A somewhat Pale....Pale Ale

The first beer I've ever made, from stove to bottle, assembled by me(and Lin). Pretty cool!! Its like growing your own vegetables, or cooking your dinner from scratch, and other DIY things I love!!

  I am also impressed that through the process, nothing went wrong, whatsoever. I had heard stories from some local home-brewers about their mishaps through the first batch or two....infected batches, bottle bombs(over-carbonation and a mess), broken thermometers in the wort, broken hydrometers, boil-overs(another BIG mess), off flavors, etc...

This homegrown suds batch went off without a hitch, and doesn't taste too shabby either!!  Its color is somewhat pale, has a nice head, and a good body with it.  Flavor-wise, it seems to be where it should be, not too malty, and not too hoppy.-- even though I dry hopped it to kick it up a notch.

One thing I notice this beer vs a store bought Pale Ale that I am trying to mimic; My beer has more body to it. After a drink, it is heavier in the mouth, and has a little more sweetness to it, -but not amber ale sweet. I do think the sweetness has a good hop balance, and my aroma from dry hopping is slightly noticeable, but in being a hop-head, I want more Hops!
A store bought Pale, has a drier finish, a touch more crisp, and the sweetness it a bit better balanced with stronger flavoring hops.

I am saving some bottles to age longer, maybe though a little more cellar time, they will crisp up a little bit, and the flavors come together a little more.  I'll let you know.........

All in all, I'm quite happy with my first batch....its almost gone already!! And the next batch is working, and after that there will be another batch...... so my friends, stay tuned and keep your pints half full, and your suds a bubblin'!!