Square Nail Pale Ale
Publican House Brewery

Square Nail Pale AleSquare Nail Pale Ale
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From:
Publican House Brewery
 
Ontario, Canada
Style:
American Pale Ale
Ranked #729
ABV:
5.6%
Score:
86
Ranked #19,909
Avg:
3.79 | pDev: 12.14%
Reviews:
31
Ratings:
69
Status:
Active
Rated:
Oct 22, 2023
Added:
Oct 15, 2008
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  8
Square Nail Pale Ale, a west coast style pale ale that finishes off with a gentle bitterness. At 5.6% alcohol it is a full flavoured ale brewed with Saskatchewan malted barley and Crystal malts along with several large additions of Cascade hops to give the beer an assertive bitterness and Aroma. It is named after the hundreds and hundreds of square nails that we found during the first phase of the building renovation. No doubt these nails were hand crafted by many of the local blacksmiths in Peterborough in the mid-1800's.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by hopsolutely:
Photo of hopsolutely
Reviewed by hopsolutely from Canada (ON)

4.17/5  rDev +10%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
An excellent Ontario APA!

Purchased a growler en route to Mondial this year. Still remarkably fresh after two months in storage.

Attractive golden amber, with moderate white head. Pleasant light, "west coast" hoppy aroma with backbone of caramelized malts. Well balanced flavour with the sweetness of malts blending smoothly into pleasant hop bitterness. A delightful and lingering finish.

Have enjoyed this on tap at Volo before, but this summer was my first trip to the brewery. Well worth the visit. Would encourage them to expand production and distribute more widely across Ontario!
Aug 07, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.5 by GoHabsGo from Canada (ON)

Oct 22, 2023
Photo of ewpass
Reviewed by ewpass from Canada (PE)

3.71/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Clearish amber with a strong head. Toasty malt nose with a hint of fruit. Medium malt body, quite toasty with some spicy hops. Pleasant bitter finish. Tastes like an ESB to me!
Sep 07, 2019
 
Rated: 3.21 by Jangle_bojangle from Canada (ON)

Nov 20, 2018
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Reviewed by eberesford from Canada (ON)

3.69/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Pale slightly hazy copper with thinnish but stable head. Aroma: caramel and earthy hop. Flavour: malts dominate with some toffee and biscuit - earthy resiny hops.
Aug 10, 2018
 
Rated: 3.93 by Mousel from Canada (ON)

Dec 31, 2017
 
Rated: 3.63 by StormAles from Canada (ON)

Jul 13, 2017
Photo of Fun-Gus
Reviewed by Fun-Gus from Canada (ON)

4.37/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Publican house pale ale

Feels super Canadian, with grains from the prairies, using crystal malts from Saskatoon. The noblest of cnadian hops, Cascade with its signature citrus notes. The balance is good between bitter and grainy sweet. There are some fruity notes from the ale fermentation.The bitterness is unusual and sharp but seems to be quenched with another quaff. Low enough alcohol to be sessionable. Interesting enough to keep imbibing. Canadian enough to justify. its a beer I like to say defines this area and i'm lucky to afford it.
Mar 04, 2017
 
Rated: 4.46 by Boo-urns from Canada (ON)

Jun 14, 2016
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Reviewed by papat444 from Canada (QC)

4.02/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from a can, filled Feb. 12, 2016.

Pours a nice copper, slightly hazy body. Earth hops reflected in both aroma and taste. Bitter grapefruit also present in the flavor. Creamy and very nice, will grab this again!
Apr 18, 2016
 
Rated: 3.94 by andrenaline from Canada (ON)

Apr 10, 2016
 
Rated: 3.29 by Rukeli76 from Canada (ON)

Jan 29, 2016
 
Rated: 3.01 by byronic from Canada (ON)

Dec 15, 2015
 
Rated: 4.8 by theDuck from Canada (QC)

Nov 25, 2015
 
Rated: 4.6 by Isaac_L95 from Canada (ON)

Nov 14, 2015
 
Rated: 3 by SocalKicks from California

Oct 28, 2015
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Reviewed by taxandbeerguy from Canada (ON)

3.8/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
473 ml can served cold into a shaker pint glass. Purchased from the LCBO for $2.80 CDN. As noted by other advocates, the beer I enjoyed was listed as 5.5% ABV rather than 5.6%.

Appearance - clear coppery coloured beer is poured with an inviting finger and a half of dense and rocky white head. Good head retention. Many swaths of lacing left behind on the brim of the glass.

Smell - big malty nose, reminds me of St. Ambroise pale ale. Plenty of bready and biscuit notes, some toffee aromas and a hint of a pear, grape and plum trio.

Taste - big malty flavor up front too, biscuit and toffee make and appearance here too. Resinous hop flavours permeate as well in the middle and the beer finishes bitter as well, despite the big malt presence. Gets better after multiple sips.

Mouthfeel - smooth and creamy, carbonation is present but subtle. Body is on the heavy side for an APA.

Overall - this is my first time seeing this Peterborough based brewing in our local liquor stores, and I'm glad it's found its way here, since this is a good, creamy, resinous hop bomb full of flavor. The flavor combinations aren't my favourite, but nonetheless this is a well crafted beer and I hope to see more of these guys in the future.
Oct 04, 2015
 
Rated: 3.79 by RedAleMan from Canada (ON)

Aug 30, 2015
 
Rated: 3.78 by DutchcdnTEXAN from Texas

Jul 23, 2015
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Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)

3.91/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Tallboy can picked up at the LCBO; packaged Jun 27 2015 and served slightly chilled. I've been hearing this one's name get dropped for years - but as far as I can tell, this marks the first time that this Peterborough-brewed beer has been sold in this neck of Ontario. Listed at 5.5%.

Pours a crystal clear orange-amber hue, producing an inch of frothy, resilient off-white foam at the surface. Head retention is quite good, as it takes the better part of ten minutes to seep away in its entirety, caking the glass with ring after ring of lacing as it does so. A thin cap survives on top, alongside a wide, foamy collar - this is a very visually-appealing pale ale. Nice show from the malts on the nose; bready and biscuity, with toffee candy sweetness and some lightly toasted qualities showing through. The Cascade hops provide some contrasting herbal, floral notes and just a hint of citrus.

This is a very solid, full-flavoured pale ale with a prominent malt bill and just enough hoppage to sort-of justify the use of the "West Coast pale ale" descriptor. Toffee and caramel sweetness, alongside some bready, biscuity malt flavours and a bit of apricot characterize the first half of the flavour profile, though the hops take over by the time you reach the back end. Citrusy nuances are a bit more pronounced here than on the nose - a mix of orange and grapefruit, with some floral, earthy notes rounding out the finish. Bittersweet aftertaste that doesn't linger too long, with a somewhat nutty quality to it. Medium-bodied, with moderately low carbonation levels that provide a smooth, mostly satisfying mouthfeel. Not exactly sessionable, but at 5.5% it sure goes down the hatch pretty effortlessly.

Final Grade: 3.91, a solid B+. Square Nail Pale Ale has apparently been a popular brew for years - popping up occasionally in discussions revolving around Ontario craft beer aficionados' favourite pale ales - and I am glad to have finally had the chance to enjoy it. The hop profile is nothing interesting (or special) for the style, so I can understand why others may not be as enamoured with it as I am - but the fact is, I am still really digging this pale ale. It all comes together extremely well, and I recommend it highly. It'll definitely enter my pale ale rotation, assuming it remains available locally.
Jul 10, 2015
Square Nail Pale Ale from Publican House Brewery
Beer rating: 86 out of 100 with 69 ratings