Caldera Pale Ale | Caldera Brewing Company

3.94/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- clear honey color, thick head that leaves wonderful lacing and dissipates in a decent amount of time
S- sweet malt, citrus hops
T- malt, citrus hops, nice balance
M- medium bodied
D- I thought it was really good. Nice balance and nice flavor

★ 244 characters

3.13/5  rDev -17.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Received as an extra in a trade. Poure dinto my Duvel tulip.

A - Poured a nice crystal clear honey hue with a fat two finger white head that fades to leave sticky side lacing and a thin blanket.

S - Aromas of fair amount of sweet malts, light candied citrus peel. It simply smells like an 'not fresh' pale ale.

T - Taste is similar to the nose, huge amount of sweet malts, some very faint candied hops, very light bitterness. Again, old.

M - Mouthfeel is lightly carbonated, slightly thin.

O - Overall this beer might have been solid when it was fresh, but this can has to be far from that. Really unfortunate!

Serving Type: Can

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3.75/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured 12 oz can into standard pint glass. Nice amber color, slightly hazy, with decent, foamy head that receded into a thin film. Light malts, cracker like, lemon and orange blossom citrus notes. Malt forward in the flavor, on the yeasty side in my opinion. Nice hops bitterness in the crisp finish. A very good APA.

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3.68/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Looks like normal pale ale with a 3/4" white head. Aroma hits the c hops in a flowery way.

Still good amount of hops giving grapefruit bitterness, toasted pale malts, stays away from crystal caramel heft. Very serviceable cascade, chinook and/or centennial usage to give a well hopped bitter pale ale a strong place.

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3.75/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Clear, golden color with white head. Classic hop profile on the nose with some cracker notes as well. Taste is very well balanced. You can taste the malts at first and the finish is hoppy and bitter. Body is medium and smooth. A good and easy drinking pale ale.

★ 261 characters

3.4/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Yields an amber-copper color, with a froth, stable, white head.

Smells of very distinct, cakey malts, mingled up with ripe oranges and a note of white lime zest. Unusual sweet on the nose, with almost more malts than hops, topped of by a whiff of melted caramel.

Has a higher, lively carbonation, which adds a refreshing metallic note during the ending, enhancing the beers refreshing appearance. Despite that, the beer drinks still very smooth and pleasant.

Tastes of freshed squeezed lime, blending into dough bread and sweet, ripe orange. Orange turns more prominent during drinking, enhanced by toffee and more bready malts, tied together by honey, until a hoppy bitterness kicks in, adding a lime defined dryness to the palate. This dry aspect grows stronger during the finish, replacing a good part of the bitterness, while bready malts remain visible on the palate.

Nice and refreshing, while a tad too malty to let the hops stand out from the overall taste.

★ 969 characters

3.44/5  rDev -9.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Look is caramel colored, taste is unique, but finishes dry. Tasting some pilsner type hops maybe saaz German styles. which seems odd. Some stone fruit not much though.

★ 169 characters

4.5/5  rDev +18.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

What a lovely looking pour in the glass. Perfect hazy light orange body topped by a 2 finger creamy head with great retention. Moderate lacing, thick and chunky though. My mouth is already watering.

Getting nothing but tropical fruits in the nose. Also a bit of vanilla cream I swear. Between the appearance and the aroma I get the impression of an orange cream soda. Which I love by the way.

Taste is just so sublime. Lots of tropical fruit with just enough hop bitterness to balance. Definitely tastes like a Pale Ale, not a light IPA as many American Pale Ale's tend to taste. Mouthfeel is so perfect; very creamy with just the right amount of carbonation. Scary drinkability.

So yea I am loving this. Best beer yet from these guys; I actually enjoyed it far more than their IPA. It could just be this particular hop profile really pleases my palette but either way this is a standout American Pale.

★ 907 characters

4/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz can purchased at Wildberries in Arcata. Pours a honey gold color, quickly receding head and excellent lacing. Butterscotch on the nose, sweet, yet mild hop aromas. Pleasant, but not overpowering. I enjoy the malt profile of this beer, it's balanced and smooth, with slightly sweet hoppy backtones. Nice carbonation, drinks easily and would make a formidable session choice. A classic in Southerm Oregon, a great beer to kick back by the campfire with.

★ 457 characters

4.36/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Barry Slatt


12 oz. can from Best Damn Beer Shop. Medium sized creamy white head on a golden body. Nose of yeast with subtle fruity hops. Initial taste of bready malt followed by a moderate piney bitterness with light citrus tones. Aftertaste is dry and somewhat bitter in the style of a good IPA. Tasty, well balanced, clean and refreshing!

★ 345 characters

3.79/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Pours to a frothy white head and hazy orange color. Aroma is citrusy hops and bread and biscuits. Flavor is balanced and easy drinking with a nice blend of pale and light crystal and carapils malts and subdued resiny hops. Nice bittersweet finish. Mouthfeel is big and feels great going down. Overall an easy drinking session brew with balance and character.

★ 358 characters

4.2/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Poured from the can into a nonic pint glass.

Deep murky orange and unfiltered looking appearance, with a bit of rust brown color to it. Head is creamy tall and soapy with a good four fingers tall height and a somewhat creamy retention. Good staying power, and some nice clumpy character. Body color is not the greatest but much of the apperance is really nailed.

Good solid aroma on this as well. Hints of mild biscuit and a hint of tropical and citrus like hop angles. Slightly flesh orange and grapefruit angles as well come with a bit of exploration. Nice and subtle and very solid.

Palate comes simply and nicely. Slightly chewy malt with a good mix of biscuit notes. Light sweetness and a good hop bitterness of mixed pine and citrus it seems in the mid palate. Almost juicy, with a mild hop bent and a real simple malt sweetness. Hits to fruit and light wood pine with a real mellow and airy aftertaste.

Really solid pale ale, always passed this up but quite good.

★ 984 characters

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured into an IPA glass.

Look: Copper body, light cream colored head. Light lines of lacing.

Aroma: Malts, spicy cedar, hops.

Taste: A cardboard papery note up front, malts, then bitter grapefruit rinds in the finish.

Mouthfeel: Kind of thick actually. Dry.

Overall: The dreaded 3.75 score.

★ 296 characters

3.67/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

12oz can. Pours a translucent orange with an inch of thick head. Some lacing. The aroma is citrusy with some pine hops and a good deal of bready malts. The taste is more bready malts upfront followed by some light citrus and pine. Bready finish. Lots of carbonation with a slightly oily mouthfeel. Piine aftertaste. Much more malt flavor than hops. Overall, an alright Pale Ale.

★ 378 characters

3.79/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured chilled in flared glass

A: dark amber color, full-bloom head; good, consistent carbonation, very nice lacing
S: bready and malty, but not strong
T: nice synthesis of hops and malt; rose and bright grapefruit notes; very flavorful, well-balanced, clean finish, good malt backbone

very good, solid IPA, with great sedative potential

★ 339 characters

3.72/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

A) poured from a can into glassware this brew is a standard pale ale color that skews just a bit to the darker side. Nice half finger head with good retention and beautiful bubbles streaming up

S) a pretty tame nose that has hints of sweet malt, a bit of grass and herbal notes, and a pleasant melon like aroma

T) toasty malt with a nice sweetness that is countered by the hops which are quite earthy with hints of spice and citrus rind

M) really drinkable, nice carbonation although a little on the thin side - quite nice

O) a good pale ale that is a little unusual in a good way with its darker malt flavors and earthy hops

★ 629 characters

3.11/5  rDev -18.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a nice golden blonde color with a frothy head into my glass.

A light touch of hops followed by buttery malt, make up the aromas in the nose here. Seems pretty straightforward.

Lots of malt with surprisingly little hops. It has a metallic taste, though I'm not sure if that's the beer itself or the can. Couldn't be the latter.

Ditto for mouthfeel. Kind of bland.

Not bad. I wouldn't pay $10.99 for a six pack though.

★ 427 characters

3.69/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Golden/orange in color, this pale ale offers perfect clarity and an off- white head of foam that is slight but still manages to leave some lacing. The nose on this ale is one of citrus, pine, and caramel with some floral notes.

Tasting this beer reveals a somewhat different flavor than the nose led me to believe. There is a grapefruit component and some pine, but there are other flavors present like lemon, tea, biscuit- like malts, and honey. The beer finishes with an agreeable earthy hop dryness that is not overwhelming and the beer remains well- balanced overall.

This is definitely an interesting and balanced brew from this Oregon brewery and it took me a little by surprise. With its crystal clear body and other traits, I was expecting it to be a little too clean and perhaps too light. But the brewers seem to have struck the target they were trying to hit with this beer. Its flavor is pleasant, not extreme in any way, and the product is quite drinkable and memorable. It’s a good beer all- around and one that earns an easy recommendation.

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4/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Caldera Pale Ale has a thick, creamy, off-white head, a hazy, orange-gold appearance, which clouds up even more when the bottom contents are swished and poured in, and quite heavy lacing left on the glass. The aroma is of rich, sugary, white bread, citrus, and hop oil. Taste is of all that, with some white bread crust, hefty, but not harsh, hop bitterness, and a slight caramel. Mouthfeel is medium, slick, and soft, and Caldera Pale Ale finishes dry, refreshing, and highly drinkable. Overall, this is a delicious beer.

RJT

★ 528 characters

3.81/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Big light tan head settles to a frothy layering above a clear caramel honey golden colored beer.

Citrus and pine like hops with some light caramel malt notes in the aroma of this pale ale.

Light citrus hops coming through in the taste with a very light caramel malt making an appearance.

A light dryish aftertaste with a bit of the caramel malts sticking around and bringing a slight hops bitterness with it with this medium bodied Caldera beer.

Decent tastes without being overbearing.

★ 490 characters

3.91/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

LOOK: The 12 oz can depicts a brew kettle and hops. Pours a hazed deep copper orange color with a white head that leaves sporadic lacing.

SMELL: Floral, grapefruit nose, a touch of berry like fruityness from the yeast.

TASTE: Bitter, earthy hop character upfront. Herb and pine dial in strongly. Toast and faint caramel toffee on the back end. Expressively hop forward ale with definite citrusy alpha acid presence.

FEEL: Medium bodied and well carbonated brew. Has a dry earthy hop bite and prickly texture.

OVERALL: This is a solidly hoppy, sessionable canned brew from Caldera. An impressive pale ale, I'd recommend this for camping.

★ 643 characters

3.55/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Served in a Lagunitas mason jar.

Thinking "caldera" was uniquely defined by the volcano feature, I was surprised to find the dictionary telling me that the term came from the Spanish word for "cauldron", hence the image on the cans. (The more you know...) Anyway, this stuff pours a clear sunshine amber topped by a finger of lightly off-white foam. The nose comprises mildly-sweet biscuit, pine, and plenty of flowers. Something about these Caldera beers, they all have a pleasant floral quality. The taste brings in more of the same, along with a hint of lemon peel in the background. The body is a rather light medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a sorta/kinda drying finish. Overall, a tasty little pale ale, nothing special, but an enjoyable little can.

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4.3/5  rDev +13.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Poured into a snifter. No freshness date.

A- Pours a medium amber color with a 1/2 inch off-white head that retains a bit before becoming a thick ring around the edge of the glass and a full bubbly sheet of surface foam. Resilient cobwebs of lacing adhere to the glass.

S- Sweet cereal grain malt aroma with some grassy hops in the background. Very simple but very lovely. Kinda reminds me of homebrew.

T- The sweetness from the aroma is mirrored in the flavor with just as much husky malt. The hops come in as an afterthought and linger slightly but the sweet caramel notes reign supreme. Once again, reminds me of the wort that's created before fermentation in homebrew.

M- Not very substantial but I guess it doesn't need to be for a pale ale. Medium carbonation and a body leaning toward the fuller side.

O- If you're a big fan of sweet, like I am, you'll love this pale ale. Also has a decent amount of hop bitterness to back it up so it's not cloying.

★ 962 characters

2.91/5  rDev -23.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3

Orange color, white foam, creamy and abundant.
Fresh hoppy smell, with slightly citric notes.
Light maltiness, and a bit too heavy tropical fruitiness, lychee like, in the mouth.
Relatively light taste, with a bit of astringency in the end.
Not bad, but bnothing too good.

★ 272 characters

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Amber color with a thick head with good retention and leaving lots of laces.
Light grapefruit citrusy and floral aroma and malt sweetness. It was very briefly intense but then faded, maybe not that fresh.
Fruity flavor with notes of grapefruits, lemon, tea bag, pepper, oranges and yeast. Hints of caramel and pine. Dry aftertaste with a long lasting bitterness.
Medium body with perfect carbonation.
Well executed and perfectly balanced Pale Ale. Although its aroma was not as intense as usual for American Pale Ales, its flavor was really pleasant.

★ 550 characters