A-Bay Pale Ale
Beaches Brewing Company

 

 

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Jun 18 2019 and served slightly chilled. Now here's a nit for me to pick - the back label calls this a "Canadian Style Wheat Ale", but wheat isn't even listed as an ingredient.

Pours a medium golden hue with a slightly foggy complexion; it's topped with nearly one finger of frothy, foamy white head that dissipates within two minutes' time. A modest collar remains, but that's basically it, save for a filmy cap upon the surface - no lace whatsoever; not impressive visually. The aroma is subdued but pleasant; I'm getting hints of orange, pear and stone fruit, with faint suggestions of lemon and indeterminate tropical fruit.

It tastes along the same lines: the flavour profile is best described as 'fruity', with pear, mandarin orange and mango being the most prominent elements to my taste buds. There's also a grainy, crackery pale malt backbone, with hints of grassy hop bitterness and stone fruit showing up towards the finish; some light bitterness rounds out the sip, concluding with a vaguely citrusy aftertaste that does not linger. Light-bodied, with moderately assertive carbonation levels that prickle the palate continuously, resulting in a nice, crisp texture that is exactly what I want from a lighter pale ale. I found this to be very drinkable, but not especially memorable.

Final Grade: 3.75, barely eking out a B+. Beaches' A-Bay Pale Ale grew on me a little over the course of this review but I still don't think I can consider it a top notch Ontario APA. Neither its appearance nor its aroma are particularly interesting, though I did find its flavours to be appealing in general - though at 4.5%, this is literally a session ale, so it's definitely more of a casual beach/patio gulper than a hop bomb. Worth trying; I liked it enough to pick it up again, but not enough to go out of my way to seek out more.

 

An excellent session beer. All the best of a wheat beer but never cloying. Tastes like bread or yorkshire pudding in a glass. Bready...a slight sweetness....but a hint of hops keeps it restrained.

Would pair nicely with any dessert, banana bread, bbq, or just a smile

Pours slightly misty straw with a thinnish but stable head with good lacing. Aroma: citrusy, lemon, flavour: rather straightforward, citrus, slightly musty hop aroma.

Pours light gold coloured, slightly opaque, with a tiny head that dissipated quickly. Smell is hoppy and fresh. Taste is a bit bitter, quite hoppy and tastes well-made. Mouthfeel is prickly.
Aug 12 2021