Hillbilly Blonde
Pale Horse Brewing Company

 

 

22oz : tulip
From notes.

Hazy golden with a very thick, foamy white head.

Aroma and taste are grainy, sweet malts with some apple notes.

Medium+ body with foamy carbonation.

A good beer, though I found it a bit of an odd fit for the style with the apple esters.

Served in straight pint glass. Poured a lightly hazy , but still clean, bright yellow color, with about 1/2 inch of white head that had moderate retention and no lacing.

The aroma was the typical mildly grainy, mildly hopped aroma you expect from the style. The flavors were the same, well balanced, well put together, but not really notable or special.

The body was clean, with a slightly sticky finish. Drinkability was good, you could drink these all day while next to the river or at the camp site. Overall, a nice little, worth a shot if you see it.

 

 

 

Gold, small white head soon thins to ring and a few weak wisps.

Aroma is fermented apples, grain, hint of cheese, wet hay, and meaty raisin.

Taste is nice full grain, meaty raisin, bread dough, raisiny-apple sweetness with faint grassy-peppery-citrus bitterness and some zestiness. It is very good, highly drinkable.

 

Appearance is a light cloudy amber with a thin head that mellows to a steady film. Smell has a grainy stonefruit (maybe pear)and light honey sweetness. Taste has the graininess, light pear with a background honey note and a good balance of hops that leaves a slight bitter in the aftertaste. Mouthfeel is creamy slick that goes down smooth with a light bite of carbonation. Overall not a bad blonde, enjoyable, just a little rough around one edge or two.

I am a big fan of the blonde style, and have tried quite a few mostly from Oregon. This is not typical of its breed, a bit heavier body and a sweeter, more malty palate. Due to the carmely rich sweetness, I'm guessing there are some crystal malts, or something of that variety, in addition to the lighter malts that you'd expect from a blonde. There is modest hop aroma and flavor, enough to balance out the sweetness of the malts. I would agree with previous BAs that there is a subtle citrus quality.
Overall I would say this is a fine blonde, but a slightly higher alcohol content would give it a cleaner finish. It could also benefit from a tad more bittering hops, which would give it a bit more of a pils feel, but that's only a preference.

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a clear pint glass. No best by date. That is a shame since this seemed off. Most of the review comments are based upon a 2oz sample from brewery reps at a local beer store. Sample was no doubt fresher than the single I grabbed from local grocer's slow moving stock.

A-Pours light golden amber. There was more head in the fresh 2oz sample than the older 12oz bottle. Scant lacing.

S-Citrusy hops, especially lemon, and grainy malt aromas.

T-Fairly average for style, although the fresh sample was light and crisp. I suspect this is better fresh on tap.

M-A tad heavy for style. Carbonation level good

D-Probably a decent blonde ale. I will try this on tap sometime.

I hope this brewery succeeds, but I have some doubt. There is stiff competition here in Oregon. I think Pale Horse's first two offerings reflect this, as I don't think my favorite Oregon breweries offer Irish dry stout or blonde ales.

Brewed with a dry yeast and a relatively obscure German hops variety, this peach-yellow blonde misses the essential premise of carefree drinkability. Hop flavor is absent by design. But in its place is a tangle of malts and yeast esters that don't wash clean. The filtered body feels notably full for a blonde and head retention is admirable. Tart, quasi-citric, and best served cold.

Clear gold with a very modest white head and few lacings. Aroma is grass, floral hops. Taste is sweet malts with a dry slightly bitter backing from the hops. Almost Pils like but a bit too sweet and heavy for that style. Mouthfeel was ok but a bit lacking on the carbonation. Otherwise a very fine summer beer and no bad flavors at all. Very sessionable.

22 oz bomber with very bad artwork! Light golden ale, small white head, pretty generic for style. Aromas of honey and malts. sweetish lighly bitter hops in the end, again fairly generic taste. Ok on the palate, average mouthfeel. Drinkable but the epitome of a brew by numbers blonde ale. Hope this brewery does better in future.

Appearance- Pours a sudsy and bright white two-finger head with moderate retention and just a hint of lacing, beer is a crystaline pale gold.

Smell- Pale grains, with hints towards straw and a slight nose of hops.

Taste- Clean, dry, light malts, a slightly sour finsh with a mild hop bite and a creamy dry finish.

Mouthfeel- A crisply carbonated light-bodied brew.

Drinkability- Clean, crisp, tasty and light. Great for a session on a warm day.