Coastal Cream Ale
Shaftebury Brewing Company

Coastal Cream AleCoastal Cream Ale
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From:
Shaftebury Brewing Company
 
British Columbia, Canada
Style:
Cream Ale
ABV:
5%
Score:
77
Avg:
3.14 | pDev: 9.87%
Reviews:
14
Ratings:
23
Status:
Active
Rated:
Sep 02, 2019
Added:
May 23, 2003
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
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Ratings by canadianbarman:
Photo of canadianbarman
Reviewed by canadianbarman from Canada (AB)

3.77/5  rDev +20.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
--Came in a standard 341 ml brown bottle, no freshness date found.
--Poured a darker copper in color. A little darker than I expected. Had a decent head that didn't last. Minor lacing was still evident.
--smell is nutty with slight malt.

This is a pretty good beer. The Cream Ales are my fave so I am quite particular but I must say that I enjoyed this one and would definetally drink again. Thx.
Apr 30, 2006
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 2.87 by Eric_Standard from Canada (BC)

Sep 02, 2019
Photo of LiquidAmber
Reviewed by LiquidAmber from Washington

3.64/5  rDev +15.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a medium to dark coppery amber with a huge, four finger ivory head with good retention and lots of lacing. The head is creamy, but although it looks nice, not like any other cream ale I've ever seen. Flavor is biscuit malt, slight caramel and spicy. grassy hops. Flavor is biscuit malt, malt syrup, a bit of toasted malt, mildly nutty, finishes malty with dry grassy hops. Medium bodied with light creaminess. Hands-down the oddest cream ale I've ever had. The profile is very English, with the malt tasting somewhere between a bitter and a mild brown ale. This looks fabulous (but too dark for the style), and tastes ok, but not at all like a cream ale. In a blind taste, I would pick ESB or English brown ale. I actually like ESBs better than cream ales, so I'm satisfied with this odd little ale. Trying new beers can be hit or miss (with craft beer, mostly hits), but every once in a while, you find something so unexpected that it makes it all worthwhile. While not a great ale, this is interesting and malty, drinkable despite pushing the style envelope. I really would like to know what they were thinking calling this a cream ale with the obviously dark, maybe toasted malt. Not for the style sticklers, but worth a try if you like something different in an English profile style.
Sep 14, 2016
 
Rated: 3.4 by Chazz_Chetly from Canada (BC)

Aug 17, 2015
Photo of LampertLand
Reviewed by LampertLand from Canada (BC)

3.83/5  rDev +22%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Shaftebury Brewing 'Coastal Cream Ale' @ 5.0% served from a 500 ml can purchased for $1.59
A-pour is cola brown from the can to a clear amber in the glass with a minimal beige head leaving a spotty lace along the pint
S-faint hoppiness , mostly malty
T-dark rich creamy ale , with a slight bitter finish
MF-mild carbonation , medium body
Ov-ok beer , good cream ale
prost LampertLand
Aug 06, 2015
 
Rated: 3.16 by BcCraft710 from Canada (BC)

Dec 12, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by FadetoBock from Canada (AB)

Sep 10, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by schopenhauerale from Arizona

Aug 12, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by yancot from Canada (ON)

Mar 17, 2014
Photo of RooferOnFire
Reviewed by RooferOnFire from Canada (BC)

2.56/5  rDev -18.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5
Appearance (What's Inside) - Pours a light brown with loads of carbonation and an even, fairly long-lasting head. Beautiful upwards cascade. A decent looking pint. I can't wait to taste the contents. (Poured from a 12oz can into a refrigerated mug)

Smell- Corn, barley, slightly sweet

Taste- Adjunct grain, old corn, a lingering malt liquor bitterness that worsens as it gets warmer or as you drink more beers.

Mouthfeel- Not typical of any cream ale I've tried. Very heavily carbonated, not at all full, gassy, a bracing bite that some may like and others may find revolting.

It's sad to see a beer with so much promise turn out so badly. Given the price point, it's not a terrible brew ($7.79 for a 6-pack) but it advertises itself as a craft beer, and usually something more is expected. Also, it doesn't taste like any cream ale I've tried, and I've sampled quite a few in my years. It's not the quality you'd expect from a small brewery, and that in and of itself necessitates a downgrade.

Overall, I'd say that you can definitely drink this beer, but if you're going for malt, hook up with an Extra Old Stock instead. If you're looking for a cream ale, look elsewhere. If you're looking for something cheap for a couple of (very) cold ones, you may have found your beer.
Mar 26, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by bumchilly25 from Canada (BC)

Mar 02, 2013
 
Rated: 2.61 by chickenm from Canada (BC)

Nov 27, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by papawu76 from Canada (BC)

Dec 02, 2011
Photo of pootz
Reviewed by pootz from Canada (ON)

2.92/5  rDev -7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
can:

Pours a clear light gold with a fast disappearing cap..weak lacing.

Aromas are vague..some fruits some cereals Light body.

weak malt spine watery character.

fast light ale with some lagered character but totally indistinct. Clean crisp when cold with modest flavor and character...about as close to a corporate brew as you can get
May 03, 2010
Photo of biboergosum
Reviewed by biboergosum from Canada (AB)

2.94/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
This beer arrives at the bar a clear medium copper hue, with almost no head. It smells only of very mild floral hops. The taste is slightly skunky, with floral, herbal hops and a small malt body underneath. There's a bit too much carbonation, a somewhat cloying finish, and the purported creaminess is not really evident. One pint is plenty.
Mar 15, 2009
Photo of Shadman
Reviewed by Shadman from Canada (AB)

3/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Almost a dark tea color to this one which kinda shocked me. light tan head started out good, then left me like some cheap 1 nite stand. What we were left with was a thin cap of foam.

Aroma's are faint roasted malt and a sweetness that i can't pin down.

Thin at first, but some bold burnt, roasted malt and slightly astringent hop make themselves known quickly. Finish is slightly bitter/astringent.

Thin in body, the moderate to low level of carbonation make this beer go down easily.

Certainly inoffensive enough, might buy another case in order to broaden some nwo-phytes horizons
Feb 11, 2008
Photo of Doppelmax
Reviewed by Doppelmax from New Hampshire

2.88/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
This was my favorite at the pub here at Big White here in BC.
I tried it several times, first just a pint then yesterday I had a jug.
It had a pleasing deep copper colour much darker than most cream ales I've had before. The head faded too quickly though. The malt smell was fairly light with just a very small hop presence noted. The carbonation was quite lively with a mellow balanced hop/malt profile. I liked this cream ale as well as any I have had in the past.
Jan 23, 2007
Photo of BDTyre
Reviewed by BDTyre from Canada (BC)

3.27/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Loooks like a brown ale, and smells like a mixture of brown ale and cream ale. A bit too dark, with a very thin head that all but disappeared upon the first sip. Smells and tastes malty, with a bit of a toffee and nut hint to it. Some butteryness. Sort of a bitter, burnt backing to it.

Otherwise drinkable, but I feel perhaps a bit too cold. A decent beer, but nothing to get excited about.
Jan 13, 2006
Photo of BigBry
Reviewed by BigBry from Canada (AB)

3/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
New label, and name - now known as Coastal Cream Ale. Industry standard 341ml bottle. Copper colour with a thin off white head. Very little head retention, foam shrank away to just a thin ring around the edge. Not much smell, some toffee or caramel and the slightest hop aroma. Taste is more of the same caramel, but there is a bitter finish to it. Similar to a brown ale in its smoothness. Creamy mouthfeel with just a little bite at the end. Good, but lacks anything extra to rate any better than average.
Oct 09, 2005
Photo of elricorico
Reviewed by elricorico from Canada (AB)

3.25/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Pours a copperry colour with a thin off white head. The head faded away leaving a thin ring and a pool in the middle of the glass.

The beer smells like an english brown ale to me. Has a hint of burnt toffee in the aroma. Not much else to say about it.

Taste is like the smell, burnt toffee. However, thrown in is a slightly bitter finish. Very straightforward, not much for complexity, however not a bad taste.

Mouthfeel is fairly nice, a little creamy and light on the carbonation. Feels good while crossing your tongue.

While it's mouthfeel and ABV makes it an easy drink, it's lack of complexity leaves you uninterested in having it very often.
Mar 07, 2005
Coastal Cream Ale from Shaftebury Brewing Company
Beer rating: 77 out of 100 with 23 ratings