After a long day at work, I was looking forward to tonight’s review of Ommegang’s Belgian Style Pale Ale, or as they term it, a BPA. It did not disappoint.
Brewery Ommegang is located at 656 County Highway 33 in Cooperstown, NY (also home to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame). They have a relationship with the Duvel brand of Belgian ales and advertise themselves as being a Belgian ale brewery. I think given the last two products of theirs that I have tried, they have a good handle on the Belgian ale style and its nice that they are a little closer and more competitively priced than their native counterparts.
The brewery characterizes the beer this way: “This fine pale ale offers citrus and tropical fruit aromatics coming from a well balanced – yet ample – hop character. It is brewed with our own Belgian yeast, five malts, two hops and plenty of patience. Finishing touches include dry hopping with Cascade hops and warm cellaring.”
I did a bottle pour taken directly from the fridge, so I was probably getting it slightly colder than the recommended serving temperature of 40F/5C. It poured a thick, rich head that kept coming, coming and coming until it crested the glass and continued to grow. The final pour took in the neighborhood of 15-20 minutes because of the thick rich foam. Overall, I think I had about 10 of the listed 12 oz.
Once I was finally able to get to the liquid, I found the light citrus flavors, but I wouldn’t characterize the taste as having an “ample” hop character. It was smooth and robust, but the hop flavor was not dominant. It has a darker golden color, mildly turbid and not quite opaque. It has a nice nose, but it is not particularly aromatic. Plenty of dissolved solids, as you would expect in a wheat beer and a similar texture, but the flavor is lighter. I could see this paired with milder flavored foods or cheeses.
Overall, the Ommegang Belgian Pale Ale (BPA) is a very good beer that I shall plan to revisit. It has a very balanced flavor with a smooth texture and pleasant aroma. Now if I can just get more of it into my glass…
No comments:
Post a Comment