Essential Pale Ale - Port City Brewing

kylehay2004

Florida

3.43/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Enjoyed at the brewery tap room in Alexandria, VA.

A: single finger head with excellent retention on a murky bright golden body.

S: excellent aroma with orange peel and grapefruit citrus and light floral hops.

T: lighter malt base with bittering hops hitting hard up front moving to a subtlety sweet lemon custard finish.

M: lighter side of medium body and moderate to high carbonation.

Overall: definite a mildly hopped APA. Flavor is a little simple and the malt seems a bit thin. Overall vey drinkable.

Serving type: on-tap

07-29-2012 16:48:57 | More by kylehay2004

Emerson1310

Virginia

4.93/5  rDev +40.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

This brewery is only a few blocks from my house. Great to slosh and then walk home!!

A: Golden with bright white 4-finger head, good carbonation and good lacing.

S: Lots of fruits and citrus, mild hops.

T: GREAT!! If you like fruit you'll like this. Along with grapefruit and orange there is another fascinating taste: Honeysuckle!! If any of you have ever smelled that wonderful springtime scent of honeysuckle flowers, then the finish/aftertaste of this ale will be familiar.

O: Reasonably priced, and a very sessionable beer. I drink this right at their brewery and also purchase 6-packs. Delicious!!

Serving type: on-tap

09-30-2011 20:41:14 | More by Emerson1310

Godot

Virginia

3.6/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Had this at the brewery. Very nice pale ale that I can see becoming a nice fall-back for me at restaurants in the area. Pours a light golden with a finger of bright white foam. The smell is underwhelming but not bad. The hops just are not very assertive in the nose. The taste is better. Fairly one dimensional citrus hops but done very well. Extremely sessionable with a refreshing grapefruit snap. I'm glad this brewery is here and I hope them all the best (for the selfish reason that I want to keep drinking their beers).

Serving type: on-tap

07-16-2011 23:30:57 | More by Godot

goblue3509

Pennsylvania

2.75/5  rDev -21.9%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours an amber color with almost no head at all and no lacing. The aroma is of sweet malt and a little bit of a citrus hop bite. The aroma is faint and a little weak. The taste follows suit yet a little stronger. There is a sweet malt backbone and a hint of breadiness to it. There is a citrus hop bite to balance out the beer, but the bite is weak and subdued for the class. The mouthfeel is low carbonation. Overall it was an okay beer, needs more in the hop department for taste and a little more carbonation.

Serving type: on-tap

06-08-2011 19:24:47 | More by goblue3509

SummitVA

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Pale straw pour with moderate carbonation.

S - Light hop character (a little pine and citrus), along with bigger sweet malts. Some breadiness here to a give complexity, but sweetness foremost.

T - Sweetness again at the forefront. This is followed by resiny pine hop character with just a hint of citrus. Big caramel with a bit of toasty bread. Hop bite in finish gives a nice crispness.

M - Nice light brew.

O - My favorite of the Port City offerings thus far. A solid pale ale, and I'll be happy to grab a pint when there is nothing more interesting available, but this is forgettable for the most part. Still, very happy to see Port City at so many places around town, and I'll happily try all of their beers.

Serving type: on-tap

05-21-2011 21:03:38 | More by SummitVA

localone703

Virginia

3.93/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This is a much lighter colored pale ale than usual. Also, not very hoppy - even by standard modest APA standards.

Lighter in color and flavor than Sierra Nevada pale ale. It's a good beer, but maybe more like Frederick Brewing Co.s Tire Bite, which is a light golden ale.

I will drink this and enjoy it, but it is on the lighter side of pale ale while DC Brau is on the stronger side. Buncha weirdos around here I know.

Serving type: on-tap

05-17-2011 02:11:53 | More by localone703

CuriousMonk

Virginia

2.38/5  rDev -32.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

On tap at Stoney's in DC. Poured into pint glass. Pours a a golden straw/yellow color along with a small white head that fizzles quickly leaving some light lacing throughout. Aroma is medium sweet, orange/lemon, some grapefruit, biscuit with notes of mild malts and hops. Taste is medium sweet, grapefruit, lemon/ornage, light bread, lager lemon. Light-medium body, some acidity which hurt the score. Mild carbonation throughout. Was too bitter and left an unpleasant taste at the end. I cannot go with this one here for the style...

Serving type: on-tap

02-24-2011 22:15:02 | More by CuriousMonk

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at the brewery the second day after opening.

Pours a light golden color. Pretty transparent in the glass with some carbonation bubbles visible throughout. Good white head and a bit of lacing. The nose is pretty light with some citrus and floral notes. Hops are pretty light, though nice. Taste improve on the nose, which was just a bit too muted. There's certainly some backing malt character and they got the balanced character they were looking for. Pretty good at combining some malt along with some hop flavor. Mouthfeel is light and mildly bitter. Finish is slightly dry. Drinks pretty well and I could see this being quite sessionable. Looking forward to the IPA.

Serving type: on-tap

02-09-2011 01:36:17 | More by Thorpe429

ahalloin

Virginia

3.63/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Served on tap at the brewery.

Pours a VERY clear golden color with orange hues. The white foam cap was decent but hard to judge on a 5 oz. pour in a taster glass.

The smell combined a more dominant toasty rich continental Europe malt with a lesser aspect of light hops. The hop aspect is what I perceive as a sweet, perfumy, lightly citric hop character that comes from Amarillo.

The taste is good and quenching, but subdued. Light toffee malt with some toastiness coral a light hop flavor. The hops used are definitely American used in a way to add a slight accent. Clean finish with little aftertaste.

Mouthfeel is nice with a medium body and low-medium carbonation.

Drinkability is quite good, but this beer doesn't overwhelm the senses in any form. Dare I say it's sessionable?! Well, it is. And it will be great for locals to get a fresh, locally-made APA.

Serving type: on-tap

02-04-2011 23:34:06 | More by ahalloin

cyclonece09

Virginia

3.7/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a 14 oz "pint" glass. Pours a transparent orange with some floaties in it. Smells like flowery and piney hops, very nice. Tastes of light grain and flowery hops, but not overly bitter. Beer goes down really smooth and is highly drinkable for its light body. Overall, an above average beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 21:50:37 | More by cyclonece09

KTCamm

New Jersey

3.55/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass.

Pours medium copper with light white foam. Laces. Nose is grassy pine, citrussy. Mellow malt, pushy hop, latent bitter. Easy drinker with enough hop to make its presence felt but not overpower. Straightforward pale but certainly good.

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2012 15:55:52 | More by KTCamm

Clydesdale

District of Columbia

3.25/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Pours a slightly hazed golden color, with a slight orange tint. The off-white head is medium sized, with a frothy consistency. Retention is solid, and some sticky lacing clings to the glass in a thin ring.

S: A fair amount of cookie/biscuit malty aroma. Light grain and caramel. Some nondescriptly herbal/spicy and fruity hop notes are present, but this is a pretty clean and balanced ale nose.

T: Fairly malty up front. Biscuity, crackery, and grainy flavors dominate. A touch of sweetness. Hop bitterness is medium, with herbal and somewhat soapy flavors. A somewhat muted secondary wave of bitterness arrives into the finish.

M: Fairly firm body. Carbonation is moderate. Hop bitterness contributes to a fading, almost sticky dryness.

D: This is completely drinkable and generally well balanced. It does lack a bit of pizzazz, and I'm not wild about the predominantly soapy hop flavor. In all, it's a serviceable brew but not a standout.

Serving type: bottle

08-10-2012 23:03:36 | More by Clydesdale

oberon

North Carolina

3/5  rDev -14.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured into a standard pint a dull medium golden with almost no head to speak of,what there was of one was gone quickly.Very light floral hops in the nose along with faint caramel malt,very underwhelming.Leafy hops on the palate and they are light,some earthy tones as well,more of a dryer crisp malt base.Average in all aspects,a no brainer that lacks fullness in just about everything.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2012 21:16:47 | More by oberon

Beer_Runner

4.1/5  rDev +16.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Could not find an "enjoy by ... " stamp.
Poured slowly into a standard pints glass.

A: The color was golden with an orange hue. About half a finger head of dense foam. A long-lasting head. Plenty of carbon trails raising up.

S: The aroma was sweet malt, almost honey. There was also some pine and light floral. Overall, a very mild aroma.

M: Very smooth with a medium to light body and a plenty of carbonation. A slightly dry finish.

T: A very pleasing balance of malt and hops. It is not as sweet as the aroma. The pine floral mix is the most prominant flavor. And there is a good type of bitter after taste.

O: Overall this beer is greater than the sum of its parts. Everything blends together well. It is a good, solid pale ale.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2012 23:27:40 | More by Beer_Runner

farrago

New Jersey

3.43/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Finger’s worth of close to pure white loose foam, starts to disintegrate swiftly to barely cover the surface, likewise the lacing is thin and easily slides off the glass. Light and transparent orange to yellow in color, few bubbles visible but what’s there are large, clean and clear but not much to look at. The nose is super-sweet with oodles of apricot and peach fruit, milk chocolate and malty caramel, some grass, wheat germ, pepper and lemon zest, perhaps some charcoal, a bit boozy like rum, neither bready nor flowery. Medium-bodied, soft and creamy mouth feel with fluffed up carbonation which extends the sensations from your tongue to the roof, here the orange to lemon citrus matches the sweetness of that apricot, peach, yellow apple fruit. The cocoa stiffer, brings out some coffee and country bread notes, light burnt toast. More of that mineral to charcoal aspect, seems incongruent with the whole. Firms up as it warms so serving temperature may play a role in how you enjoy it. That said, remains very much on the sweet end of the spectrum.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2012 03:03:09 | More by farrago

Jason

Massachusetts

3.88/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz brown bottle with no freshness date.

LOOK: Nearly clear pale golden color, ample stickage of lacing

SMELL: Clean, bready, macadamia nuts, clementines, piney hops, ripe passion fruit, faint spice

TASTE: Very smooth, fresh grain, dried grass, citric peel, mint, biscuity, nutty yeast, faint ripe fruit, spicy dry finish

Very well balanced with a good use of hops, this pale ale is a step or two ahead of the pack and is something I'd go for on the regular basis.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2012 03:15:33 | More by Jason

TechTriumph

Virginia

3.6/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

From notes on 02/28/12:
No freshness date; Poured in a pint glass.

A - 1-1/2 off-white fluffy head with pretty good retention; Color is somewhere between copper and gold; Fairly hazy appearance with lots of visible sediment; Not too much lacing left behind

S - Pleasant aroma with notes of sweet apricot, pineapple, grapefruit, yeast, and floral qualities; There's just a little bit of a caramel malt backbone, but it's pretty reserved

T - I was surprised here with a big presence of tart apricot-like flavor with a little bit of bitterness tagging along; Though the apricot taste is the dominant feature here, yeasty, grainy, floral, and herbal flavors come through a bit as well; Caramel malts are very faint and hard to pick out; The tart apricot lingers well into the aftertaste

M - Light to medium bodied; Moderate carbonation; Mouthfeel is a just a bit syrupy with a semi-dry finish

O - In the big sea of available pale ales, this one fits right in the middle of the pack, but does provide a pretty unique flavor. The fruity/tart apricot-like flavor wasn't what I was expecting, but pleasant enough for me to have a few of these. Overall, this isn't a must have for me, but one that I wouldn't mind trying again.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2012 12:29:58 | More by TechTriumph

mralphabet

Virginia

4.75/5  rDev +34.9%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

12 oz bottle poured into pint glass

A: Poured a golden honey color with nice finger & a half worth of head that settles to a nice ring with good lacing.

S: Strong hops smells here.... Very floral with a touch of tropical and citrus notes. Wonderful smelling

T: Start much sweeter than I was expecting. But quickly turns on the hops... Wonderfully floral flavors with hints of grapefruit and pineapple, but the hops are not too over powering. Just right mix here.

M: Medium bodied with low to moderate carbonation. Feel is a little on the sticky side, with of hint of alcohol warmth.

D: A very good session beer, good ABV, great range of flavors and smells. I'm not a big hops guy, but this is a fantastic Pale Ale.... Well worth looking for.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2012 16:44:19 | More by mralphabet

VncentLIFE

North Carolina

3.4/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Decently carbonated deep golden colored liquid topped by absolutely no head. hm odd.

Dried citric hops. Grapefruit, oranges, and lemons. Anything with citric acid in it. Yep.

Surprisingly more balanced than I thought it would be. A decent pale ale. Nice balance of bittering hops and aroma. What aroma is there consists of citric hops. I get alot of lemons zest.

I dont like the slight bite you get near the end, A little too crisp for my tastes.

Serving type: bottle

01-14-2012 22:37:02 | More by VncentLIFE

brentk56

North Carolina

3.25/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Pours a clear amber color, capped by an inch or so of snow white foam that leaves a few dots of lace behind

Smell: Very lemony, though it trends in a Pine-Sol detergent direction; cracker malt underneath

Taste: Opens with a cracker malt flavor that moves in a sharp lemon direction by mid-palate, with a bit of pith and Pine-Sol; the flavors fade quickly after the swallow, the the bitterness lingers a bit in the aftertaste

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Overall: A straightforward APA that would benefit from a bit more of a malt bill; otherwise, it is decent and worth a look

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2012 01:07:46 | More by brentk56

paulginva

Virginia

3.68/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

APPEARANCE: This beer, poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a pint glass, produced an off-white creamy to chunky 2" head that dissipated quite slowly (nearly 4 minutes to go from 2" to 1/2") leaving excellent head lacing. Carbonation was lively in a hazy deep amber body.

AROMA: Fragrant hops all the way. A light note of alcohol.

TASTE: Heavy hops taste with floral and lemon notes and a tasty malt backbone to support the bitter hops. Alcohol was absent from the taste.

MOUTHFEEL: Smooth, light to medium body with good lacing that dissipated slowly. As the beer warmed, carbonation pretty much collapsed from lively to almost nothing at all. The initial flavor was moderately to heavily bitter with the medium-length finish being lightly bitter. There was a lightly bitter aftertaste that persisted for a short time.

DRINKABILITY: This is a good session ale, very easy to drink and repeatable. It's a good, unpretentious, unambiguous APA -- not best of breed by any means, but an honest, simple beer that tastes good and provides good value for its (low) cost. I expect to buy it again, probably many times.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2011 23:17:13 | More by paulginva

beer2day

North Carolina

3.95/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Gold to orange pour with light carbonation, very little head, no retention and very light lace.

Orange lemon citrus mix on the nose. Mild, not overpowering, but very nice.

Lemon and pepper dominate from the get go. Really come out in the finish as well, with almost a chile pepper feel to the aftertaste. Very little malt character, but there is a little bread here.

Body is about right for the style. Not too heavy, but I could see others thinking so.

Except for the appearance, a fairly solid pale.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2011 02:53:24 | More by beer2day

wowbagger

Virginia

2.53/5  rDev -28.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Pours a very pale yellow. Aroma is purely hops, initial flavor is the same. Admittedly, I'm not a big fan of the style, so it's not a favorite, but it is a good straightforward simple beer, miles better than the mass-produced "leading pale beers".

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2011 23:08:46 | More by wowbagger

LaCoursiere

Minnesota

3.63/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

No bottled on or best-by date. Poured into a tulip glass. Thanks to gwillyb for sending me some fresh stuff so I can edit my review.

A - Pours a nice yellow-orange with a half finger off-white head. Very fine carbonation is visible. Minimal lacing.

S - The nose is a bit mute, slightly malty and citrusy nose.

T - Very clean taste that has hints of citrus and peppery spice. Biscuity malts peek through in the middle. The hops have a nice crisp bitterness that is slightly herbal, earty and grassy.

M - Medium-light bodied that is slick on the way in with carbonation that is very fine and light. It goes well with the mild flavor profile. No alcohol presence.

O/D - This is a nice beer that is quite drinkable... It would do exceedingly well on a hot summer day with the crisp, clean hop bitterness and lemony citrus notes.

Serving type: bottle

11-02-2011 02:19:32 | More by LaCoursiere

Rhettroactive

Virginia

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

From 32oz growler to nonic pint glass on 8/19/11
*From notes

The growler was filled at Port City's brewery about 30 minutes prior, by owner/founder Bill Butcher. Thank you for generously putting this one "on your tab," Bill.

A: Filtered sunrise golden. a generous pour yields an impressive 1.5 finger head and as I drink, some really solid lacing rims the glass.

S: Like all of Port City's brews, it's got a pretty up front grain bill. As you get past the initial malty, creamy earth, there's a floral yet bitter hop essence to it.

T: It's got a solid all-grain kick right up front. As it hits the mid, a pinch of tallgrass and bittering hops arrive and ride on into the the finish. When extremely fresh like this, I also detect a fair amount of floral yet biting hop oil that balances out the malts.

M: Just what I was looking for. Slightly thin, yet extremely quaffable. The carbonation is a bit low, though it adds to the beer's insane drinkability.

O: Port City's Essential Pale Ale has quickly become one of my go-to, everyday session beers. I can honestly say that this doesn't hold a candle to many others within the APA style, it's too straightforward. Yet that's what I enjoy about it. It's a beer, folks. "A good, everyday, I just want a beer" beer.

Port City has grown on me in a big way, and their Essential Pale Ale is my favorite of their small yet earnest repertoire.

Serving type: growler

08-22-2011 23:00:17 | More by Rhettroactive