Chico King: Pale Ale (Beer Camp Across America)
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

 

Had this for the first time at the Beer Camp Across America event in Chico.

Cool orange appearance and about 1.5" of white head. Aroma was hops, but not as pungent as you might think these two breweries could make together.

Taste is reminding me of SNPA in a big way, a little less Cascade hop and crystal/caramel malt, but the underpinnings still seem to be there. The hops here are more fruity, less bitter, less aggressive, the body is just as sweet but not as thick. Its not quite a blend of SNPA and Alpha King, but those are definite starting points that you can feel in this one. Seems like the malt bills are pretty similar, hops though are very different and more fruit forward here.

Reviewed from (very long-standing) notes. Consumed in late 2014. Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a Cigar City Brewing pint glass.

A: Pours a medium to dark gold, just a bit hazy. Forms a couple finger's of white head that lasts for a good while with average visible carbonation.

S: Resin with floral and grassy hops. A cracker malt body. Not a big aroma overall.

T: Follows the nose – grassy and floral hops, a touch of citrus rind. A hefty malt base for an APA, and one that comes across as quite bready. Light bitterness lasts into the hang.

S: Medium body, with good carbonation sensation. The alcohol seems a little prominent for the style.

O: Nothing offensive in the way of an APA, but absolutely forgettable. Nothing to make this stand out at all.

Bottled 5/15/14; drank 7/16/14 @ the Yarchives.

Poured from the bottle into a glass.

Clear orange/red hue.

HUGE eggshell head (careful pouring!); a curtain of lace.

Ham, mild toffee & acrid smoke nose?! Gross; I'm worried.

Medium thin mouthfeel.

Pickle juice flavor with mild mango lurking in the shadows somewhere. Barely drinkable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pours out to a slightly hazy burnt orange. Thin layer of silt at the bottom of the bottle. Forms a thick large meringue style yellow head with beautiful retention and thick lacing. The nose is probably a bit muted from it's original form as this is a bit old, but has a touch of kiwi fruit, tropical fruit and subtle pine and floral. Mouthfeel is a bit prickly, not too acidic, medium bodied. Taste of kiwi, a touch of biscuit malt?, a bit grainy and husky, medium firm bitterness, kiwi floral is the best way to describe it. No pineapple, mango or cat pee here. Finishes dry.
A decent pale ale with it's own character but it doesn't do a lot for me.

 

 

 

Aroma is yeast, citrus, mild spices and white bread. The flavor is citrus, white bread, malts, slight heat and a mildly bitter finish.

 

 

 

Clear, bright amber coloring, lush, creamy head, leaving lace, looking lovely.

Aroma: spills out of the glass. Floral, spicy, citric. Delicate and glorious.

Taste: Mmm, bitter. Mmm, fruity. Not too much this, not too much that, in every way a triumphantly hopped pale ale, not an overdone IPA. Lush, plump sweet malt keeps it all together. Balance is key here. This is no monster, no imperial anything. It's just a big bunch of yum, is what it is.

I want to know more, so I'm peeking at the label: "This pale ale packs plenty of bright, fruit-forward resinous hop varietals above a robust malt body." That's the bottleneck. Now, the back: "3 Floyds has a reputation as the Midwestern kings of alpha (hops), and it seems our flagship beer helped lure them down the lupulin-paved path. Chico King is a mash-up of our mutual passion for hoppy pale ales and we suspect you'll find it fit for royalty."

So, what is it? It's not SNPA, and it's not Alpha King, but it's somewhere in between. And to tell you the truth? I'd rather have the others. This mash-up doesn't make a better beer. It's good, don't get me wrong, it's just not better.

 

Sampling a cellar temp 12 oz bottle poured into a snifter. The beer gives a frothy fluffy head of 2 cm foaming up. The head is just a hint off from white with a bit of yellow mixed in. Gradually fades to a partial surface layer and leaves some sticky lattice on the glass.
Aroma is apparent on the pour with some crisp bold pine sap and a bit of citrusy fruit. Bold nose on this beer.
The first sip reveals a silky smooth texture and average body with fine tingly carbonation that tickles my palate on each sip.
Flavor is briefly caramel and toffee but quickly rolls to some aggressive hop notes, this isnt a bitter bomb though. I get pine sap again and some grapefruit rind with a bit of lingering astringency but not like sucking on an aspirin.
There is no hint of alcohol and the beer is crisp and drinks very easy.
A nice example of the style, id drink it again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This beer is amazing. True greatness!!!!!

 

"3 Floyds has a reputation as the Midwestern kings of alpha (hops), and it seems our flagship beer helped lure them down the lupulin-paved path. Chico King is a mash-up of our mutual passion for hoppy pale ales and we suspect you'll find it fit for royalty." Brewed in the style of an American Pale Ale, available in single 12 oz. bottles as part of the Beer Camp Across America 2015 Variety pack and on limited draft.

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle to a Sierra Nevada tulip glass. Served above 54 degrees Fahrenheit.

(Appearance) Pours a foamy frothed head of a cinnamon white color over a mildly cloudy copper body with sparse, thin sediment and no visible carbonation bubbles. Retention is very good and lacing is light and spotty. 4

(Smell) The hop profile kicks in first with piney, spicy, peppery and fruity notes dominating the nose with a moderate bitterness. Underneath the hop front lies a more subtle but equally appealing malt body of light bready and biscuity caramel malts with a modest sweetness and high cleanliness. The earthy, nutty and fruity base of this beer suggests an English yeast-strain, which works well with this beer. Potency is medium. 3.75

(Taste) The malt and hop profiles are seemingly magnified in the flavor, with biscuity, chewy pale and caramel malts generating a filling malt profile and the hop profile covering with an equally profound bitterness, flavors of pine resins, fruit and pepper. Finishes with a lingering fruity and spicy hop profile and a moderate bitterness. 3.75

(Mouthfeel) The texture is slick, lightly chewy and medium dry. Carbonation is modest with a medium frothiness and a softly crisp finish. Body is medium+ for the style, medium overall. Balance is equally sweet to bitter. Alcohol presence is low and there are no off characters to mention. 3.75

(Overall) Chico King is a pale ale that does quite right by its style. A good balance of hop and malts with a solid flavor profile for both. It doesn't need to rely on the gimmicks of west coast and brighter hops, making the Alpha a more uncommon but equally appreciated hop choice. Overall Chico King is a very enjoyable pale ale and one of the better beers of the variety pack. 3.75

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.'s
Chico King Pale Ale (With 3 Floyds Brewing Co.)
3.77/5.00

 

I had picked up most of this series as singles at The Friendly Greek and then put them in my reefer awaiting review. The backlog at Chez Woody is phenomenal and so I am now getting around to them.

From the bottle: "This pale ale stacks plenty of bright, fruit-forward, resinous hop varietals atop a robust malt body."; "Brewed in Collaboration with 3 Floyds Brewing Co."; "3 Floyds has a reputation as the Midwestern kings of alpha (hops), and it seems our flagship beer helped lure them down the lupulin-paved path. Chico King is a mash-up of our mutual passion for hoppy pale ales and we suspect you'll find it fit for royalty."; "We brew in Chico, CA, and Mills River, NC, to bring you the finest quality beer."

I Pop!ped the cap and began a very gentle pour as I was simply unsure of what was going to happen. Would the hops have fallen off and settled in the kick? The only was to really know was to initiate things. There were some lees becoming visible, so I backed off and left them in the bottle. I then employed the bartender's trick to get a finger of tawny head that quickly fell back to wisps, but left sticky lacing in its wake. Color was Deep Amber/Light Copper to Copper (SRM = > 13, < 17) with NE-quality clarity. Nose had a pronounced maltiness, kind of caramel, underlain by a mintiness. Mouthfeel was medium, but there was also a good deal of effervescence. The taste was amazingly marijuana-like! It had a dank, green quality that I was not at all expecting and exhaling made me think that I had just had my nose in somebody's stash. Wow! Malt? Not really. I got that much more on the nose than I did in the mouth. Finish was semi-dry and I began considering putting what remained in the bottle in a bong and firing it up. Instead, I poured that into my now-empty glass to see just what was what. As expected, the clarity had turned to mud. The dank smell actually increased! Mouthfeel was diminished and the taste was mellower.