For the first time ever, I’m actually reviewing a beer that’s very popular.  Here we have Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, which is actually the second highest "craft beer" sold in the United States.  This one is so popular that Sierra Nevada brewery had to drop the name of a "micro-brew" to a "craft brew" due to the high sales.  Often times I’m not a fan of ultra popular brews, due to the fact that most of them suck.  Not to mention that I’m not a fan of pale ales in general due to hop overload.  This one already raises some questions going into the review, so read on and see how this American favorite fairs: 

First of all, I should talk about my dislike for pale ales.  I love beer of all types, but for one reason or another anytime there’s an excess of hops I’m immediately turned off due to the high bitterness.  I actually avoided this beer for the longest time because I was weary of its title of "pale ale". However, a good friend insisted I tried it because it was among his favorites, so I caved in and gave it a whirl.  Let’s get on with the formal review, shall we?

This beer pours with very thin white head at the top, which almost gives it an appearance of dish soap (yum!). It has a very light shade of yellow throughout, but not quite as light as the yellow of a Miller Lite (probably because it’s not 3/4 water like the aforementioned beer).  The smell is what you would expect in a beer like this, very hoppy with some hints of fruit.  No surprises in store thus far.  So what about the taste, especially coming from the guy who avoids ultra hoppy beer?  To my surprise, the taste is both refreshing and highly drinkable.  You still get mouth full of hops, but its not a kick in the balls like other beer.  It comes off as fruity and light, and it almost seems like it’s beer mixed with Aquafina.  For whatever reason, the water quality in this beer just seems very filtered and crisp. 

Is Sierra Nevada Pale Ale enough to bring me to the hoppier side of beer?  Not quite, but that’s not this beer’s fault at all.  Although it has all the qualities of a fine pale ale, its never overbearing and its insanely easy to drink.  At 5.6% ABV, it’s not quite the killer like some of the other beers I’ve reviewed on this site, but after 7 or 8 of them you’re going to be feeling fine.  I find myself pounding these much easier than a lot of others, and that certainly is not a bad thing.

Taste: Very Good

Smell: Good

Drinkability: Excellent

Final Words:

So what do I think about such a widely known beer?  Despite the fact that this beer has been heavily plugged on movies like Knocked Up or other TV shows that I could care less about, I just can’t get enough of it.  Just like most people say, it IS an American classic, and I’d have this over it’s competitor Sam Adam’s Boston Lager any day of the week.  With such a smooth taste and a fantastic amount of drinkability, it makes we wonder why I avoided this one for so long.  Even if you’re not a hop head, chances are you’re going to enjoy this beer.  After a shitty weekend, I found myself enjoying Sierra Nevada Pale Ale on more than a few occasions. 

View the Pour:

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