Shelter Pale Ale
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

Shelter Pale AleShelter Pale Ale
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From:
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
 
Delaware, United States
Style:
American Pale Ale
Ranked #1,111
ABV:
5%
Score:
77
Ranked #27,072
Avg:
3.39 | pDev: 14.16%
Reviews:
482
Ratings:
795
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jun 16, 2023
Added:
Nov 16, 2001
Wants:
  33
Gots:
  42
Brewed with a premium barley and northwestern Williamette and Columbus hops, Shelter Pale Ale has a fine malt backbone and a slightly nutty flavor. It's a versatile and quaffable beer.

We named this beer Shelter Pale Ale because we think of a shelter as being a place you come home to. It just made sense for this Dogfish original.

30 IBU
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Luigi:
Photo of Luigi
Reviewed by Luigi from North Carolina

3.11/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Cloudy orange color with a nice white head. Great head retention. The smell is dominated by diacetyl. Sweet malts and some spicy hops are present. Meduim bodied. Diacetyl dominates the flavor. There is some spice from the hops. Malts come out ok. The drinkability is killed by the Diacetyl! I am kind of dissapointed that this beer came from a brewery like Dogfish Head.
Apr 30, 2005
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.08 by soarinsteven from Illinois

Jun 16, 2023
Photo of mfnmbvp
Reviewed by mfnmbvp from Illinois

4.02/5  rDev +18.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
12 oz. can, date on the bottom just says May 2023. Apparently an oldie from Dogfish Head that they're reviving, added to BeerAdvocate all the way back in 2001! Love the idea of bringing back these old time classics. New to me, surprised to see this beer has such low ratings (currently a 77).

Poured to a clear stemless wine snifter.
A: Pours a nice crisp looking golden body, typical sort of pale ale color, strong finger's worth of soapy white froth. Appears well carbonated, fresh & appealing, and that's all I need.
S: Pale & bready aroma - notes of pale malt, honey, lightly herbal / earthy / grassy. Notes of lemon pith & citrus, but there is a firm balance on display. It isn't terribly impressive, but again, it smells super fresh, and that's all I need.
T: It doesn't smell terribly great, by my lord does this thing taste super well balanced. Crisp, fresh, bready, malty, honey sweetness, herbal, earthy, leafy hop presence.
F: Super smooth, crisp, clean, delicious. Hugely drinkable & quenching at only 5.0% I could drink a ton of this stuff.

Overall, I'd call this a deliciously balanced pale from Dogfish. Not sure where the negative ratings have come from. Would 10/10 drink this again.

Dogfish Head Shelter Pale Ale -----4.25/5
May 22, 2023
 
Rated: 4.06 by ReverendSoup from Massachusetts

May 04, 2023
 
Rated: 3.58 by LXIXME from New Mexico

Apr 17, 2023
 
Rated: 3.82 by tdm168 from Pennsylvania

Apr 14, 2023
 
Rated: 3.23 by AlpacaAlpaca from New York

Mar 24, 2023
 
Photo of mikeinportc
Reviewed by mikeinportc from New York

3.37/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.5
From the Continually Hopped variety pack, with BB date of May 2023.

Translucent gold, with 1/2 finger of white head.

Smell is slight orange , honey, and floral aromas. A brief flash of something lemon-lime-like. Not bad, just not much of it.

Taste is faint mixed citrus, a little bread crust, a bit of pine+grass, and some hop spiciness. Moderate bitterness.

Feel is light, but not watery, smooth til some moderate, very,very fine carbonation tingle toward the end.

Not bad. Nothing special, and kind of plain, but it goes down easy.
Mar 11, 2023
 
Rated: 3.48 by Mac_Cheesin from Maryland

Feb 24, 2023
 
Rated: 3.74 by Humanusfermentum from Virginia

Feb 20, 2023
 
Rated: 3.9 by lic217 from Connecticut

Feb 06, 2023
 
Rated: 3.87 by jchanley from Illinois

Feb 05, 2023
Photo of daliandragon
Reviewed by daliandragon from Maryland

3.68/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Picked up as part of the mixed twelve I basically bought for the 60 minute and 90 minute and I didn't know the others. I like the earthy tones and floral and grassy hop notes. Kind of a medium body lager with crispness and a bit of flavor. This grew on me a little.
Jan 29, 2023
Photo of ChipChaight
Reviewed by ChipChaight from New York

4/5  rDev +18%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Can from Fairway on the USW NYC. Pours a clear slightly amber gold with a finger of rocky white head, decent lacing, smell is biscuity malts, brioche, orange peel, hop candy, hints of caramel; taste is biscuity malts, lightly toasted white bread, orange flesh, orange zest, hints of orange cake; feel is light, medium carbonation, crisp finish. A nicely balanced malty citrusy crispy delight.
Jan 14, 2023
 
Rated: 3.85 by foundersasap from Michigan

Dec 25, 2022
Photo of Gajo74
Reviewed by Gajo74 from New York

3.63/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
On tap at Chesapeake & Maine, Rehoboth Beach, DE.

Pours a clear dark straw, nearly copper color; a bit dark for a pale ale. A moderate head shows decent retention.

The nose displays notes of lightly toasty, bready and grainy malts. Furthermore, there are lightly hoppy aromas that evoke notes of grass, citrus and floral/fruity spices.

Surprisingly clean flavor profile, dry palate amidst a medium to slightly watery body. Dry bready and lightly toasted malt flavors balanced by grassy, floral and earthy hops spices, and citrusy zest. Moderate and clean bitterness counteracts a very mild touch of caramel sweetness. Crisp mouthfeel, lively carbonated and dry finish.

I was a bit surprised by how seemingly “bland” this was considering how I’m used to complex and often over the top flavors from DFH. I didn’t think it was particularly great, but it was refreshing and drinkable.
Jul 04, 2020
 
Rated: 3.47 by isaac_barrow from Indiana

May 19, 2019
 
Rated: 3.5 by JohneHoodlum from Pennsylvania

Jul 26, 2018
 
Rated: 3 by jmmochowski from Texas

Aug 01, 2017
Shelter Pale Ale from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
Beer rating: 77 out of 100 with 795 ratings