The pale ale has enjoyed something of a renaissance of late. In a world of session IPAs and increasingly hopped everything else, they were quickly becoming defunct in the marketplace. But then something happened. Shifts in market pressures and renewed nostalgia for the styles of yesteryear fostered an evolutionary leap. This phenomenon is best described as punctuated equilibria, an explosion of cladistic differentiators leading to rapid speciation, and something I would never have thought to mention had my mother not made a snide remark about my “abandoned” biology career. LOOK, MOM, I FINALLY USED MY BACHELOR’S DEGREE. ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?
It’s the perfect time for it too. June Gloom is already losing traction to summer swelter, bringing crisp, lower-ABV brews back into fashion. A pale ale is the perfect selection for someone who secretly craves a lager, but is worried the Craft Brew Facebook Mafia will assassinate them online if they reach for one.
Port Brewing’s SPA (Summer Pale Ale) is a 6-percent ABV brew that features classic west coast hops. It is recognizable by an artist’s rendition of an idyllic sunset that, on closer inspection, actually resembles the preamble to nuclear fallout.
The slightly amber ale summons a massive, pillowy head. It erupts from the top of the glass with all the audacity of an unwelcomed zit on school picture day. The nose is similarly potent, offering a slightly dank melange of herbal and floral notes with a hint of tropical fruit. The flavor delivers on all the other sensory telegraphs, offering citrus rind and pineapple, capping the experience with a pine-y finish. The carbonation is light, but lively, making it a fantastic sipper.
The label states “We didn’t design this to be an overly complicated or over thought out beer”, which turns out be something of a humble-brag. “Oh, we didn’t mean to make it complex and intensely flavorful, it’s just that we’re sooooo good at making beer that our notion of mediocrity will probably knock you right on your simple ass.” But whether the recipe was labored over or not is immaterial. I love summer and this is an unquestionably worthy tribute.