Pale - Southern Tier Brewing Company

Lemke10

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev -8.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This pours a semi-cloudy, golden yellow color with a thin, off-white head. The scent is mild with hops mixed with hints of citrus. The taste is weaker than I would expect from Southern Tier. The texture is thin and the flavor is weak with just hints of wheat and grains. Not really much of a bitterness to it either. Granted I did get this after it was listed as “retired” so maybe it lost some flavor along the way.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2013 03:58:18 | More by Lemke10

TheSSG

Illinois

3.98/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a HUGE, resiny, white head. Bright hop aroma smells like orange rind and pine. Golden color. Starts off extremely crisp and citric. Moves into a nice medium-high hoppiness. Grapefruit flavors make a strong showing as it smoothes into the finish; malt and citrus-pine.

This is extremely bright and refreshing for the style, which is quite nice.

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2012 02:57:28 | More by TheSSG

jazzyjeff13

United Kingdom (England)

3.75/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A 355ml bottle with no visible dating. Picked up a while back from a webshop. The label states that this was brewed with two types of malt and two types of hops.

Poured into a straight pint glass. A bright golden-yellow colour with fine sediment and decent carbonation. Yields a huge head of fluffy white foam that lasts for a few minutes before reducing to a surface layer. Aroma of intense fruity hops notes - grapefruit, citrus, mild pine resin. This is underpinned by sweet caramel malt and hints of dry yeast. Nice.

Tastes of fruity aromatic hops with a sweet, malty backbone and a bitter finish. Notes of grapefruit, orange peel, citrus, pine resin, caramel, earthy yeast and stewed hops. Slightly sweet, with a dry bitterness upon swallowing. A faint stale hint in the background. The malt and hops don't feel entirely integrated, especially the sweet and bitter components of the flavour. Mouthfeel is smooth, dry and tingly, with hints of spicy hop oils. Good body for the style, but it feels a little undercarbonated and lacking in texture. Somewhat astringent, with an aftertaste of bitter aromatic hops and dry yeast.

A tasty pale ale, just not quite perfect. It looks great, with visible yeast and a good head, while the aroma is lovely. The taste has plenty of character but the malt and hop bitterness clash somewhat, leaving it unbalanced. The carbonation could also be improved. I can't tell how old this is, so perhaps that is a factor (for which I cannot control). However, it goes down easily enough and I would probably have one again if I came across it. Worth sampling if you have the chance.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2012 21:38:16 | More by jazzyjeff13

Darkmagus82

Montana

3.5/5  rDev -8.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from bottle into a pint glass

Appearance – Pours a light golden color with a two finger white head. The head has good retention, and once it fades leaves some nice lacing on the sides of the glass.

Smell – The aroma is heaviest of citrus with lighter aromas of an earthy and grassy smell mixed within.

Taste – The brew starts out on the maltier side with notes of citrus mixed within. At first is is bready with some light notes of orange. Soon however the citrus changes from orange to lemon and the beer bitters as more earthy and grassy hop flavors some to the tongue. At the end a lightly bitter hoppy flavor is left on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – The body of the beer was very average as well as the carbonation. Both fitting and make for a refreshing feel.

Overall – A tasty brew that has a nice slightly bitter finish. Not sure why this one got discontinued?

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2012 22:19:09 | More by Darkmagus82

chefhatt

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I poured this into a pint glass, it has a nice golden color body with not a lot of head. The smell is inviting of citrus/fruity hops. The taste kind sweet of citrus hops, a little bit of malt comes through on the back of the tongue. Very well balanced beer. Mouth feel is great, easy drinking.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2012 02:26:33 | More by chefhatt

kylehay2004

Florida

3.6/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: very thin head on a clear golden with amber hue body.

S: orange and lemon citrus hops with pungent/musty notes.

T: mild malts with pine and noble hop like bitter notes. The citrus notes from the aroma are lacking in the taste.

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

Overall: Like the other APAs by Victory, this one is not quite up to the others in the genre in complexity. Not bad, but not great.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2012 00:02:37 | More by kylehay2004

areich6

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Enjoying with my good friend pschul4

A: Pours a transparent light golden color, with very little head. Looks very drinkable.

S: Smells great. Delicious hoppiness mixed with delectable lemony and orange notes.

T: Bit of a disappointment. The heavy citrusy flavors that the smell promised are not as strong as I thought they were going to be. However, they are still there and this beer actually tastes pretty good. The lemon and orange are still evident along with a little hoppy bitterness.

M: Very smooth. At 6% this would make a great session ale that you could get pretty happy with if you drank a 6 pack.

O: This is a good beer that is perfect for drinking at a party or any occasion where you would drink a good number of beers in a row. I think it would be a perfect introduction to craft beer for some of my friends who only drink macro.

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2012 04:59:13 | More by areich6

pschul4

Illinois

3.6/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into pint glass shared with areich6

A- You want pale? Come git sum! This is very light in appearance which makes sense given the name of this brew.

S- Smells great! Loads of citrus hops in this one. Very pungent for an APA

T- Backs down from the smell forsure. Slight tropical fruit flavors with a big hit of pale malts. Not bad by any means but not living up to the aroma

M- Awkward mix of carbonation and smoothness. No balance at all :(

O- I wish the smell transcended more into the taste. That being said, not a bad APA

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2012 04:54:53 | More by pschul4

Ommy

Massachusetts

3.73/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

The beer pours fairly clear with a very white, but thin head. The color is a bit dark gold.

The smell doesn't have much going on, but it does have obvious notes of hops which give it a nice floral note.

The taste is a little subdued as well, but I like it. Very balanced.

Mouthfeel is good, as expected.

Overall a decent session beer for those who like IPAs.

Serving type: bottle

01-25-2012 02:08:02 | More by Ommy

Blakaeris

Iowa

3.03/5  rDev -20.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours clear golden-yellow with a decent creamy head.

Aroma is grainy malt and lemony citrus. Not much there.

Taste is similar to the nose. Grainy malt up front. Then the lemony, floral hop quality takes over. Finish is relatively sweet with some pineapple notes.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied.

No off flavor, but not anything I find exciting or interesting either. Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2012 20:02:17 | More by Blakaeris

rjs

Missouri

3.48/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Exremely transparent with a light straw color.

S - A weak smell of hops.

T - Somewhere in between an orange and lemon, some light grains. Then finishes with a small kick of hops.

M - Thin and sticky. Lightly carbonated.

O - This was a decent, drinkable pale ale. I could see this beer as a gateway beer into IPA's or more assertive styles.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2012 00:03:56 | More by rjs

Hojaminbag

Colorado

3.4/5  rDev -11%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Southern Tier Pale has an orangish body and an off-white head that has good retention and lacing.

Lots of resin in the aroma, with citrus and grass as well. It seems like this beer has a good bit of bitterness.

This Pale is all bite. Loads of bitterness and resin, with bits of pine, grass and grapefruit. The malt base has a mix of caramel, bread and pale malt flavors. Not a whole lot going on here, with bitterness being the defining characteristic.

Biting and oily. The carbonation is actually quite nice and the body is medium for the style.

Southern Tier's Pale really just seems like an IPA to me, and an extremely bitter one at that. It is, however, inferior to the actual IPAs that Southern Tier makes.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2011 17:32:57 | More by Hojaminbag

tdm168

North Carolina

4.43/5  rDev +16%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Picked this six pack up at the Empty Pint Pub on 12/23/11. Poured into my ST tulip which I also purchased that day.

Pours a copper gold with 1/2" of soft, dense, creamy, white head that has great retention. The nose is floral and bready. There are also faint pine aromas and hints of birthday cake. The taste is very malty up front with notes of birthday cake and bread followed by floral and pineapple-like hop characteristics. There is a mild pine bitterness in the finish. This is a lightly carbonated, medium bodied beer that is very drinkable and smooth.

This is a fantastic, well balanced APA. The hops are nice and pleasant, but the malt character is by far the surprise here. The flavor profile is solid, and this beer drinks easy.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2011 01:05:15 | More by tdm168

VelvetExtract

Massachusetts

3.85/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A-This beer pours unbelievably light and clear. Literally could be mistaken for a light lager. Purely transparent. Head is born but dies to a filmy ring. Does leave decent lace but boy, is this pale.

S-Nice combination of grains, malt, and bright hops. Hops are quite grassy and have that good old citrus aspect to them. The malt smells quite like a cracker. Overall, a decent nose.

T-Hops are quite grassy. Has a soapy element to it. Cracker malt mixes with a noticeable grain character. Citrus flavors lean more toward lemon that orange or grapefruit. Well balanced but the hops do come out to play which is enjoyable.

M-Crisp, refreshing and rather light for the ABV. Slightly bitter. A refreshing drink.

O/D-Overall a pretty good drink. Nice hop character for the style and I am impressed at how much flavor is packed into a beer that looks like a Miller Light. Quite solid. Reminds me of their brew Hop Sun.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2011 04:46:45 | More by VelvetExtract

vfgccp

New York

4.35/5  rDev +13.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A – Bright banana white gold. Fine white head with subpar lace and ok retention. Nice vibrant carbonation in the glass.

S – Mellow, tropical and well integrated. Mellon, papaya, soft malt, sweet Champaign and lemon zest.

T – Punch of floral bitterness up, then edges herbal through the center. A touch of black pepper and a light bready sweetness complement the bitters through the backend.

M – Full for the style. Smooth with a lingering semi-sweet bitter finish.

O – A fantastic example of an American Pale Ale.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2011 17:01:29 | More by vfgccp

AlCaponeJunior

Texas

3.83/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Definitely pale, clear and lightly tannish, a few small rising bubbles accent a one finger head and sparse lace.

Smells a bit grassy, with plenty of light, crisp hops, with a touch of breadiness.

Tastes quite nice, I like this beer. Crispy hops and light dried grasses come through first, followed by a light maltiness that provides a good balance.

Very easy to drink, pretty light, carbonation is pretty good.

It'd be a great fishin' beer, does it come in cans?

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2011 15:58:53 | More by AlCaponeJunior

engagechad

Virginia

2.95/5  rDev -22.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Purchased as a single from Tom Leonards in Richmond, VA - tulip

Pours a kind of un pale ale looking yellow straw color with wimpy head.

Smells faint and kind of uninspiring. Almost pissy.

Tastes faintly hoppy without much going on.

Feels corny and slimy

Overall this was lame. Not going to buy it again.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2011 01:51:13 | More by engagechad

david18

New York

4/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I got this beer as a part of a "Pack of Pales" they were selling. Twelve bottles, three each of four of their pales. This one was as good as any of them and a good example of a pale ale.

Appearance was light amber, nice carbonation and pretty easy to see through. Very refreshing looking.

Aroma was floral with a touch of bready malts.

Flavor was everything you'd expect from a pale ale. Good hop flavor balanced well with the other components. More typical of an east coast pale than a west coast.

Overall a very good beer that I hope to find on draft some time soon.

Serving type: bottle

11-14-2011 21:05:34 | More by david18

OtherShoe2

Massachusetts

3.68/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours dark gold with a decent white head. Some spotty lace at best.

Some mild citrus/hop notes (but it is there) with some light malt aromas.

Malt forward, but the malt isn't very assertive. Bread, maybe crackers and grain, and some mild citric hops to finish it off. There is a touch of sweetness, which dries a touch, and is balanced with the hops.

Medium body. Appropriate carbonation.

Decent brew. I can see myself having this at the grill. Middle of the road for strength of flavor, but the hops help this pull ahead a bit. A decent offering, although a bit reserved.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2011 21:38:19 | More by OtherShoe2

climax

Kansas

4.6/5  rDev +20.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

A lot lighter than expected, it has a gold body with good clarity and a massive fluffy eggshell white head. The retention and lace are excellent and it fades leaving high and low spots everywhere, not to mention crusty curtains of lace all the way down.

Strong citrus notes dominate the aroma while it's still well-chilled. Grapefruit, a bit of sweet oranges, lemon, and a resiny earth character contribute to an impressively hop character for a pale ale. The pale malts begin to intensify as it warms, giving a saltine cracker foundation with bread and maybe even a clove tickle, very nice complexity.

The flavor is exceptionally balanced, the equality between sweet and bitter is excellent. Everything is very clean and tidy in there, herbal and citrus notes add crispness while wheat and barley malt cues keep everything in check. The finish is tidy, but contains easily discernible leafy and buttery tones.

It's extremely smooth and just slides down the mouth with such ease. The body does have some heft to it, don't let the color fool you. The feel is good and creamy and the carbonation just fluffs it up a bit.

This beer is very well made, all the components are done superbly with no flaws whatsoever. It's got the hop profile to satisfy, the complexity to ponder, and the drinkablility to keep you goin'. A marque American pale ale if there ever was one.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2011 23:34:00 | More by climax

dudelove7485

New York

3.9/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The color is a translucent yellow/gold that is perhaps a bit too yellow for an APA. 1” creamy medium-bubbled head that retains well and leaves some decent lacing. Nose has a sweet malt, hops, floral with a bit of berry. The taste is certainly hoppy, but not overpowering (sorry hopheads). Light-medium body with a fair amount of carbonation. The beer finishes smooth and dry with a sour, lemony aftertaste. Zing! Southern Tier has yet to really disappoint me.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2011 01:45:27 | More by dudelove7485

soju6

Missouri

3.5/5  rDev -8.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a hazy golden color, with a nice head that fades to some lacing.

S: Pleasant but mild citrus aroma with a bit of sweetness. very subtle.

T: Pleasant but mild bitterness with some caramel sweetness. Ha a nice dry finish.

F: Fairly medium body, crisp but quite smooth and refreshing.

O: Easy drinker, good for a few. Nothing fancy. I was expecting a bit more but still a good beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2011 20:34:08 | More by soju6

kingcrowing

Vermont

3.43/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle poured into a 12oz tumbler.

Pours a very light yellow, infact a bit too light, with a huge pillowy white head that is near perfect with some light lacing. Nose is more malty than hoppy, a bit yeasty with some mellon notes.

Taste is piney and a bit bitter but not over the top, very crisp and refreshing with a sharp finish. Mouthfeel is fairly full with slightly high carbonation. Overall quite good but not quite as good as SNPA.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2011 21:20:52 | More by kingcrowing

rlee1390

Indiana

3.8/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A-Translucent straw yellow, one finger head

S-hoppy with citrus notes and some malt as well

T-Lots of citrus along with grassy notes. Wheat and malt as well. Some bitterness in the finish.

M-Light, smooth not much carbonation.

O-Although the beer look poor for an APA it smells and tastes good. However there is something missing (more hops?, not real sure) that keeps it out of SNPA's and other top notch APA's league.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2011 03:02:30 | More by rlee1390

BigPlay1824

New York

3.38/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Served in a tumbler

A: Pours a very light straw color that is crystal clear and has a solid amount of carbonation bubbles. Pours with a very thin head that is pure white and is bubbly but dissipates almost entirely quickly.
S: Nice hopiness and a nice fruity scent as well similar to orange peel, something else very slight like a pile of leaves on a fall day
T: smooth taste, gentle hops, slight sweetness at the end, very slight citrus
M: smooth with a small amount of carbonation leaves a slight dryness on the palate
O: very enjoyable, highly drinkable, very light and airy, i could definitely see this as a session brew or something that i could have sitting around the house consistently

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2011 23:07:26 | More by BigPlay1824