Sweetwater 420 Extra Pale Ale - SweetWater Brewing Company

jlervine

Georgia

4.4/5  rDev +19.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Honey colored with a white frothy head - wish it stuck around a bit longer. Smell is pale malts, very sweet, and a crisp hop aroma. The taste is fantastic. I admit, I'm partial to this brew - it's my favorite local beer and has been for years. It just hits me right. A crisp bitterness hits first, followed by a good depth of malt character, and then a fruity dry finish. I love it. This is my definition of a great session beer - it's interesting enough to drink for hours, but not overwhelming, filling, or overly intoxicating.

Serving type: bottle

09-11-2003 23:43:41 | More by jlervine

purplehops

Maine

3.1/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Sweetwater 420 pours a yellow yellow-amber with a white head that leaves pleanty of lacing on the glass. The aroma is a light blend of citrus and caramel with a hint of graininess and a wee bit of floral notes. The taste is a crisp carbonation with a thin malt start and a few faint flavors of lemon and hop bitterness The finish is a bit drier than the begining with some grain flavors and a bit more hop flavor coming through. Aftertaste is light hop bitterness with a hint of malt sweetness that is short lived. Mouthfeel is thin and a bit watery.
Overall an average ale. No off flavors or bad taste, just nothing special about this beer that would make it remember it a hour after drinking it.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2003 04:49:13 | More by purplehops

Redrover

Illinois

3.7/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 OZ brown bottle

I was visiting Atlanta this week and had a chance to try this beer. It is nice. The beer pours a light copper with a tan head. Lace is nice.

The smell is good. fresh hops, some pine type scent and no adjuncts at all.

I like the taste of this beer. The hops & malts seem to be in balance. I would like a little more hops in my pale ale, so that is the only fault I can really find with it. Stays almost sweet instead of bitter throughout. Mouthfeel is decent, but a little thin. I think you could drink a lot of this beer. The beer went very good with the shrimp and crab claws I had for an appetizer.

Serving type: bottle

02-12-2003 18:33:14 | More by Redrover

Gusler

Arizona

3.43/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

The beer pours a pleasant to the eye golden yellow, and is topped by a modest white frothy head, that as it evanesces leaves a fine sheet of lace to hide the glass. A slight Georgia peach sweetness hits you up front, malt, fresh and clean, quite pleasant with the start ambrosial and the top slender in feel. Finish is sparsely carbonated with pleasant hop spiciness and the aftertaste lightly sweet and very dry, quite quaffable.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2003 14:51:21 | More by Gusler

PhantomVodoo

Ohio

3.83/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Golden yellow in color with a white head. Aroma is somewhat malty for a pale ale. This beer is an easy drinker with a good, but very mild flavor. Not aggressivley hopped. More balanced than I expect an APA to be. Finishes crisp and clean. Very drinkable. Probably the best Atlanta beer I had while there. Solid, but not very exciting.

Serving type: on-tap

12-31-2002 12:14:52 | More by PhantomVodoo

doho95fu

California

3.85/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Great session brew. Amber/Gold with a white head (thin) and very little lacing. The smell is off citrus, some spice and malt - I did not get much of a hoppy smell. The flavor is malty, citrusy, with a bit of hops at the end. It has a bit of a sweet taste in it that I cannot pin down. The beer is refeshing and easy to drink. With a shortage of options in GA, this was always a good choice, and I still enjoy it (A friend from GA brought up a bunch on Thanksgiving).

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2002 14:10:28 | More by doho95fu

RBorsato

Virginia

4.6/5  rDev +25.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Clear yellowish-gold with a nice pillowy ivory head. Citrusy hoppy aroma which turns more fruity and piney with a bit of time. Nice citrusy hop flavor. Light bodied (leans medium with a light creaminess) with a crisp bitter finish.

A very nice session beer !

Per S.B.Co. website: 2002 GABF - Silver

Enjoy by: 2nd Week, Jan ('03)
Tasted: 11/15/02

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2002 11:51:38 | More by RBorsato

maccroz

Cambodia

4.3/5  rDev +17.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Sweetwater 420 is an amazing beer from an amazing brewery. Smack dab in the middle of industrial Atlanta this brewery wows the southeast with its delightful brews. Sweetwater 420 is a rich and tasty pale ale that will cause you to ask that time honored question: "Did I drink all those already??"

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2002 18:56:06 | More by maccroz

Brent

Kentucky

4.33/5  rDev +18%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

The flavors playing in this pale are interesting. Up front, it starts fairly sweet and astringent, almost like a wheat. Suddenly, the astringency fades and the hops take over, and almost as suddenly the hops vanish, and the finish is rather tart and clean, with little residual hops bitterness. Sort of a hops Houdini act.

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2002 21:23:28 | More by Brent

tigerpaws

South Carolina

4.47/5  rDev +21.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This is one of the best beers I have ever had, to me it leaned more to the IPA side than the pale but I'm not complaining. Excellent hoppy aroma deep golden color and a taste to die for. This is for sure in my top 10.............CHEERS

Serving type: on-tap

06-27-2002 14:46:18 | More by tigerpaws

aracauna

Georgia

3.2/5  rDev -12.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

I'm not really sure this should be called an APA. There's not enough hop presence and it's low in bitterness for the style. It does have a strong malt backbone, however, unfortunately there's little else to the taste. Solid, easy-drinking beer, but nothing spectacular.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2002 18:03:48 | More by aracauna

Todd

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Presentation: 12oz brown bottle. Freshness date. "Don't Float the Mainstream"

Appearance: Semi-hazed gold beer with amber hues. Head pours moderate and settles in a mere whisp of a lace.

Smell: Herbal/spicy hop aroma, citrus and a fresh pale malt sweetness too.

Taste: Medium bodied. Biscuit malt flavours upfront. This is followed by some pale malt sweetness and toasted malt notes. A hop sting pierces the palate with a herbal-like spicy character and grapefruit-like citrus flavours. There's a very decent crisp snap at this point. Brew drops suddenly and finishes into a bready dryness that lingers.

Notes: A lively, delicious and interesting brew. I liked it overall, and highly recommend it for the trying. A bit quick on the palate though (short lived flavour, I wanted more of it I think). Sliver medal winner at the 1998 World Beer Cup.

Enjoyed at Hartsfield International Airport, Atlanta.

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2001 00:00:01 | More by Todd