Schlafly’s ‘American Pale Ale’

With my classes finished, and finding myself back on the farm with plentiful ales and food available, I’d like to share with you the experience I had with Schlafly‘s American Pale Ale.

5.9% ABV and at 50 IBU’s, this beer has the highest IBU rating of any Schlafly regular release beer.  This is a regular release from Schlafly, and is by my estimation, the best of their regular release series.  The St. Louis Brewing Company produces many very reasonable and consistent products in their regular series, but given the choice, I usually reach for this one before the others.  Let’s start out with color.  Much lighter than I expected, this beer has more yellow than brown.  My father in law was drinking a Sam Adams light at the same time I was sipping the APA, and the SA Light was considerably darker than the APA.  So, if you’re looking for dark roasted malts, you should probably look elsewhere.  The head of the beer had a very creamy texture, they almost could have coated the top of the beer with whipped cream, The texture and thickness really gave the ale a delightful start.  The hops are by no means grapefruity or harsh, but resemble a softer lactic acid rather than citric acid or malic acid.  The ale had great hop structure and Schlafly claims to add hops at the end of the brewing process to impart fruitier aromas and whatnot.  This may be true, but the thing that stuck out to me about this ale was its smoothness which accompanied a fine robust hop taste.  It wasn’t grapefruit or lemon juice, just a nice, hoppy beer.  The malts are nothing great, but malt is not what this beer is about.  It promises hops and gives you hops quite nicely.

If you find yourself in St. Louis, I’d very much recommend heading over to the Schlafly Bottleworks and Restaurant.  This past summer, I brought two friends from Portland, OR  to the Bottleworks, both of these friends take food and beer very seriously (maybe too seriously…).  They were blown away by the food and the American IPA special release, an 8% ABV 50 IBU ale served in a snifter glass.  Syrupy, and enchanting, the American IPA is like the regular release APA all grown up and ready to impress.  They are similar and both exceptional beers, but if you enjoy the APA, the American IPA will take you one step further.  Anyway, the food at the Bottleworks comes largely from local Missouri farmers and care and consideration are given to organic and specialty ingredients.  I love the Farmer’s Platter appetizer, a very generous serving of local cheeses and sausages.  The platter compliments any beer you start with and offers you several pairing options.  They have an ahi tuna reuben as well, with choice tuna and cabbage slaw, it has the delights of a reuben without the pounds added.  Their meatloaf is famously fulfilling and rich.   Their bison burger comes from Missouri bison and really hits the spot for a very reasonable price.  This place keeps pace with any western brewery restaurant in terms of locally focused, partially organic, quality ingredients and it’s smack in the Midwest, I love it.

To sum up, the APA is likely the best regular release Schlafly puts out month after month.  If, however, you find yourself at the Bottleworks or down town St. Louis location, I’d go with the “American IPA” …..if you’re ready to take it to the next level.

“Schlafly APA” HTNL rating:  7.4/10