Pale Ales

Tasting Notes

Pale ale, first brewed in Burton-upon-Trent and Tadcaster, represents the very best in British beer. The beer has a medium body, low to medium maltiness, a bronze or copper color, and is generously hopped, with a dry crisp taste and little sweetness. Pale ale is distinguished by its light nuttiness of malt character, and its estery overtones followed by lingering hop bitterness.

Ingredients

Hops are important in developing flavor in pale ale. East Kent Goldings is the traditional hop used for bittering and dry hopping in the cask, giving the beer a delicate floral/grassy character. Saaz, Hallertauer, Wye Progress, Target, Challenger, and Styrian Goldings are also used by British brewers. American brewers are more likely to use Cascade, Chinook, Eroica, Tettnanger, Willamette, and Galena.

Brewing Techniques

Fermentation temperatures should be kept between 16 and 20ºC, and the beer usually undergoes a diacetyl rest between 13 and 16ºC for 2 to 3 days. The beer is then chilled between 2 and 4ºC. After maturation, the beer is filtered and pasteurized. Bottled pale ales usually have carbonation levels between 1.5 and 2.0 volumes.

The information on this page was provided by beer-brewing.com (http://www.beer-brewing.com).