Scenic Pale Ale
Rush River Brewing Company

 

Notes from September, 2015:

Rush River Scenic Pale Ale. the first pale ale from these guys in, what, 11 years? Can it be true? Sure, they've had ambers, IPAs, double IPAs, etcetera, but not pale ale. Let' s drink one, now that they've corrected that.

Clouded, like all the unfiltered Rush River beers, bright golden colored, lush white head.

Bold, fruity aromatics. Brimming with tropical and citric notes, bursting with hoppiness. plenty of pine. Grapefruit meets pineapple, gloriously.

On the tongue and down the throat, it's fresh, zesty, and delicious. Clean, lean, and terrifically drinkable. One good swallow begs for another. It's a picnic beer, a boat beer, if only it came in cans. It's sitting by the pool beer, and passing time at the pub with pals beer. And if it's good beer and you can drink it, there ain't nothing wrong with that.

Drink this one. Don't expect to be blown away by strangeness and complexity, but drink it, and you'll be happy.

 

Good but not great.
Given that this is unfiltered and unpasteurized and has a shot of yeast in the bottle, it Looks reasonably clear... though still hazy and, basically, slightly above the average Pale. Smells are better, fresh tropical aromas. Tastes gives me enough sweet malt and enough bitter hops for balance.... but then a metallic Taste creeps in and takes over and ruins what otherwise deserves to be a good finish. My mouth didn't recover.

But again, I find myself under a rock. After a decade of beer runs to Woodman's in Kenosha (to pickup Wisconsin brewers who can't stand to tread in my state), I amazingly have come across my first Rush River offering. I went on their website and am impressed by their longtime dedication to their craft (since 2004!) and their unfiltered/unpasteurized/freshness strategy. An honest brewer, but maybe there is some metallic in their water. (Isn't Rush River near the Hamm's Brewery and its "Land Of Sky Blue Waters" ? Or is that just macro-legend ?)

 

 

 

Foamy head, cloudy orange look, a little too hoppy for me and when it gets like this, I kind of check out.

Pours a hazy, copper color. 1/4 inch head of an off-white color. Slight retention and good lacing. Smells of strong floral hops, slight spicy hops, strong citrus, and a hint of pale malt. Fits the style of an American Pale Ale. Mouth feel is sharp and clean, with an average carbonation level. Tastes of strong citrus, hint of alcohol, slight resin, and a hint of sweet malt. Overall, decent appearance, body, and blend, lacking in complexity, but quite refreshing.

A clean and easy drinking pale ale here with somewhat more of tropical fruit profile to the hops, although very light and minimally bitter, not as intense as the new wave of American pales, lighter and simpler. Well refined though, with a breezy pale malt base and a crisp dryness that makes it super refreshing and also insanely easy drinking. This is definitely brewed with Citra and mosaic, an increasingly popular hop duo that gives bright citrus and tropical flavored and aromas. For me this is soft lemon and fresh pineapple, but more subtle than an IPA would be and allowed to be dosed a little lighter because there is so little interference from the grain here. Great carbonation, super lively. When it warms up a little bit, some metallic mineral notes come out in the finish which really break it down, so keep it cold and drink it quickly. Even though these guys are producing real approachable beers across the board, I am surprised they have not resonated more with the beer geeks. Basic styles but far from entry level execution. Solid pale ale here.

 

 

 

 

 

This pours a hazy, goldenrod color with a slight white head. The aroma is mild with citrus bite and slight bitter hops. The taste is a lot more dry and hoppy than I expected. There is a lot of piney crisp and dryness much more than I ever would expect from a pale ale. Very bold and tasty.

Bottled about 2.5 moths ago. Pours a dark peach color with a 2 finger white head and plenty of webbed lacing. Aroma of sweet tropical fruit, citrus and bit dank and catty (Mosaic hops) with light malts. Flavor of tropical, citrus hops with some light sweet malt and mild bitterness. Nice carbonation with a juicy and mildly dry feel. Light, refreshing, and enjoyable on a warm day. A good local APA.

 

 

Kind of more intensely bitter and hop flavored for an APA than an AIPA, nevertheless, excellent stuff!. Fragrant hop aroma. Nice thick long lasting head with lace. Great hop flavor off set by the right malts, yeast, and perfect carbonation. Drink the bjesus outta this.