Pale Ale - Manzanita Brewing Company

KevinBrewer

California

4/5  rDev +20.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- Clear brownish copper with a thin off-white head that dissipates quickly leaving minimal lacing.

N- Caramel, toffee, and butterscotch with a touch of earthy hops.

T- Light caramel maltiness accented by thin and bright citrus rind. Some buttery undertones. Slight warming alcohol on the finish. Pleasant lingering mineral aftertaste.

M- Medium-light mouthfeel, spritzy carbonation, semi-dry finish.

D- This is a good british-style pale ale. Has a nice character to it.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2011 06:38:06 | More by KevinBrewer

mactrail

California

3.9/5  rDev +17.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Starts with a perfumey taste, a nice fragrance of flowery hops, and a touch of cidery tartness. Golden amber in the big tulip. Carbonation is well done providing a good sudsy gulp. Modest malt but has some of the biscuit taste. Pleasant nose of grain and a hint of pineapple. Light body, a nice watery quality, and faultless quaffability.

I don't see anything wrong with a Pale Ale that's not hopped like an IPA. The aftertaste is hoppy with some resins but not overly bitter. This makes me think of the Manzanita Saison with the nice carbonation and mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2011 05:13:17 | More by mactrail

Mora2000

Texas

3.58/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to bu11zeye for sharing this bottle.

The beer pours a golden-orange color with a white head. The aroma is full of bread and some grass from the hops. The flavor is more of the same, with a lot of toffee and bread malt, and a hint of grass and earth. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2012 19:07:04 | More by Mora2000

SanDiegoBeerLove

California

3.55/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A - Clear Amber/Orange with a finger of off white Head that faded quickly.

S - Smells of Orange, Tangerine, Honey, Minerals,

T - Sweet with Caramel, Grapefruit, Tangerine, Pine Sap, Bay leaf, Tea, and Alcohol.

M - Too sweet for Pale Ale and the Carbonation is good but I would like to see more from this beer. A little more Oily than expected and the Bitterness is about normal.

D - This beer is not all that balanced. I need to try this fresh as I think it is on the old side. I think it would be better on Tap.

They need to work on their recipe a little more or get a better yeast strain as the one they are using is not fully fermenting out this beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2011 04:34:35 | More by SanDiegoBeerLove

womencantsail

California

3.3/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On-tap at Manzanita Brewing Company

A: The pour is a dark amber-orange color with a mild off-white head.

S: A very sweet nose for a pale ale that is carried for the most part by citrus aromas. I get primarily sweet orange flesh and a bit of a tangerine note.

T: The orange theme continues on the palate with plenty of orange flesh and rind that provides a light bitterness. There's a bit of a tea flavor to this too, which seems a bit odd. The flavor on this beer is a little bit different than other pale ales and that might be due to the fact that a small portion of the grain bill is wheat.

M: The body is medium with a moderate carbonation.

D: I was hoping for a bit more bitterness to this beer to balance out the bread/malt. The flavor was interesting, but I don't quite know how much I liked it.

Serving type: on-tap

09-13-2010 00:20:05 | More by womencantsail

DoubleJ

California

2/5  rDev -39.9%
look: 4 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 1.5

It's an ale, it's pale, on to the beer:

The foam of this one rises quickly and takes up one-third of the glass. Below that rests a chill hazed paler orange with visible bubbles running through. The retention remains very good, remaining thick on top (though not as stupidly thick as it was at the begining) with strings of lace clinging around the glass. And....oh dear, that's an off-putting aroma. The smells of burnt plastic, band aid, and "green" pine are already preparing for my gag reflexes to take action as I inevitably take my first sips.

I really don't know what I'm supposed to be tasting here. It has the flavor of hot glue primarily, with secondary touches of fruit, earthiness, Grape Nuts, and an unclean herbal hop finish. It just doesn't work out, and that aftertaste may be the worst part. The body itself does seem to be on target however, with a near medium body and carbonation that isn't too crisp.

The success out of "Where There's Smoke" restored some of my faith in Manzanita, but it looks that after this Pale Ale, there is still some work that needs to be done.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2012 04:47:05 | More by DoubleJ