Short's Pandemonium Pale Ale - Short's Brewing Company

Viciousknishs

Virginia

3.03/5  rDev -17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A- pours a coppery amber color with a finger of off white head. Ok head retention.

S- very earthy hop aromas with a little cereal pale malt aroma.

T- more of the same. Earthy woody hops with a dominate biscuity pale malt flavor.

MF- slick watery mouthfeel. Thin watery body and average carbonation.

D- you could drink this like water.

Overall a very average pale ale.

Serving type: bottle

03-14-2012 03:03:16 | More by Viciousknishs

ChugginOil

Illinois

3.48/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Another picked up from missing a turn and turning around in a MI liquor store parking lot.

Poured in a FFF pint glass.

Pours a slightly hazy orange copper color with an inch of white head. No lace.

The nose is hop absent but has a somewhat appeasing popcorn smell, probably provided by the remain malts and faded hops.

The taste has that popcorn taste as well and has very little hop characteristics about it. The malt however, is very tasty without the hops. The malt has a bit of sweetness to it and is the main event for the beer.

The mouthfeel is light-medium and has some carbonation but not too much.

Overall, not sure this was the freshest of pale ales but the malt flavors were quite pleasing, despite the lack of hops.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2012 06:32:28 | More by ChugginOil

LiquidBread219

Indiana

2.58/5  rDev -29.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

A: Light copper orange or straw color with a small head that dissipates rather fast.

S: Not a whole lot going on at first - some acidity and a bit of malt with earthiness. I kind of picked up on earthiness rather fast. In fact I don't know if I had a older one or not but I also picked up on some Oregeno or something like that.

T: Bitterness, malt, grass or Oregeno or Garlic to me anyways just kind of tasted like some short of a pizza beer to me whatever it was it was pretty overpowering in this beer.

M: Light body and low carbonation for the style. I kind of thought it was Thin.

O: Overall, I didn't really care for it and I just have had a lot of misses with shorts. I like the fact that they take chances and kind of experiment but I have only found I few of there beers I like. Everytime I go to Michigan I pick up a mixed six pack to try there different styles and flavors and it only cost about $10 bucks so to me it's worth the risk because I might find something I like.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2012 03:16:45 | More by LiquidBread219

coreyfmcdonald

Georgia

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle into a goblet

A: Pours very clear bright orange color with almost a finger of large bubble white head. Retention is average.

S: Not a lot. Light pineapple and mango with a floral scent in the background.

T: Better than aroma. Grassy hop flavor With bready malts. Quite dry and moderately bitter.

M: Light with good carbonation.

O: Not a bad pale ale - dry, moderately bitter with nice grassy hop flavor. Aroma is a bit bland, though.

Serving type: bottle

02-29-2012 02:57:59 | More by coreyfmcdonald

donkeyrunner

Massachusetts

2.9/5  rDev -20.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Cloudy amber with a craggy moonscape head. Good retention.

Apple juice sweet crystal malts at first but then it smells like something between a Twinkie and a vanilla frosted Grand Marnier cupcake when it warms up.

Herbal bitter and orange zest amid a too sweet toffee and whipped cream malt background. As it warms the toffee and whipped cream again taste like a vanilla frosted Grand Marnier cupcake.

Weird beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2012 18:56:59 | More by donkeyrunner

Cheesedogg

Michigan

3.88/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a pint glass.

A - pours a very nice amber orange color with about a finger width of head

s - very nice aroma with a hint of the hops and citrus

t - refreshing, with the lower abv would make a nice session beer

o - i enjoyed the beer, quite refreshing compared to many of the stouts I normally drink this time of year.. Will definitely buy again for a nice summer beer

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2012 02:53:26 | More by Cheesedogg

ElGrecoVerde

Michigan

3.85/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bright golden orange and translucent.

Aromas were a bit mild but still nice. Lots of citrus flavors with a blend of malts and light spices.

The flavor is also citrusy yet not overpowering. Mainly oranges with citrus peels. Smooth caramel malts and fair hints of molasses balance of the citrus and medium hop flavors. Undertones of grains in the aftertaste.

Very smooth carbonation well suited for the brew. Easy to drink yet unique.

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2012 00:57:58 | More by ElGrecoVerde

VelvetExtract

Massachusetts

3.95/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A-Pours mostly transparent. Brilliant orange color. Minute head is frothy and creamy. Leaves a ton of consistent lacing. A pretty APA.

S-Smells initially of light clementine flesh. A bit of sweet bread and caramel behind the orange and clementine citrus. Overall, a pretty faint aroma, but what it there, is pretty nice smelling.

T-Orange zest. Also a pretty nice lemon peel flavor that lingers. Pretty bitter in the finish. The citrus is not intense but it is persistent, which is quite enjoyable. Light sweetness. A bit of a metal-twang in there which is a bit unfortunate.

M-Excellent feel. I will easily polish off this six pack with no trouble because of the body, feel, and carbonation. Carbonation is very soothing, and plentiful. Rather light bodied. Bitter.

O/D-Overall this did not blow me away but I thoroughly enjoyed my first bottle, and will see the other 5 disappearing quite rapidly. I truly do enjoy a rather mild APA more often than not. I probably would not buy another six-pack, but this is a nice beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2012 22:45:09 | More by VelvetExtract

StoutHunter

Michigan

3.65/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

I picked up a bottle of Short's Pandemonium Pale Ale a couple days ago for $1.49 at The Lager Mill. I have had this beer before a couple of times and I thought it was good, but for some reason this is the only Short's regular lineup beer that I haven't reviewed. so lets see how it goes. No visible bottling date. Poured from a brown 12oz bottle into a imperial pint glass.

A- I like the label on this beer, it looks good and it's pretty eye catching. It poured a kind of hazy golden orange color with three fingers worth of fluffy white head that died down to a thick layer that stayed till the end and left a lot of nice lacing. This is one damn good looking APA.

S- The aroma starts off with a good amount of sweet pale malts followed by a noticeable biscuit like aroma. After that comes a mixture of citrus, grassy and earthy hops, with the grassy and earthy hops sticking out the most. The aroma is pretty solid, but it wouldn't hurt to have a little more citrus hops.

T- The taste seems to be a little different from the aroma. It starts off with the malts that have a medium amount of sweetness and taste like the are slightly toasted and impart some nice caramel malts and biscuit malt flavors. Next comes the hops which are a little light with a floral and earthy taste, but they still retain a high amount of medium bitterness. A pretty solid tasting APA, but I would like a little more hop flavor to go with the bitterness.

M- Smooth, crisp, medium bodied, with a medium amount of carbonation. The mouthfeel was pretty spot on and it fit this beer nicely.

Overall I thought that this was a good and above average APA, but it didn't have that extra complexity and balance that makes for a top tier APA. This beer had really good drinkability, it went down smooth and it had just enough bitterness to keep my attention and not become overwhelming, this would make a nice beer to drink during the summer on the disc golf course. What I liked most about this beer was the appearance and the mouthfeel, they were both pretty damn good and just where they should be for the style. What I liked the least was the lack of hop flavors in the taste, it had the right amount of bitterness but it needed some more hop flavors to back up the bitterness and balance out all those malts. I would buy this again when looking for a smooth and easy drinking APA, but there are more then a couple APA's that I would choose over this one. I recommend giving this beer a try, some APA's are almost IPA's but there is no mistaking that this beer is an APA, so it's pretty true to style. A lot of the beers from Short's aren't that true to style, but this one is and it's done well but there are more exciting APA's to be found and that makes this beer a little above a middle of the road APA.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2012 04:32:44 | More by StoutHunter

hopfacebrew

Colorado

3.58/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle poured to pint glass. The beer pours a slightly hazy amber golden color with a nice 1.5 finger slightly off-white head. Good retention and lacing throughout. The aroma is a bit mild though not bad: tropical and citrus hop character, caramel, cereal grainy character. Wish it was a little more pronounced. The flavor is also quite mild for my liking, though not too all together bad. Sweet malty backbone with medium bitterness and more piney earthy hop character than anticipated. Crisp though smooth. Lighter bodied with moderate carbonation. Finishes with a lingering sweetness and mild bitterness. Overall, better than average though lacking flavors and aromas. Easy to drink, not bad, not great.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2012 14:31:53 | More by hopfacebrew

elNopalero

Texas

3.63/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This is a murky golden-straw color in appearance. Looks a bit like orange juice with pulp—there’s no floaties in this, but it has the same hue. Low aroma, not a whole lot comes off. Hints, mostly, of citrusy (orange) hops. Tastes of coriander and orange peel followed by a lingering bitterness on the finish. All together not what I think of as being a “typical” pale ale but certainly not a bad brew. I’d have another.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2012 21:21:29 | More by elNopalero

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

3.83/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a murky gold color with a short off-white head that fades slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains citrus, caramelized malts and some earthy hops.

T: The taste starts out with mildly sweet flavors of citrus and caramel. Then a strong but not over-powering hops bitterness comes in. The malt character is hearty but not too heavy and provides a decent balance. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

M: Crisp and a little smooth, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

O: Tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, mild kick, good representation of style, it’s a solid beer but there are others in the style that I would choose first.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2012 00:01:57 | More by TheManiacalOne

Holland

Pennsylvania

2.85/5  rDev -21.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A: light copper orange or straw color with a small head that sticks with it.

S: not a whole lot going on at first - some acidity and a bit of malt with earthiness.

T: bitterness, malt, grass or dirt

M: medium body, medium-low carbonation for the style, with fine bubbles.

O: Too subtle, and still doesn't seem to come together in a well-crafted way. The 6-pack was $10, but not worth buying again for me.

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2012 01:27:32 | More by Holland

Kranders

Massachusetts

3.03/5  rDev -17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured a nice golden color with a pretty good sized head, not a whole lot going on. Mild aroma, slightly sweet with a little bit of citrus. Same goes for the flavor. Very malty sweet, with a bit of lemon/citrus going on throughout. Minimal hops lead to a lack of balance. A little thinner than I'd expect, and it flows right off the tongue. Not bad overall, but fairly forgettable.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2012 03:12:04 | More by Kranders

steve8robin

Massachusetts

2.88/5  rDev -21.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Got this brew as a Christmas gift. 12oz bottle...

A: A nice bright murky orange with a tiny 1/2 inch white head that fades to tiny bubbles atop the brew. Ok.

S: I get a slight citrus scent upfront with a little lemon and a blend of malt followed. Floral on the backend. Decent.

T: A watery mild lemon upfront followed by a slight floral citrus. A mild malt on the backend. A very mild pale ale. Eh.

M: Medium body with a huge carbonation. A mild watery lemon. Ok.

O: All in all, this is not a stellar beer. Very watered down and more like water with a hint of lemon flavor in it. So many better examples in the style. Don't worry about this one.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2012 01:34:43 | More by steve8robin

ngeunit1

California

4/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a hazy copper-orange color with a finger of frothy off-white head atop. The head fades down fairly slowly leaving behind some nice lacing.

S - Aroma is a mix of sweet toasted caramel and biscuit malts with some citrus hops and some earthy and floral smells in the background.

T - Starts off with some lightly toasted caramel malts and citrus hops with a bit of bitterness. Through the middle, some richer malt comes through with a bit more bitterness and some earthy and floral flavors. The finish is a mix of earthy bitterness, floral flavors, and some toasted biscuit malts that linger.

M - Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Feels smooth with a toasted bitter finish.

D - Very drinkable. The hop profile is fairly strong for a pale with some interesting flavors thrown in. The earthiness/floral flavors are a bit harsh compared to the other flavors, but overall the beer is pretty tasty.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2011 06:58:01 | More by ngeunit1

syrupjoe

Minnesota

3.6/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle into pint glass.

Pours a hazy medium amber color with one finger off-white head.

Nose gives off hints of dried tropical fruit, caramel, biscuity, honey, and slight citrus hop zing.

Taste is sweet, malty, and has a very strong resinous pine hop presence.

Moderate to low carbonation with a smooth mouthfeel and crisp and hoppy finish.

Overall an enjoyable beer. Nothing too fantastic, but definitely drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2011 22:54:44 | More by syrupjoe

BeRanger

Michigan

3.38/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: A clear golden pour with a white head. Good rentention

S: A very herbal with some earthy malt tones.

T: Good bitterness - herbal taste.

M: Clean, good carbonation - pretty standard.

O: Nothing special but a solid "everyday" pale ale. Another good product from Shorts.

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2011 01:42:07 | More by BeRanger

blakelive784

Colorado

2.7/5  rDev -26%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

12 fl oz bottle served in a snifter:

A - Pours a murky, non transparent burnt orange/copper color with a thin head of a half finger. Retention is terrible.

S - Smells strongly of citrus fruit and cotton candy. Sweet caramel malts form the foundation. Doesn't have the typical American cascade/centennial nose standard in APA's, which is welcome.

T - Heavy on the caramel malt. Bread and citrus. Noticeably bitter on the finish. Rather simple and watery on the finish, and it's not quite as complex as I would have guessed.

M - Too smooth, too wet.

D - A decent beer, that has potential, but in it's current form is nowhere near great.

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2011 03:20:19 | More by blakelive784

deltatauhobbit

Maine

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

Pours a golden orange color, good sized white fluffy head, fades at a decent pace and leaves bits of lacing on the glass.

Smell has a light hop aroma, actually picking up a bit of light fruit like apricot mixed in the citrus, caramel malt melds things over.

Taste starts out citrusy, then a sweetness comes over the beer and finishes with a musty bitterness and a dryness, good carbonation levels.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2011 20:36:46 | More by deltatauhobbit

nukem5

Pennsylvania

3.35/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a great copper/dark amber color with a creamy off white foam top about 3/4" which disappears somewhat rapidly. Sticky , clinging to the wall of the glass as the contents slide down leaving behind a nice thick film of beer foam.

S: Immediately the hops smack you in the face, and make the mouth water, while the malts hang out in the back and keep it tied together.

T: Grapefruit bitter hops suckerpunch the mouth, and a very balanced malt bill steers you to a second sip. The malt side you have some sweet caramel notes dancing on the tongue.

M: Medium bodied with a good level of carbonation, a slight bit of an alkaline taste in the back. Very delishious.

O: Very drinkable and would welcome another one of these at som time hopefully in the future.

Picked up some Michigan brews on the road with work and brought back 2 six packs to work thru that either I have never had or rated.

Serving type: bottle

11-14-2011 03:01:27 | More by nukem5

alli4051

Colorado

3.7/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a standard point.

Pours a bright, but murky, orange with a short white head. Head recedes quick leaving just a touch of lacing. Not much doing with the nose, some graininess and faint hop aromas but nothing to write home about. Taste is nicey balanced. Bready, murky malts mingle nicely with the earthy hop notes. Medium to light bodied and just about right. I actually had to have a couple of these for it to grow on me, not sure if that's a bad sign or an indication of a nicely unique pale.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2011 03:23:33 | More by alli4051

smcolw

Massachusetts

3.7/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Lumpy head that leaves a lattice of lace. The brew is orange-amber with a bit of haze.

A cross between soured milk and sweet caramel is the initial smell. Subsequent whiffs give a bit of floral hop.

Far more hoppy (peppery) on the tongue than the smell would lead one to believe. Good amber (crystal malt) flavors. The bitterness is biting but not overwhelming. The aftertaste lasts about half a minute. The body is richer than most Pales; the carbonation is low.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2011 01:17:27 | More by smcolw

pixieskid

France

3.3/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a nice dark orange hue with a decent white head and fair aromatics.

Notes of floral and citrus hops with a lingering graininess and caramel back. Mild bitterness throughout with a lingering grassy hop presence and slight floral hop note.

Overall; nothing impressive but a decent enough pale...

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2011 05:46:33 | More by pixieskid

Beaver13

Colorado

3.03/5  rDev -17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

12oz bottle. Pours a clear golden copper with a smallish off white head that quickly goes to a thin film that leaves some lacing.

The aroma is sweet bready toasted caramel malt with some fruity light resiny hops.

The flavor is sweet toasted biscuit malts and some rye(?) with a good sized grassy bitterness. The mouthfeel is light to medium bodied with soft carbonation.

Overall, an OK pale ale. It has really good bitterness, I just don't really care for the toasted malts and grassy bitterness.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2011 02:28:09 | More by Beaver13