Centennial Pale Ale (Dry Hopped)
Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery

Clear, bright, summer sunshine yellow-amber capped by a tidy head of ivory with pale lemon swirls. The cap demonstrated good persistence since it never fell below a thick disk. There wasn't a bad display of lace either. Fat, abutting, half rings formed on the glass opposite and reminded me of the Michelin Man's midsection, color and all.

The nose was a Centennial hop showcase with a pale malt backdrop. Pink grapefruits and lemons and oranges, oh my! My nose didn't need to enter the glass and risk getting wet to allow me to appreciate and revel in the hoppy goodness.

The beer was well-malted, which I noted more because of the sweetness, the supported nature of the hoppiness and the mouthfeel rather than the flavor per se. Even though it was nicely hopped, I'll always ask for more. Like the nose, the flavor profile was on the simple side. That isn't usually a problem in a single-hopped pale ale, and wasn't here.

The flavor profile was reminiscent of juicy pink grapefruit with a lesser amount of lemon and orange. Sweet favored bitter throughout, at least until the slightly more hop-intensive finish. The mouthfeel was a fraction short of medium, but the word lush still entered my mind (that may have been because I was afraid that's what the bartenders were going to call me if I sat there until the cask was dry). The sensation of lushness was most likely due to the amount of malt used and to the quiescent carbonation.

Centennial Pale Ale is yet another wonderful, dry-hopped, single-hopped pale ale from my favorite local brewpub. I hate to sound ungrateful wdmrock, but I have two requests. More hops please, and hit me with Amarillo next time.