Freshies
Tonewood Brewing - Barrington

Love Tonewood Brewery, so it was a no-Brainer - to pick up a single - at the local apothecary, for .99. BB DATE: 12/23/25. She’s passing her prime, for the style. But!!! After an aggressive pour, from a 12oz can into my Lowenbrau TALL lager glass, it is HAZY, and the head does not stick around, after a nice, FLUFFY, 3” beginning. As has been noted, it can come across as THIN(for the style/abv 5%) but she makes up for it, in character/taste. Easy drinker. With light, citrusy/peachy notes. And never feels too filling. Cheers!

Pours a very cloudy, mix of yellow and straw; white head no retention or lacing but a nice thin white film persists.

Very bright and vibrant nose; very citrus forward, tangerine, touch of lime character; floral undertones, light peach fruity vibe.

Taste really leans into the citrus, almost exclusively; pleasant mix of it all with some pithiness; light fruitiness on finish with a dash of pine.

Body is light, soft, maybe a tad watery; zippy and bright due to its clean finish and nice little bit of tingly zesty bitterness.

Tonewood is some of the absolute best beer in NJ. Tonight i'm enjoying this Freshies in a snifter (from a can).
Look: Bright, hazy orange - like a mango water-ice. Nice head but dissipated quickly.
Smell: Orange & lemon zest, a good bit of mango & wildflower honey with a small hit of oats at the end.
Taste: Slightly boozier than you'd expect for the fact that it's a mild 5% pale ale. It's not in a bad way - just surprising. I get much of the same notes in the taste as I did on the nose but there's a really pleasant bitterness that balances the juicy fruitiness. Peach replaces the majority of the orange that I got in the aroma & I get a subtle red berry note at the finish that adds to the complexity of the experience. The finish is relatively short which i'm sure is due to the lower ABV but that's a small price to pay for the crush ability of this delicious & lush beer.
Feel: Not much to say other than very pleasant. Full bodied but still refreshing.
Overall: A really enjoyable, sessionable beer that makes me miss warm South Jersey evenings in June or July but is still equally as pleasant in mid January. Great job as always, Tonewood.

 

12 oz can. Pours hazy golden with tall, long-lasting, fluffy white head and nice lacing. Aroma is of citrusy hops, tropical fruit and bready malt. Body is medium and crisp. Taste is of citrusy hops, ripe fruit and bready malt, hint of salt. Finish is long and dry. Good brew.

Pours a light hazy golden color with a nice head and lacing
Aroma has tropical and citrus hints
Taste has a pleasant tropical and citrus flavor
A medium bodied decently carbonated beer
A good Pale Ale

 

 

 

 

 

Poured into a grip shaped goblet: color is hazy straw gold, head is off white and presents one finger thick, head then dissipates to ring on glass, some spotty lacing on the glass sides.

Smell is subdued, but notes of citrus pith, berries, light herbs, bready grains.

Taste is more pronounced: citrus pith, berries, herbs and grass, bready grains with oats/wheat and light barley malt sweetness.

Mouthfeel is low/moderate carbonation, moderate sweetness, low/moderate bitterness.

Overall a hazy pale with the grain/hop flavors to back it up.

 

 

 

 

Tonewood Brewing "Freshies"
12 fl. oz can coded "CHAPTER 2 09/12/22" and sampled on 10/17/22
$2.49 @ Total Wine & More, Cherry Hill, NJ

Notes via stream of consciousness: So whadda we got here? Seems like a hazy American pale ale at 5% ABV. It's poured a hazy golden body beneath a finger's width of bright white foam. The aroma offers citrus, flowers, berries, and a hint of pine. It's pretty bright for a pale ale. The flavor is fuller as usual and clearly displays oats and wheat within the malt. It's exactly the kind of malt base that I expect for a New England style IPA. The hops remain citrusy, floral, berry-like, and gently resinous and piney. A stiff bitternes balances it and it finishes with a dollop of sweetish, bready, and oat-like malt that passes quickly leaving it dry with some earthy and gently woody hops notes lingering. In the mouth it's medium bodied and crisp; no surprises there. The head held up pretty well and there was some decent lacing left behind but it wasn't great. What makes it different is the malt bill which includes 2-row, Pilsner, Munich, Vienna, rolled oats, and red wheat. The hops are pretty basic (Cascade, Simcoe, Amarillo) but they're bright in the aroma and flavorful. Nicely done.
Review #8,325

 

12oz can purchased from the fridge as a six-pack for approximately $13.99. Canned on 2/16/2022, so this is almost 3 1/2 months old.

Look: Pours a pale hazy golden yellow color. There was a rocky head that reduced to a thin layer quickly. Looks like a hazy pale ale.

Smell: Has very nice citrus aromas of grapefruit and lemon, along with some orange in there. Kind of reminds me of Sunny D / Five Alive kind of vibe. A bit of grassiness on the finish.

Taste: This is a very straightforward pale ale. I find it hard to believe that there's no citra hops in here (at least the can doesn't mention it). The grapefruit peel and other citrus flavors are so pronounced. The beer has a moderate bitterness, and there is enough of a malt base for this to feel like a balanced pale ale.

Feel: It has light to medium body and it's appropriately carbonated. Very easy to drink.

Overall: It's a solid hazy pale ale. I'm not reviewing this beer at its freshest; I did try the beer a couple of months ago and it tasted significantly brighter and fresher. It's still enjoyable in its current state, just a little tired. I like Tonewood. Their Fuego Hazy IPA is excellent and this is also quite good.

From the can: A soft, crushable Pale Ale brewed with wheat and hopped with Simcoe, Amarillo, and Cascade hops. Some freshies await you in this can!

From the website:
FRESHIES- 5%
Our flagship Pale ale
Cascade, Simcoe, Amarillo hops. Notes of orange, lemon, pineapple, and pine resin