Simple Ale - Epic Ales

andysk

Washington

4.25/5  rDev +19.4%

02-05-2013 05:59:06 | More by andysk

LiquidAmber

Washington

3.3/5  rDev -7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Review from 3/2010 notes. Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pours a nice dark red color. Short lived dense head and light lacing. Citrus, light fruit and somewhat funky aroma. Rich fruits, spices, coriander flavor up front. Hoppy middle with interesting dark and light fruit, however the finish is overly bitter and medicinal. I like the start, but the finish is too raw and astringent for my taste. Medium bodied. A nicely made beer, but a miss for me.

Serving type: bottle

08-06-2012 19:43:07 | More by LiquidAmber

CHILLINDYLAN

Washington

3.95/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Reddish copper. Creamy beige head. Organic sticky laces.

Funky apple, pear, and dark fruit. Bready yeast. Some citrus and herbal notes. Clove, spices.

Herbal. Sour citrus, funky apple and pear. Sweet bread. Slight roasted smokey flavor. Big bitter tart fruity aftertaste.

Sticky, Dry. Med body. Moderate carbonation.

Good drinkability. Very different than I expected from a "simple ale," but very good.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2010 20:09:43 | More by CHILLINDYLAN

froghop

Washington

3.38/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

pours a dark caramel with a medium size light beige head, and great lacing.

smell is floral, some skunk, and caramel.

taste is of apricot, caramel, malt, and some citrus, ends oily and a little bitter.

overall it looks better than it's aroma and taste.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2010 00:31:55 | More by froghop

Mora2000

Texas

2.58/5  rDev -27.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Thanks to bman1113vr for sharing this bottle.

The beer pours a tannish-orange color with a white head. The aroma is where the beer starts to get funky. The aroma smells exactly like sharpie markers. The flavor is just as strange, with an odd mix of plastic, chlorine and sharpies. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. Not sure what was wrong with this beer, but it was awful.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2010 05:50:50 | More by Mora2000

wcuberos

Washington

3.95/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The label states that the only ingredients are: water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. Because of this I wasn't really expecting to much when I popped the top off of the bottled and started to pour. I was wrong.

It pours a rich amber color and leaves a good level head in the glass. There's a strong floral aroma to the beer that caught me off guard. It has a strong sharp taste that fills your mouth and the aroma really hits you in the mouth when you take a drink. The flavor is rich and over the top, big malty flavor and very hoppy.

This may be called a Simple Ale but that's only the ingredient list, this was a fantastic beer and I can't wait to sample more of Epic Ales beers. If they're anything close to this it's going to be great.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2010 05:00:38 | More by wcuberos

flagmantho

Washington

3.1/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured from 22oz bomber into a pint glass.

Appearance: nice amber hue with a finger of frothy ivory head. Clarity is very good. A solid-looking amber.

Smell: the first thing that hits me is a very earthy aroma which reminds me a lot of Epic's Terra Saurus. There's also a bit of an acetone-y smell here; the overall effect isn't horrible, but it's not particularly beer-y.

Taste: malt flavor is super biscuity and that strong earthiness remains. Bitterness is nice with some citrusy and floral hops but I'm not a huge fan of the malt bill. This seems like a fairly solid beer but, alas, it's not really for me.

Mouthfeel: medium-light body with a nice level of carbonation. Not bad.

Drinkability: this is almost like an Imperial Fat Tire in the strength of the biscuity malt. Like I said, it's not bad, but it's not really for me.

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2010 02:49:07 | More by flagmantho

RedDiamond

Oregon

4/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Some of Epic's earlier beers had seen their labels rejected by federal regulators due to their use of dangerously complex adjectives like "swarthy" or "invigorating" which are apparently too misleading and abstract for the sensibilities of excitable bureaucrats. The use of unconventional adjuncts like chamomile or shiitake mushrooms further complicated their approval.

Simple Ale turns its back on such restrictive nonsense and takes it name from the comparative simplicity of its ingredients and streamlined label. But its flavor profile is anything but simplistic. As with most Epic Ales, Simple Ale is fermented with a sake yeast, in this case at high temperatures and an attenuation of 85%. The result is a light body with fruity esters suggestive of a Belgian ale yeast or an addition of coriander. The beer is also dry hopped with Willamette hops.

Simple Ale is ultimately just an amber ale, but it's far more complex than its name suggests. It has a light peppery seasoning, a dry, airy nose, and a stormy unfiltered body. Hops are abundant and the beer is very drinkable. I might even say it's "invigorating" if I'm allowed to.

Serving type: on-tap

02-23-2010 02:27:28 | More by RedDiamond