Pyramid Apricot Ale

This was the beer that my other half had at George Street Ale House. This beer is one that is relatively popular, but I’ve never seen on draft in my travels. Since I really got into beer and the first style I liked was fruit beer and this is one I tried to find for awhile. While we were at George Street Ale house, we did indeed get the Asian nachos, which as usual, just hit the spot. Anyways, let’s see how this beer was.

ABV: 5.1%

Style: Fruit/Vegetable Beer

Trivia: According to the brewery website, “Apricot Ale perfectly combines the taste and aroma of fresh apricot with the smooth finish of a traditional wheat beer. It’s refreshingly unfiltered character and fruit flavor make it an ale worth savoring.”

Random: The Eagles play the Seahawks today and I’m a little bit nervous. They really need to win this game. Hopefully their run game is good today and their defense holds up.

This beer poured with a one finger, white head that dissipated slowly and left some lacing on the glass. The body had a cloudy orange color with moderate carbonation. The nose had apricot (obviously) and mandarin oranges. There wasn’t much else to it. The first thing that impressed me about this beer is that the taste had really authentic notes of apricot. There was also notes of bright citrus and wheat. The body was light with heavy carbonation. It had a quick finish with apricot. For a fruit beer, this was really good. It went down really easily and had great flavor. I would have this one again.

Untappd Rating: 4.0/5.0

Pyramid Outburst Imperial IPA

I know, this picture is absolutely awful. Unfortunately, one of the bars I go to, Molly Maguire’s in Rumson, has terrible lighting, especially for beer reviews. Since I had tried all of their draft selections, I went for this one in the bottle. I’ve had a few brews from Pyramid, but nothing has floored me yet.

ABV: 8.5%

Style: American Double/Imperial IPA

Trivia: According to the brewery website, “Outburst is a refreshingly bitter Imperial IPA. With 80 IBUs and 8.5% ABV, our dry-hopped Imperial IPA delivers a bold taste with a massive hop flavor.”

Random: I wish Cooking Channel would put a beer show on. I would definitely watch that.

This brew poured with half a finger of white head that dissipated slowly and left some lacing on the pint glass. The body was a clear orange with very light carbonation visible throughout. The nose was light and grassy. It wasn’t all that hoppy, which is odd, considering it’s an Imperial IPA. The taste was much more satisfying than the nose. I got grapefruit and pine sap, which was very reminiscent of hop pellets to me. It was like a West Coast IPA and very hoppy without any malt behind it. Some grass also came through as well. The finish was pine same and long as anything. The body was lighter for the style with light carbonation coming through. This was a decent beer for the style, but I would have liked to see a more fragrant nose and a bit more carbonation on it. It’s worth a shot.

Untappd Rating: 4.0/5.0

Pyramid Snow Cap

This was the second beer that I had at Molly’s. I really thought that I’d consumed other brews from the brewery, but I guess I was wrong. I’ve heard good things about an apricot beer that they brew. So, I decided I’d try this one. It’s also my first winter warmer of the year.

ABV: 7%

Style: Winter Warmer

Trivia: According to the brewery website, “Deep mahogany in color, our full-bodied winter warmer is brewed in the spirit of British winter ales. Crafted with a flurry of roasted chocolate and caramel malts, and generously hopped, it delivers a smooth finish that makes this beer the perfect cold weather companion.”

Random: I’m watching the Steelers/Ravens game and it’s a great game. I think if I wasn’t an Eagles fan, I’d definitely be a Ravens fan.

This poured with a two finger, cream-colored head. It dissipated slowly and left lots of lacing on the pint glass. The body was a cloud, dark mahogany color with light carbonation visible. The nose was maple with some roasted malts. Honestly, nothing outstanding. The taste was malty and nutty up front with a hint of hop bitterness at the end. I also got some sweetness that was reminiscent of brown sugar. But, it was missing some spice that I tend to like with winter warmers. The body was medium and it could have used a touch more carbonation. The finish was long and bitter. Compared to some of my favorites of the style, this one falls very short. It was alright, but nothing that I would rush back to have again.

Untappd Rating: 3.0/5.0