Puzzled by Pale Ales

[DougS]

The beers you describe will age better than most lagers, but frankly, the beers you’re talking about are a small fraction of the ales purchased in the U.S. For most beers made, a lager will keep better (think one month vs three months here) than an ale. The reason has to do with properties of the yeast. Lager yeast will stay in suspension and active much longer than ale yeast. Yeast is the most effective guard against oxidation. This means at packaging, the dissolved oxygen will be significantly lower in a lager than in an ale, everything else being equal. For example, we find that the dissolved oxygen in our kolsch-style ale is roughly three times what it is in our Pilsner (26 ppb vs 9 ppb, where anything below 100 ppb is generally considered acceptable). More oxygen means more staling sooner.

In beers where staling is part of the aging process (the beers you describe above), yeast type is less important. Instead, factors like alcohol, unfermentables, and acidity and/or hopping (timing of hopping too) become more important.

Thanks for the explanation and education. I misinterpreted what you said. This all makes sense, and includes some interesting information that I didn’t know before. Working retail, I’ve had to taste more over the hill beer than I care to remember, to see if certain things should be pulled from the shelf. Some of those experiences do fit with what you’re saying here.

[Brent_C_l_a_y_t_o_n]

Richard,

I’d say you’re about 5 years behind the curve. The hazy style has been around for at least a decade and has been really hot the last 5 years or so. It’s been really big in the northeast but has spread all over the country.

I am not a big Tired Hands fan and I think their sours and farmhouse beers are their strength, but they do go extreme on their hazy offerings so it’s a good place to sit down one day and discuss styles with the bartender.

Neshaminy Creek is another one near you that may not have top-tier stuff but has above average offerings in all styles.

If you really want to go down the haze/adjunct rabbit hole, check out Imprint in Hatfield.

Root Down in Phoenixville was another one that impressed me.

At the end of the day though, if simple is your thing it’s probably best to stick to lagers, pilsners, kolsch, and west coast pale ales/IPA’s.

[Richard_T_r_i_m_p_i]

Thanks for tips Brent. I’ve enjoyed some Neshaminy beers. Imprint is close to home but I’ve yet to try it.

Hazy IPAs (apparently N.E. style) I’ve been seeing for a while. A friend poured one from a can last night (Brooklyn brewery, the name I didn’t catch) that was quite tasty…lots of character, 6% abv and the hops/bitterness was restrained. It’s the “pale ales” (I.e. cloudy, shandy-like and super light) that puzzle me and I don’t remember seeing them before. No interest in those.

During a February trip to Austria, I thoroughly enjoyed the normal pilsners and lagers that were readily available. Several different producers, usually one particular brand featured at each bar/restaurant. An IPA loving friend was in serious hops withdrawal.

RT