This was my first beer from Prism and i wasn't impressed.

Serving type: on-tap

04-07-2011 20:00:34 | More by BigMike

weeare138

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev +20.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appears a semi transparent light orange with a small white cap that quickly fades into a gentle cap and collar. Scattered bits of lacing are left around the glass.
Smell is of obvious tea leaves, lemon rinds, citrus, coriander seed, astringency, and different.
Taste is of the aromas. Obvious tea leaf addition with lemon zest pullng through.
Mouthfeel is medium bodied, bitter, sweet up front, and drying on the finish.
Use with Chinese food...dim sum, or steamed buns!

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2010 02:36:40 | More by weeare138

rossmctostadas

Pennsylvania

1.7/5  rDev -42.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 1.5

Draft pour served in a standard pint glass.

Appearance- A nice amber color typical of style. Not perfectly clear but slight haze is not off putting at all. Head dissipates quickly with no lacing left on glass.

Smell- Subtle and intriguing but some phenolic notes that should not be present in this style. Pleasing hints of lemon and grassy aromas sit up front but something doesn't seem quite right.

Taste- I would say that the main problem is too much astringency from the tea but I can't get over the flavors I know were caused by an improper fermentation temp or lax sanitation. Too many fermentation byproducts whatever the cause. Very few malt flavors present and no pleasant hop bite, just astringent band-aids.

Mouthfeel- Carbonation level is really low. This is a fresh keg at proper pressure and all other drafts on same system are well carbed. Slight slickness almost makes me queasy. This feels like extract homebrew. The body is just not there. I'm starting to remember tasting another beer from General Lafayette that I can't remember the name of that had the same problem.

Drinkability- I'll drink it because I paid for it.

Conclusion- I've tasted worse beers. This has some makings of a decent brew. The idea is intriguing but the execution seems haphazard. If they could just get a cleaner fermentation and improve the body it might end up being something I'd enjoy, but the off flavors are too prevalent to not call this a purely amateur mess.

Serving type: on-tap

08-09-2010 10:25:02 | More by rossmctostadas

NJpadreFan

New Jersey

3.9/5  rDev +31.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Prism- Tea Party Pale Ale

A- Deep golden caramel orange brown with a frothy chunky white head. Good ringed lacing and bubbly carbonation.
S- Lemony tea leaves with a bready malt base.
T- Strong tea leaves with a big lemony kick. Good dry bitter yellow grapefruit with a hint of orange. Light caramel malt.
M- Sweet malt gives way to a dry and bitter tea leaves.

Overall- A solid Pale Ale with a dash of iced tea blended in.

Serving type: on-tap

07-22-2010 21:25:29 | More by NJpadreFan

Slatetank

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev +20.5%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I had this at Capone's served on tap in a standard pint.

A - A pale golden with amber highlights and minimal cap of white

S - The scent is tea-like, herbal and has some elements of sorachi ace's lemony aroma

M - the feel is quenching, like tea with a moderately high level of astringency as if you made a pale with lemon zest and juice of lemons like how an Arnold Palmer is half lemonade/tea - this has a pale/lemon tea feel

T - The flavor follows the nose however the astringency is stronger in the flavor than expected and the malt is low in the taste letting the tea and sorachi ace take the reigns and the medium carbonation is not a benefit as that might lift the lemon peel flavor and make it seem more balanced, but it drinks like a summer ale with tea instead of hops

D - I enjoyed this beer - it has a tasty tea base, but could use some tweaking to balance the strong herbal notes of the tea and sorachi and astringency could be dialed down a bit IMO.

Serving type: on-tap

06-13-2010 20:24:36 | More by Slatetank