The Swill: Stone Pale Ale
The Still: Stone Brewing Company
Escondido, California
http://www.stonebrew.com/
The Drill: American-style Pale Ale, 12oz bottle, 5.4% ABV
The Spill: While the brewers claim that this is their version of an English-style pale, it's much stronger in flavor than most you'd get from across the pond. That, by all means, is a good thing. A big malt character that's noticeable really only by its addition to the overall flavor, the main course in this beer is the hops. It provides a sharp, bitter, heady taste and a crisp, dry finish. It also gives the beer enough gusto that your third will taste pretty much just like the first.
Says Bill: The best glass of this I've drank was the one I had on tap in the lobby restaurant of the San Diego Marriott, only about an hour's drive away from where it was brewed. We were out of town for my stepdaughter Hannah's 10th birthday, and this was a little present for me. Poured into a glass, this was much darker than you would have expected, given the beer's name, but pale ale doesn't refer to the color of the beer; rather, it's the color of the malts used in the brewing, which doesn't always dictate the final outcome. Little fact for ya.
Refill?: When Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada aren't enough hops, reach for this one. Hops galore for a company's standard beer: 3.5 taps out of 5.