If you love great ale, then Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale needs to be placed high on your must- try list.
Anniversaries are an important time to reminisce about accomplishments and one brewery that has given the consumer many reasons to celebrate is Sierra Nevada. In recognition of the brewery’s founding, Sierra Nevada offers Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale, an excellent American IPA from one of the companies that helped establish this style.
Beer Bio:
Style: American IPA
Alcohol Level: 5.9% by volume
Calories: 190 per 12 oz. serving
Carbs: 17.3 grams per 12 oz. serving
Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale pours to an amber/orange hue with a citrus/malt/spice/pine aroma that is quite enticing. A moderate pour is all it takes to produce a solid head of foam. And the taste, well let’s just say that it is vintage Sierra Nevada. The flavors present emphasize citrus (mostly grapefruit) hops, caramelized malt, a small amount of pine, biscuits, and some pale malt notes. Some peppery and herbal flavors are detected near the end of the tasting experience. There is a certain degree of bitterness in the finish, but this slowly fades to the taste of caramelized malt, making for a reasonably balanced India Pale Ale.
I have always been a fan of Sierra Nevada and I look forward to every new product this company offers. This, its Anniversary Ale, was first offered nationwide on a massive scale back in 2007. I was thrilled with Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale back then and I’m still thrilled with it today. The delicious flavor combination derived from two row pale, Munich, and caramel malts along with Cascade and chinook hops is certainly one to remember. It makes for a well- balanced IPA that is great tasting and memorable, all the way to the aftertaste and beyond. Even the initial impression is positive, thanks to the complex and aromatic nose, coupled with the perfectly formed head of foam that never lets you down. The foam just rests there, like a protective coating safeguarding the delicious copper- colored nectar beneath it.
Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale is different from many other IPA. Some American versions of this style are exceptionally bitter to the point of mouth- puckering intensity. But Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale isn’t like that. It is actually a well- balanced, medium bodied IPA; an IPA that offers enough hops to make it taste the way an IPA should but that also offers a good level of malt sweetness to counteract the bitterness of the hops. The bitterness level, in fact, is only 46 IBU, which is far less than many other American IPA.
If you love great ale, then Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale needs to be placed high on your must- try list. This delicious ale is one of kind, with a flavor that is beyond memorable- it is about as close to perfection as an ale can possibly be.
Rating: 10 Cheers out of 10
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