There Are Other Breweries in St. Louis: Schlafly Pale Ale
Written: Nov 27 '07
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Clean, well-balanced taste
Cons: Not the most representative pale ale I've tasted; not as good as Schlafly's seasonals
The Bottom Line: With Anheuser Busch in town, a little brewery has to make noise to get noticed. Schlafly makes that noise overall, but this is one of their "quieter" entries.
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| scmrak's Full Review: Schlafly Pale Ale 6 Pack |
Ever notice how the guy driving that ginormous pickup with the five-foot knobby tires so often turns out to need a ladder to get into the driver's seat? It's a little thing called "overcompensation." If there was ever a brewery that had a right to overcompensate, though, it's pretty much gotta be Schlafly. You see, Schlafly is not only 115 years younger than the brewery "across town," but it's also v-e-e-e-e-r-y small compared to... Anheuser Busch.
So to compensate, the Saint Louis Brewery Company strives to brew better beer than their cross-town rivals (who may not even know they exist). One such effort is Schlafly Pale Ale, one of six styles the brewery produces year-round. They're available only within a couple hundred miles of Saint Louis (which includes my house) - sort of recompense for living in the MidWest, I guess... but I digress. Tasting notes follow:
The Pour: Schlafly Pale Ale pours nicely into a tall lager glass. It's dark amber in color with a faint hint of red; and a standard pour gives me a finger and a half or so of ivory-colored head with good lace. It's not heavily carbonated, but holds its carbonation to the bottom of the glass.
The Nose: I catch mainly a clean, malty or caramel aroma with hints of floral; the scent of hops is very subdued.
On the Tongue: There are no pronounced notes of either malt or hops; this is definitely less hoppy than most other beers of the style. It's neither heavily carbonated nor syrupy, having instead a medium to light body. Schlafly has balanced the flavors well; but just doesn't seem to have put much of those flavors in the bottle. It tastes a little on the thin side, actually closer in consistency to an American lager than most pale ales I've tasted.
Overall: This brew lacks the creamy mouthfeel I normally associate with pale ales, nor is it as flavorful. It seems more intended for a "summer beer" (lawnmower beer, ya know) than a year-round quaff. It's definitely drinkable, but not necessarily something I'd go out of my way to find.
Brewer Says: 4.4% ABV, OG of 11.5, hop level 27 IBU.
In answer to the one question everyone asks: Yes, the brewery founder, Tom Schlafly, is related to Eagle Forum's Phyllis Schlafly. She's his uncle's widow, but isn't involved in the business. Don't know how Aunt Phyllis feels about the brewery's Green tendencies: they're an early adopter of renewable energy; and, as part of their recycling program, will even buy back six-pack holders from their customers. Perhaps she thinks they're commies...
Parting Thoughts: While they've made vast improvement on the backwash bottled by their enormous crosstown rivals, in this case Schlafly hasn't produced a beer that's really worth going out of one's way to find. It's definitely drinkable, and if I were at a party and there were three six-packs in the 'fridge - Corona, Bud Light, and Schlafly Pale Ale - I'd hide a couple of the Schlaflys to make certain I'd have something decent to drink after the first bottle.
Compared to some of the brewery's other beers, though - particularly seasonal brews like Oktoberfest and (the Ms's favorite) Coffee Stout, Schlafly Pale Ale is a minor disappointment. On the other hand, compared to Bud Light, it's nectar of the gods. I give it a strong 3.5, rounded up to 4 stars.
At 566 words, this qualifies as an entry in the Lean-n-Mean VI entry.
Recommended:
Yes
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