Mirror Pond Pale Ale - Deschutes Brewery

WetCoaster

California

3.68/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Very nice golden honey color with excellent clarity. Pure white head makes an appearance, but apparently has another party to go to. Extremely fine and mild carbonation; almost looks flat from a distance. Very little lacing.

Smell: Massive blast of piney, citrusy hops. Not much else, but that's fine with me.

Taste/Mouthfeel: Not surprising, spicy hops hit the palette hard. And that's about that, folks. No real malt balance to speak of, and an astingent bitterness to finish. The mouthfeel is very thin and light, but the carbonation keeps it smooth.

Drinkability: Nice hoppiness and super light body make this a session star; you can drink them like water.

It's simple, poorly balanced and quite thin, but the excellent hop flavor and mild carbonation redeem it nicely. Works for me.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2004 03:19:45 | More by WetCoaster

MobBarley

Oregon

4.75/5  rDev +20.6%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Here we have a most delicious Pale that has few equals, in my opinion. Purs a golden orange with ample, persistent off-white head. Lacing is moderate and carbonation is slow and attractive.
The smell is the best part of this one, and is hoppy and tart through and through. A warm, sweet alcoholic maltiness insinuates itself at the close. Taste is top notch as well, and is wonderfully refreshing. Crisp fruit notes are present here, as well as huge hops that suggest juniper and citrus. Mouthfeel is good and slightly oily. The carbonation adds to the complexity but does not get in the way. Drinkability is supreme. Quickly becoming a classic.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2004 02:22:43 | More by MobBarley

woemad

Washington

3.68/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle from 6-pk purchased at the local grocery store for $6.49.

Poured an orangy gold/amber color, with a moderate white head.

Smell is of floral hops and sweet maltiness.

Taste is mildly hoppy, with a little bit of sweet maltiness in the background. I thought this tasted good without being anything special.

This is a nice pale ale that wasn't terribly special, but certainly not offensive. Certainly it's eminently drinkable, and not bad if you can get it on sale. Otherwise, don't strain anything to get a hold of it.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2004 09:11:29 | More by woemad

jtfest

Oregon

3.98/5  rDev +1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Nice clear amber with orange tones, small frothy off-white head -- very little carbonation. The Cascade hops are evident in the aroma and the flavor, with a tingly bitterness in the aftertaste. The mouthfeel is somewhat syrupy, which makes the brew 'feel' sweet even though it isn't sweet at all. Very drinkable -- a nice pale ale.

Serving type: bottle

01-14-2004 03:30:09 | More by jtfest

winomark

Missouri

3.18/5  rDev -19.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle notched with a "best before end of month" marked August.

Appearance: Pours a beautiful copper with a substantial off-white head.

Aroma: Good hop citrus balanced with sweet malt. Slight hint of wheat?

Taste: Good rich maltiness help balance a good dose of hops.

Mouthfeel: Coating, but with a dry finish. Lingering bitterness is quite pleasant.

Drinkability: My first real love of west coast beers. Thanks to Dave for making me try this one. Well done, but wish I had a fresher bottle.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2003 16:18:52 | More by winomark

ybnorml

Rhode Island

3.93/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Good foam to the head when poured into your glass. The aroma promises a nice hoppy spiceyness. The tastey hop strength in the flavor might be more than some people would expect from a pale ale. But is just what I would expect from a west coast beer. A tasty easy drinking pale ale with a good hop precence.

Serving type: bottle

11-02-2003 22:07:37 | More by ybnorml

UncleFrank

Connecticut

3.63/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Had a friend bring some back from a west coast road trip. Boy is that a good friend! Lets see why.
The color is a bright clear oragne hue with a thin white head.
The aroma is bursting with citrus and sweet malts. Fruit and a touch of caramel are present.
The taste has citrusy hops from start to finish. The body is thin to medium but has enough taste that its complex and good. A slight bready flavor is there also in the finish.
I really liked this beer and hope to score more of it somehow here on the east coast. I've been told its better on tap and on the west where its fresh.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2003 00:08:24 | More by UncleFrank

Gusler

Arizona

4.03/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Draught @ Papago
A translucent amber on the pour with a modest and creamy head that is light tan in color, the left over lace forms a fine concealing sheet upon the glass. Nose is rich in malt, crisp and clean, maybe even a tad lemon like sweet start with a moderate feel to the palate. Finish benignly acidic, the hops pleasant and welcoming in their spiciness, dry and long lasting aftertaste, a damn good session beer.

Serving type: on-tap

10-19-2003 03:09:03 | More by Gusler

alexgash

Connecticut

3.78/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Light copper body with a sticky off-white head. Surprisingly aromatic; big fruity malts, and lots of resiny hops. Taste... the malt presence is a little more subdued than the smell led me to believe. It's a bit toffeeish, but this is walloped by a large dose of PacNW hops. A little unbalanced I believe. Finish is dry, appetizingly bitter, with lingering apple cider notes.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2003 02:46:19 | More by alexgash

Gueuzedude

Arizona

3.58/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

This beer is a wonderful copper color, quite clear as well. Pours with a cream colored head. The aroma has hints of lychee and grapefruit, definitely an American hop signature here. Quite malty tasting with a nice hop flavor that hits the tongue up front. This beer finishes with a slight bitterness. It seemed to be missing the American hop punch that the aroma promised, other than this quite an enjoyable beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2003 15:47:28 | More by Gueuzedude

BeerResearcher

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

There’s a fine line between some Pale Ales and IPAs, and this is certainly the case with Mirror Pond. I tried this brew 6 years ago and it's the same today as it was then. Amber/copper in color, fast fading white head and some patches of sticky lace. A good floral hop aroma dominates a faintly sweet malty smell. There's a fair amount of malty body in this brew. A lemony citrus and lightly spicy hop bitterness possess quite a potent tangy bite. It mellows out and becomes more balanced at around the halfway point. Nice bottle! Thanks to Genaro for bringing this back from his trip to Oregon!

Serving type: bottle

09-04-2003 01:39:17 | More by BeerResearcher

putnam

Michigan

3.38/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Mint bubble gum and cream aromas rise up reluctantly from the orange/brown liquid. Grapefruit, alcohol and crushed seeds appear in the flavor. A leaner malt profile here, barely able to support the bitter, grapefruit-skin hop notes. Perhaps not the result of an obsession with quality, but the thing does drink. A little more roast, some funkier yeast, and you have Bell's. For fans of the craft Pale scene, maybe a clever little brew. For me, I can live without it.

Serving type: bottle

08-28-2003 03:37:06 | More by putnam

brakspear

Wisconsin

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

Deep golden color, with a moderate soft white head. Aroma is malty with a brisk blast of Pacific Northwest citrusy hops. Refreshing and tasty, the malt body is clean tasting with a slight nutty flavor rounded out with a nice finishing hop bitterness. A very enjoyable pale ale.

Serving type: on-tap

08-14-2003 17:09:41 | More by brakspear

beerguy101

California

3.9/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Dark gold color, medium head. Aroma is malty and fruity. Malts are nutty and sweetish. Hops are grapefruity. Heavily hopped, roasted malts. Nice smooth malt flavor. Finish is clean. Aftertaste is slightly bitter. Malt flavor dominate this brew. A nice bottle conditioned pale ale.

Serving type: bottle

08-09-2003 00:23:37 | More by beerguy101

arizcards

Arizona

4.2/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Had this nice little brew while in Portland recently. Pretty average in appearance and smell as this may have been on tap too long. However the taste was extremely good, something I am starting to expect from Deschutes Brewery. Had a good mouthfeel to it, good play between the malts and hops. This is another extrely drinkable beer from this brewery, makes me want to abandon the desert as I do not think this is available in Arizona!

Serving type: on-tap

08-05-2003 23:44:10 | More by arizcards

GreenCard

Oregon

4.3/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Appearance: (on hard pour) a pretty thick stand of off-white bubbly head which slowly compacts, copper color, slight haze

Aroma: caramelly, slightly grapefruity hop, some unripe pear esters

Flavor: initial caramel-coated fruit (apple? plum?) sweetness, a round gentle flavor, mellow cascade flavor comes in, gradually followed by a subdued bitterness, some graininess along with an even malt backbone

Mouthfeel: medium-light body, gentle carbonation, smooth, easy-drinking, no astringency

Overall Impression: On par with their Black Butte Porter, this is one of my favorites that I've tried. Delicious. No complaints at all about this one! In fact, I really like this beer a whole hell of a lot!

Serving type: bottle

07-12-2003 19:56:46 | More by GreenCard

Rumrunner

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz. bottle
A very nice pale ale in many regards.
Pours a nice straw copper color. Good strong foam head at first. It leaves little to no lacing as it dissipates. The scent is strong in floral at first with sweet malt. Then a crisp citrus quality dominated by lemon takes over.

The taste also has a citrus hop flavor. Less lemon in the taste though. A good balance of malt and hops. Some wheat flavors find there way out as well. It drinks well with a pretty good feel. The carbonation is a bit strong for me. There is a nice dry quality to the after taste but I felt the after taste lingered too long for me.

A very nice pale ale.

Serving type: bottle

07-12-2003 01:16:08 | More by Rumrunner

PhantomVodoo

Ohio

4.33/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Ahhh, the beauty of cascade hops.
A brownish, golden-orange color with minimal off-white head. Small amount of sediment.
Aroma of citrus hops and toasty pale malts.

Taste shows toasty pale malts balancing out wonderful piney, citrusy hop flavors. Finishes well.

Good body and mouthfeel.
Very drinkable.

Overall a very good APA. Too bad this and Full Sail Pale Ale aren't available here. They're 2 great Pacific NW APA's.

Serving type: bottle

06-30-2003 19:21:03 | More by PhantomVodoo

jcalabre

California

3.65/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Originally sampled on 21 August 2002. Had this at Deschutes' brewpub while in Bend, OR. It's hoppy w/ a nice nose. The pour is a cloudy amber color. It finishes fairly well balanced. This is a pretty good American Pale Ale. I would definitely have this one again.

Serving type: on-tap

06-13-2003 17:42:59 | More by jcalabre

Boto

Connecticut

3.9/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This one pours a cloudy amber color. A bit of a head, but it did stay around for a little while. Fairly decent aroma of hops to the nose. Flavor is well balanced, with a fairly decent hop bite at the end. It gets high points for being crisp and clean. Not spectacular, but a decent Pale Ale.

Serving type: on-tap

05-22-2003 17:26:42 | More by Boto

Delephant

Washington

4.33/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I ll just get this out of the way, this is one of my favorite - rapidly on its way to my very favorite - Pale Ale out there today. The beer pours with a beautifully rich, cedar color, with a somewhat translucent look, but still full enough to show depth. The true treat begins when the first whiff is taken of the wonderfully sweet but hoppy aroma that radiates from the beer. The head is light, well colored for the beer, but loses strength rapidly. Thats OK though, I tend to drink these beers so indulgently that I fear I dont give it enough time to truely critic. ;) However, as the glass empties, a nice tribal pattern of foam grips the side of the glass, maintaining a pretty gorgeous beer.

I love this beer. The flavor starts calm, slightly hoppy, however once swallowed, the tongue gets the true delight. The "copious" amounts of hops linger well after drank, and leave you thirsty for another gulp. My favorite part? Could be the fact this beer goes unfiltered, so a generous amount of yeast builds to the bottom, convincing you to finish each and every one opened to get that blessed B-12 rich hangover antidote. Highly recommended.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2003 13:22:15 | More by Delephant

freed

Oregon

4.33/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I most recently had this on tap, though I've enjoyed it out of the bottle several times. By the time I got the beer, most of the head had dissipated. The beer is quite a lovely copper color. It has a subtle, somewhat unassuming smell. Though its not that bitter, it has a very bright citrus bite to it that really makes it enjoyable. The body is quite smooth, and the malt body compliments the hop aroma well.

The beer pairs well with asian foods, and with trivial pursuit, or whatever it is you do in the evenings with your drinking buddies. Another good Oregon beer.

Serving type: on-tap

03-11-2003 22:56:32 | More by freed

Reidrover

Oregon

4.03/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bought this in the usual Deschutes 12 ozer brown bottle with raised hops on the glass. Nice simple label.
The beer pours a nice coppery colour with some slight murkiness..very small head that doesnt last.
very hoppy smell with some good malt following.
This is a hoppy beer , which I like cascade hops in the taste this time ( many Deschutes brews use EKG hops)..nice taste though the hops dont totally dominate , other flavours do come through..the malt is there i also get a tart sweetness near the end of every mouthful..its pleasant though.
Feels good in the mouth tingles the taste buds like most hopped beers do..good.
Very drinkable a good session brew for those that like to tatse hops hops hops

Serving type: bottle

03-01-2003 21:31:13 | More by Reidrover

Fabric8r

Montana

3.83/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Nice Pale Ale. Tap is a lot better than bottle. The 6-pack I bought tasted a lot more hoppy than I memember the draught was like at a local restaurant. I didn't like the hoppy cascade flavor, not when it says Pale Ale on the label. But, still enjoy it.

Serving type: bottle

02-18-2003 11:21:19 | More by Fabric8r

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Tiny head, near violet in color. Aroma: loads of fruitiness: strawberry, melons, raspberry, very tasty. Finish is swift, though, and body is weak. I'm becoming bored very quickly. Hops don't provide much spark on the palate, feels a little flat. Maybe it's supposed to , but I feel a bit let down.
I did like Black Butte Porter, and Obsidian Stout, but this one did little for me.

(P.S., Seven years later, I'm a little embarrassed with this review. Now that it's becoming prevalent in my hometown market, I intend to review a freshly tapped pint someday soon.)

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2003 15:26:16 | More by feloniousmonk