Jersey Shore Gold
Hunterdon Brewing Company

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From:
Hunterdon Brewing Company
 
New Jersey, United States
Style:
American Blonde Ale
ABV:
Not listed
Score:
81
Avg:
3.39 | pDev: 18.88%
Reviews:
15
Ratings:
15
Status:
Retired
Rated:
May 11, 2005
Added:
Jul 07, 2002
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Ratings by Dantes:
Photo of Dantes
Reviewed by Dantes from New Jersey

2.83/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Package: 12 oz. brown glass twist-off bottle. Somewhat garish label.

Cost: Consumed at a party, but I would guess this is not expensive.

Presentation: Selected from an ice-chest and poured into a water glass.

Appearance: Aggressive pour resulted in a small, white, head that stuck around for a bit. A light, clear golden-yellow color, similar to Miller Genuine Draft.

Smell: Sparse aroma, perhaps due to its being ice-cold; but as it warmed, not much developed.

Taste: The first sensation is of cold, carbonated liquid. As it warmed, some simple grain flavors emerged. Dominant elements of sweetness, bread dough, with a whiff of hops to provide a dull edge. No “off” or chemical-taint flavors. Fairly clean, with little middle and no finish. Somewhat refreshing.

Mouthfeel: Coarsely carbonated, semi-rough, mouthfeel, somewhat ameliorated by the icy-coldness and subtle sweetness.

Drinkability: No real impediments to drinkability, but no compelling reasons either.

I went to a housewarming party that offered this and Michelob Ultra (had some of that as well) for beer selections, so it was all that was left after trying an Ultra. I would say that this beer is about a half-step up from a typical macro. A bit fuller in flavor and cleaner than most, but doesn’t offer a strong reason to seek this out. In fact, I’m not sure that this is much better than a Genny Cream or a Sam Adams Boston Ale.

Bottom Line: An average brew that offers few challenges or entreaties.
Mar 11, 2003
More User Ratings:
Photo of Citadel82
Reviewed by Citadel82 from New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +25.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5
This is a delightful summer quencher for the Hazy days at the beach on Sandy Hook ... too bad no glass is allowed.

Pours a pale straw gold with a creamy white head that is fairly short-lived but left lots of lace for me to visually savor.

Aroma is sweet malt, yeast and fruit almost Kolsch like. Minimal hop aroma.

Taste is balanced toward the sweet, very light and fruity. Apricots come to mind. Short balanced biscuity finish.

Mouthfeel is light with plenty of effervessence to tingle the tongue and palate. A good staple for the summers at the Jersey Shore.
May 11, 2005
Photo of WesWes
Reviewed by WesWes from New York

3.05/5  rDev -10%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
The beer pours a hazy pale gold color with a 1/4" white head that quickly fades to lacing. The aroma is average. It has a pale and wheat malt scent that is sweet and slightly fruity, but not all that appealing. The taste is average as well. It has a bland and watery pale malt flavor that goes down easy and finishes dry. It has a bit of a mustiness that lingers in the aftertaste. The mouthfeel is decent. It is a low/medium bodied beer with a little too much carbonation. This is a very forgetable beer. It has terrible flavor and aroma. It's one and done for me.
Feb 19, 2005
Photo of Dithyramb
Reviewed by Dithyramb from Maryland

3.78/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Pours a hazy golden, with a nice three fingered head. Quickly reduced down to a thin coverage of lace on the top layer. Reminded me of the way the sun looks through low flying clouds when you are trying to make the Sea Isle lump at 5:30...

Smelled earthy and malty.
Strangely schizo brew, but turned out all right in my book. First swigs were metallic and earthy. However, once into the beer, there was a definitely tasty clean brew with some esters, grains and citrus in the mix.
Finished clear and crisp.
Very drinkable. I think a few would be in order on the boat this summer while catching Jersey's finest fish.
Dec 27, 2004
Photo of UnionMade
Reviewed by UnionMade from New York

2.75/5  rDev -18.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
The beer pours a slightly hazy pale blond, topped with a thin, weak mist. The head dissipates into nothing after about 1/3 through, leaving the liquid naked. Some agitation stirs up a thin film which quickly dies away.
The aroma is mainly a toasty maltiness, some what grainy, with a hint of caramel. Mild cardboardy oxodization, with negligible hops. A faint suggestion of pear.
The flavor starts with pleasant toasty malt, with some faint caramel edging into the middle. A bit of floral esteriness, with just the barest suggestion of pear. No real hops, just a vague earthy taste without any bitterness, finishing with the toasty malt flavor. A bit if wine-like oxodization on the back of the tongue, with a touch of astringent metallic flavor. A quickly disappearing aftertaste, with a bit of malt and some dry cardboard flavor. The malt is supported by a fizzy carbonation, which helps some. Medium body, with a fairly smooth, light mouthfeel.
Not bad by any means, but the oxodization doesn't help. Some dating system on the bottles would be appreciated. I'd like to try this again, because it could make for a nice beer to kick back with after a long day at work.
Feb 03, 2004
Photo of Gavage
Reviewed by Gavage from Nevada

3.28/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Pours a yellow color with a small head. Some fruit and malt is barely noticeable by the nose. The taste is laid back, mostly light malt with a hint of hops. The flavor does not stick around on the tongue, as it disappears quickly. Light in body. Actually a good drinkable beer, probably best doing yard work.
Nov 09, 2003
Photo of stirgy
Reviewed by stirgy from Pennsylvania

3.71/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Where did this beer come from? I have never heard of it until I bought one. Poured a golden clear and bright yellowy gold color. Nice foamy head. There’s some fruitiness along with a graininess in the aroma but I can’t pin it down. A decent malt body. This beer is pretty damn good! Some lingering bitter flavors, but overall, it’s pretty smooth. An above average beer that I would have again anytime.
Sep 14, 2003
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

3.62/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A slightly hazy (appears to be chill haze rather than bottle conditioning) gold body rests beneath a bright white head that holds well but leaves little lace. The nose delivers a lightly-buttery (vanilla?), wheat-like malt with some mild background fruit but no hops. The body is medium, nicely creamy, and smooth across the palate. The flavor delivers a flavorful, soft malt that's a touch wheaty and softened by a light note of butter; and infused with some gently spicy hop flavor. It's well-balanced with an underlying bitterness that supports the malt but never steps from the wings. It finishes with a mild lingering note of sweet grainy malt and a light note of spicy hop flavor. Interestingly malty.
Jun 27, 2003
Photo of yen157
Reviewed by yen157 from New Jersey

3.24/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Formerly "Jersey Shore Gold". Label changed (the new one is red) and recipe tweaked to include some wheat malt.

Poured a pretty gold with a big white head. The wheat malt paid off, for a bit. The think layer of foam was destroyed from below by a barrage of big bubbles. Within a minute the head was a whispy lace, and a minute after that there was nothing. The surface was completely nude. Anyhoo, the brew had a wonderful nose: crisp hops and fruity malt. The fruitiness was very clean, not all messed up with yeast and funky phenols. Very inviting. Kinda reminded me of white chocolate or vanilla.

ON the first sip the beer started to unravel. Decent pale malt up front followed by a nice, bitter hop bite. The carbonation strikes at that time giving it a crisp, refreshing snap. After that though was a brief dose of grain alcohol (think cheap vodka). Luckily that only lasted for a fraction of a second and about half of the glass. The finish was medium long, but with a lot of cereal

I really wanted to like this more being a supporter of the company. (HBC is the NJ distributor for many great brews.) It wasn’t quite there. I’m not sure if it was a recipe problem, but just bolsters my negative opinion of Riverhorse who contract brewed this beer.
May 29, 2003
Photo of JMH_
Reviewed by JMH_ from New Jersey

2.05/5  rDev -39.5%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2
very, very disappointed by this one. contract brewed by river horse, so i guess i shouldn't have expected much to begin with, as any other RH beer i've had is nothing more than average. pours a moderate gold colour. sort of a middle of the road color between a macro and say a summer ale. head is moderate and dissolves almost instantaneously. i was hard pressed to find any sort of distinct smell here. perhaps a bit of graininess and lemon. this is echoed in the flavour as well, but not immediately. the first few sips are purely carbonated liquid. nothing more. very strange actually. goes down fairly smooth, but i was hoping for much more out of this brew. a slight step up from macros, but not by much.
May 25, 2003
Photo of LiquidBreadMan
Reviewed by LiquidBreadMan from Texas

3.41/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Hazy-gold color (looks attractive in a pilsner glass). Average head.
Smell was nothing to write home about, but pleasantly average.
Taste was clean with an ever-so-slight hint of lemon and hops -- common traits that come together to provide a surprisingly unique flavor. Mouthfeel was crisp. Drinkability was decent.

Jersey Shore Gold is a couple notches above nationally-brewed beers. It's an excellent introduction to crafted brew for the Miller Lite drinkers of the world. However, beer connoisseurs aren't likely to be impressed.
Feb 08, 2003
Photo of Suds
Reviewed by Suds from Missouri

2.8/5  rDev -17.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
I was a little disappointed. The beer is a murky, hazy light brown color, with negligible head. Faint hop aroma. Well balanced, and has a nice bitter finish. Seemed a little thin, watery, and underdone. It was certainly drinkable, but reminded me more of a rushed homebrew than a professional craft beer.
Oct 17, 2002
Photo of RonfromJersey
Reviewed by RonfromJersey from New Jersey

3.23/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4
Heavy carbonation. Somewhat cloudy yellow gold body (Chill haze?). Very fizzy head settles down to thin topping quickly. Bit of hops and lemon in nose, but overall very little aroma. Fairly balanced taste, with a little hop tingle blended with a soft malt presence with a honey like quality. Mouthfeel needs a little stronger malt to round off the taste, or perhaps a little less carbonation. Comes across as a little thin. Easy drinking, a suitable summer seasonal for those tired of various wheats and/or fruits.
Aug 08, 2002
Photo of ElGuapo
Reviewed by ElGuapo from New Jersey

4.3/5  rDev +26.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
fantastic. this is the most drinkable beer you will ever drink. it is simply silky smooth, light, and delicious. It pours to a copper color with a nice head. The hops are well balanced with malts, and even with a good body it remains light. it has a slightly spicy aftertaste. i live in jersey, and finally i am proud of something that came from jersey. if you can find it, you must sample this beer. it is possibly the best summer ale you will find.
Jul 07, 2002
Photo of IrishRedRock
Reviewed by IrishRedRock from Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +32.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Smooth and sensual, just like the Jersey Shore. This is an exceptional ale, one of the best, if not the best I have ever tasted. There is a distinct flavor of hops, and the smell is very nice.

I dont know if this is only available in my home state of NJ, but I would hope that it is more widely available than that for the sake of beer lovers around the world.

This tasty ale is extremely smooth, easy to drink, and tastes wonderful. I will definitely be buying this again. Would love to have a few 6 packs of this while sitting on the beautiful Jersey Shore. How sweet it is. A beer worthy of the name 'Jersey Shore Gold.'
Jul 07, 2002
Jersey Shore Gold from Hunterdon Brewing Company
Beer rating: 81 out of 100 with 15 ratings