Pale 31 - Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

doughanson78

Washington

3.9/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz bottle poured into a pint glass.

A: Light golden yellow color. Perfectly clear. Half finger, white, very fizzy head that immediately disappears. No lace to speak of.

S: I get honey as the dominate aroma. Some light citrusy hops. With a touch of caramel. Good aroma, just way to light.

T: Honey and caramel sweetness throughout. Slight earthy and citrusy bitterness in the middle. Finishes sweet.

M: Light to medium bodied. Not watery. Slightly creamy. Very crisp and refreshing. Big carbonation, a bit much. Slightly dry finish.

O: Another good offering from Firestone. Not Great, but definitely good. Good summer/session beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2011 00:38:53 | More by doughanson78

BucannonXC5

California

4.38/5  rDev +12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a bottle into a pilsner glass. Had less than a ¼-inch of head. Color was a lighter orange/gold combination. Slight lacing left after pour. Very slight film throughout the glass.

Smelled plenty of strong flavors. First smell is citrus, mainly lemon and orange. Some pine in there, too. Smells crisp and fresh.

Tasted like a combination of citrus and pine needles. Followed with some grapefruit and orange peels. More hoppy than I thought it would be, but overall a pretty good balance.

Good mouthfeel. Refreshing throughout and never lost its taste. Crisp and refreshing. All the flavors work together well. Higher on the carbonation.

Have always loved this beer. Despite finally rating it, I hardly think it changed from my first sip a few years ago. Crisp, clean and refreshing.

Serving type: bottle

08-11-2011 03:28:05 | More by BucannonXC5

GilGarp

Colorado

4.43/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Firestone Walker is finally in Colorado!

12oz bottle served cold into a pint glass.

Their pale is a slightly hazy copper orange with good sticky head. Some lacing is left as it settles.

Aroma is a really nice, fresh and hoppy with classic American citrus hops.

Flavor is very well done with great balance. The sweetness is perfectly offset with fresh crisp hoppiness.

Mouthfeel is medium-light in body and the same could be said about the carbonation.

A perfect session-able pale ale. Light in body and alcohol but big in flavor and hops. Dale's Pale Ale was always my go-to in this category but this one might just challenge it in the future.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2011 00:29:20 | More by GilGarp

cagocubs

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

While visiting Cali I found this at the market, was not familiar with this brewery, but was glad I tried them.

Look: Pours a transparent gold/orange color with a 1 finger head. Lots of active carbonation feeding into the head.

Smell: Earth tones include hops, citrus, pine. Some sweetness.

Taste: The citrus tones are very present in every sip. Hops are good, but not overpowering. The piney taste is not as strong as other APAs.

Feel: Light body with lots of carbonation. Mouth coating is nice.

Serving type: bottle

07-15-2011 04:43:44 | More by cagocubs

aval89

Arizona

4.2/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

bottled 06-06-2011.. a month & 3 days old.

a: golden orangeish color.. clear body with 1.5 finger head.. active carbonation streaming up..

s: piney hops! sweet dank & some citrus take up the nose! some bready notes deep in there & maybe a hint of caramel.. very nice nose.

t: a good blend of pine needles & citrus hops.. almost has a lemony quality to it as well.. bready notes are definitely in there too.. balances out the hops, but not a complete 50/50.. hops win :) finish is a light oily-resiny hop finish.. a refreshing hop bite. not overly dry, but dry enough to beg for another sip. lovely

mf: light-medium body with a good amount of carbonation..

o: i think i found my new favorite APA.. watch out SNPA!

Serving type: bottle

07-10-2011 02:00:28 | More by aval89

plaid75

New York

4.08/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On draft at Sapsuckers, Huntington, NY.

Poured a light copper hue with a one finger foamy white head. There was decent retention and lacing.

The smell featured a light citrusy hop and soft pale malts.

The taste offered bready malts, a springy citrus spice and lingering pine.

The mouthfeel was of average fullness for the style.

Overall a tasty simple ale that is highly quafffable.

Serving type: on-tap

06-30-2011 23:32:47 | More by plaid75

FosterJM

California

3.4/5  rDev -12.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

594th Review on BA
Bottle to Pint
12oz

App- A nice dark orange with a nice clarity to it. A one finger head that left quickly and some lines of cling.

Smell- A very light tinge of hops and a bit of wheat to it. Pretty bland on the nose.

Taste- A bit of a watery malty light wheat flavor. Seems a bit unbalanced and light.

Mouth- Medium bodied and medium/high carb level. Leaves a little bitter hops.

Drink- Pretty average, not that bad, but not that great either. Probably won't come back to this one.

Serving type: bottle

06-27-2011 03:20:19 | More by FosterJM

CHickman

New York

4/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Tasting notes from 12/11/10-(cask ale) pours hazy yellow in color with a small off white head that faded quickly; basically zero lacing, as it all slid down very fast.

Smells of floral hops, sweet malt, caramel, light grains, lemon zest, grapefruit, coriander and grass or hay; overall all sweet and fruity, like citrus fruit.

Tastes of floral hops, piney hops, sweet malt, caramel, light grains, lemon, grapefruit, coriander, orange peel, herbs, grass and/or hay; nice hoppy and malty combo with good balance.

Mouthfeel is creamy and almost watery, with very light carbonation, a light body and an easy feel. High drinkability, as this is a very smooth and easy to drink; a definite session beer.

Serving type: cask

06-25-2011 04:21:53 | More by CHickman

Allpe45

Arizona

3.95/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Dispensed from the cask by gravity at the Hungry Monk

Appears yellowish orange with a short frothy head, plenty of clarity but still a bit of chill haze. Smells citrus forward with a touch of floral hops. Very crisp, tastes like floral hops and grapefruit up front, smooth malty middle and a quick bitter finish. Medium bodied, the carbonation is much more prominent than expected for the serving type. This is flavorful, not too strong in alcohol content, and fits the style well.

Serving type: cask

06-11-2011 05:23:21 | More by Allpe45

LittleCreature

Australia

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

Appearance - 4.0
Pours a finger of off-white head that gradually reduced to a thin layer over a body of deep gold to palest amber.

Smell - 4.0
Pleasant and surprisingly balanced aroma; big bready malt aroma is not dissimilar to that found in good Bavarian lagers, accompanied by a little fudge and the grapefruit and orange expected in this style.

Taste - 4.0
A tasty malt backbone tasting of sweet biscuits and toasted bread and light fudge, followed up by a level of hopping that is surprisingly restrained for an American ale. Moderate to firm bitterness with flavours of mandarin and grapefruit, finishing bone dry.

Mouthfeel - 4.0
Light to medium body with fine and lively carbonation, slightly coarse over the tongue.

Overall - 4.0
The first impression is that this is very similar to Little Creatures Pale Ale - one of my all-time favourite beers. While the hop character is perhaps not quite as good as in that classic beer, I am seriously impressed by the malt profile of this beer. Beautifully balanced and very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2011 07:24:56 | More by LittleCreature

Beezee

Illinois

4.22/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from bottle in Jim Morrison's last US home into a kinda dirty drinking glass. Bottled dated a couple weeks old.

Appearance- Clear golden, nice inch of head that sticks around, good lacing

Smell -Citrus, earthy Cali hops, slight malty bread

Taste/Mouthfeel -Crisp citrus and slightly grassy hops. Very well balance hop profile with a clean finish. Medium bread/biscuity malt backbone. Slightly sweet. Very light mouth feel with a good amount of carbonation.

Overall -This beer really stands out. Just spent a week in California drinking dozens and dozens of great beers and this pale ale stands out from it all! Had it on tap and in the bottle. Perfectly balanced flavorful pale ale. I'm inspired to brew a clone!

Serving type: bottle

06-05-2011 00:56:39 | More by Beezee

Phelps

Arizona

3.7/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Enjoyed pumped from a cask at Papago right into a nonic pint.

The brewery calls this one a California pale ale — appropriate, since it’s named after California, the 31st state.

Almost perfectly clear dark tangerine, with a super-sticky two-finger head of off-white that’s dense enough to be called gelatinous, wobbling like jello when I lift the glass. Thin yet full walls of soapy bubbles cover the glass as I drink it down.

If oranges grew on pine trees, this is how the grove would smell. It’s not shockingly bright, but more smooth — an understated, zesty blend of citrus peel, pine needles, crackers and hints of burnt sugar.

More citrus appears in the flavor. Orange peel becomes a bit overbearing, imparting an orange-glo, wood cleaner flavor. Lemon is in there too, as are lots of crackers. Honey and biscuits become noticeable after poring the flavor’s depths. 

A soft, silky medium-light body allows hints of carbonation to tingle the tongue. Gentle bitterness lingers between sips.

This is my first time enjoying Pale 31 in any format, and the cask suits it well. Good flavor, fine feel. An enjoyable pale from state number 31.

Serving type: cask

06-03-2011 04:58:08 | More by Phelps

kbutler1

Minnesota

3.68/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle. Poured into my favorite DFH tulip glass a clear golden orange color with a 1 finger white head that quickly settles to form a white coaster on top of the beer. Slight floral and a dose of mild citrus greats the nostrils upon the first whiff, rather nice, mild breadiness as well. The flavor is nice with a soft sweetness and light bitterness from the hop additions. Medium mouthfeel. Some watered down mandarin orange type flavors. Overall, a nice, easy drinking beer with some full flavors.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2011 05:24:28 | More by kbutler1

billshmeinke

California

4.13/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a shaker.

Clear golden body with a finger head, and nice retention and lacing.

Smells of citrus (lemon, even a touch of grapefruit), dank, and earthy hops accompanied by a nice hearty bread quality in the nose.

Taste is all about cereal and bread up front followed by lightly acidic lemon and grapefruit notes. Some honey notes. There is also a nice light earthiness, as well as a resiny bitterness in the finish.

Hearty, medium body with a light acidity and wonderful clean, bitter, and citrusy finish.

A really nice pale ale. Just enough hoppiness with a clean and refreshing malty body.

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2011 01:30:20 | More by billshmeinke

KingPuuChuu

Arizona

3.78/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a liquid gold into my pint glass, with a thick white head that doesn't die, light lacing, and a distinct grapefruit nose, with a touch of honey.

Flavor is smooth, crisp, slightly hoppy. Mouthfeel is nice, not too bubbly, and a little bit of the honey flavor.

Overall, a great session beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2011 01:48:07 | More by KingPuuChuu

ehammond1

California

3.73/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Cask

Churchill's Pub & Grille
San Marcos, CA

Golden amber with a thin white head. Nice lacing down the glass. Looks heavy and substantial.

Abundantly pungent and powerful citrus bill in the nose. Surprising and welcoming!

Not quite as powerful in the mouth as it is on the nose. Hop flavors are certainly present, nice accompanying bitterness, along with some earth and grassy flavors.

Medium to thick body.

A pleasant and flavorful, simple, citrus-hop-forward American pale ale.

Serving type: cask

05-13-2011 04:26:38 | More by ehammond1

AWolfAtTheDoor

California

3.33/5  rDev -14.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Had this on Mother's Day at my parents' house.

Its clear, and bright golden. Little lacing.

Curious smell. Very floral and grassy hop presence.

More hop bitterness, pepper, floral, grass on the mouth. Not a lot of malt backbone to speak of.

Mouthfeel is light and watery.

Overall this beer is OK. I'm honestly very disappointed with everything I've had form Firestone (minus Velvet Merkin). This is not a bad beer, but a poor representation of the style. It honestly tastes like an average homebrew. I actually take that back, I have had better extract based homebrew pale ales than this.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2011 20:59:05 | More by AWolfAtTheDoor

MaltsOfGlory

Oregon

3.8/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours a small one finger white head that has already gone down to half a finger, it's clear it doesn't want to give me much head. The head is mostly big bubbles, a few small. The body is pretty standard, medium carbonation, pretty see through, but by no means clear, amber-orange in color. It for sure looks like a legit pale ale, the body looks nice, pretty standard but nice, the head is now gone, and I was not impressed with it. Overall an ok look, but nothing special. Nice northwest hops on the smell, very clean smelling, nice and hoppy with a good malt note as well. Probably some fruit, maybe grapefruit, along with a citrucy smell. It smell very good, pretty excited about the taste! Well, for the taste, the first thing I get is a nice mixture of clean water and quality malt up front, and then it finishes with a nice hop bite. There should be more hops in this, and frankly more flavor, but overall it's pretty dang tasty. For sure and clean and refreshing beer, nice on a hot day. I don't know if the taste deserves a 4 or not, because the taste isn't too big, but it is really tasty and easy to drink. Mouthfeel is really really nice, the carbonation and thickness of the beer are both perfect for a pale ale. Overall a really good beer, not outstanding, but super super easy to drink and very tasty.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2011 07:35:11 | More by MaltsOfGlory

di5co5teve

California

4.1/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Appearance: Golden

Smell: Overwhelmingly of hops.

Taste: The beer is focused on the hops but it is also balanced. Not as much flavor and aroma as lets say SNPA but still adequate. The bitterness is there.

Mouthfeel: Light and refreshing. Perfect on a summer day.

Drinkability: reasonable ($6.99/six) and light enough to drink a full six pack on a summer afternoon on your porch.

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2011 03:26:36 | More by di5co5teve

ADZA

Australia

3.73/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This brew pours a very light see through golden hue with average carbonation that leaves behind a one finger head and some sporadic lacing,the smell is piney hops,apricots and boiled candy,it has a light bodied well carbonated mouthfeel that could be abit less in my mind and has tastes of passionfruit,apricots,mangoes,boiled candy and finished with a light touch of piney hops and to be honest its quite quaffable without being stand outish cheers.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2011 10:06:58 | More by ADZA

LazyL

British Columbia (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A crystal clear apricot with a faint white fizzy head. This is a hoppy Pale Ale with pine and grassy notes and good citrus scents in the background. This is the beers strong point in my opinion and I had to give it an extra 1/2 point just now for smelling so damn good. The taste is Pale Ale up front and IPA citrus on the back. A bit of clove spice gives it a Pilsner feel. The mouthfeel is semi dry and light. Definitely a pretty nice beer.

Serving type: on-tap

04-25-2011 05:07:57 | More by LazyL

litheum94

California

3.58/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle. No bottling dates.

Clear, golden body. Bone-white head with big bubbles that pop and fizzle, leaving moderate coverage.

Very floral hops on the nose. Some pine. Brown sugar-like sweet malts. Bready. Tropical fruit sweetness.

Floral tones. Apricot sweetness. Bready, with a decent malt backbone. Some citrus flavors and a very sneaky pine bitterness on the finish. Crisp, with good carbonation.

Very subtle tones. Good flavors, and very sessionable. Won't knock your socks off, but I could drink a bunch of these.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2011 04:10:28 | More by litheum94

DovaliHops

California

3.95/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottled 3/18/11, so this guy's less than a month old. One of my favorite go-to pale ales for sure. Pours a clear, pale, golden color with a medium white head that disappears quickly. Scent is very lovely with nice, subtle hops and malt. Some citrus and floral notes with a hint of grain. Taste is very well-balanced and complex with malt and hop flavors. Some floral notes in the finish along with a bit of citrus bitterness. Mouthfeel is light and crisp. Drinkability is very high. Overall, a very solid pale ale when fresh. I've had this beer old, and still a good beer, but nowhere near when it is fresh like this. Very sessionable.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2011 07:28:09 | More by DovaliHops

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz Bottle

Appearance - Clear amber colour with an above average size frothy white coloured head. There is a low amount of carbonation showing and there is some good lacing. The head lasted for over 5 minutes before it was gone.

Smell - malts, hops, grapefruit zest, oranges, biscuits

Taste & Mouth - There is an average amount of carbonation and the beer has a nice balanced taste. There are a fair amount of hops mixed with caramel and a biscuit sweetness. There is also some orange and grapefruit taste. It finishes with a malty sweet aftertaste with a bit of lingering hops.

Overall - While it is a very good pale ale, it seemed to be lacking something. It was highly drinkable, just not very exciting. It would probably work well as a session beer as it isn't too overpowering.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2011 17:48:55 | More by spinrsx

BerkeleyBeerMan

California

3.93/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Light honey orange. The Head disseminated quickly.

Smell: Oak. Biscuit pale malts blended with oily citric hops. Lemon and nectarine. Great aroma.

Taste: the hops are boss when it comes to taste. Acid citric flavor followed by some biscuit malts. The bitterness is there but it's hard to detect. The finish is extremely sweet. Like nectar. Very refrshing.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium chewy. Some water taste, which is fine in this style. A tad sweet. A perfect introductory pale ale.

Drinkability: Drinkable, affordable, and accessible. I will be introducing this pale ale into my rotations.

Serving type: bottle

04-07-2011 09:58:55 | More by BerkeleyBeerMan