Bell’s Pale Ale

Hello everybody and welcome back to the Brew Review!

I accidentally got a Michigan beer in my Indiana sample pack so we head a few miles North today up the Bell’s brewery wher we will be tasting their pale ale. I have had a few of their brews before most notably their wheat Oberon that my brother in law Graeme introduced me too last time we went up and visited him in Grand Rapids. I can say that from what I have had of Bell’s I think they are pretty good, let’s see how their Pale Ale delivers.

About Bell’s Pale Ale

Bell’s Pale Ale is a year round beer that comes in at about 5% ABV. It is made “almost exclusively” from a pale malt and has a spicy floral hops component to it.

My Review

The Pour

The Bell’s Pale ale pours a nice golden orange color with a small white foam head sitting atop of it. The clarity of the beer surprised me because it had was cloudier than I expected it to be, which leads me to believe that it may have some wheat in it. The head diminished quickly into a small ring that was very thin and created some spotty lacing.

The Nose

The nose was very nice. You definitely get a sweet malt along with the hops and an apricot smell.

The Palate

I was a little disappointed with my first sip of the Pale Ale. It was very malty, and I was expecting an initial burst of hops that would have made it a little lighter and crisper. On the second taste however the hops had really opened up for me along with an iron like metal component. The hops came across to me as a mixture of sweetness with a little bit of skunk like European hops. The combination of the malts, hops, and a little fruit was very nice, but I didn’t get them playing together. They seemed like separate components that stood out distinctly from one another rather than a group playing as a whole.

All in all I think the Bell’s Pale Ale is a good effort just lacking a little composure to make it a stand out player. I would definitely give it another shot if presented with it and think that for it’s price point $8.00 – $10.00 a sixer it would be worth it to pick up and try.

The Rating

3 out of 5 stars