Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale

Pulled this out of the fridge when I realized the best before date on the side of the label was notched at March '08. I hate getting old beers (which you run the risk of when trading sometimes) and was worried about this. It didn't actually turn out too bad.

Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale is crafted in the English pale ale tradition as it weighs in at 5% ABV, with 30 IBU. If you're interested (and if you homebrew you probably are) the malts they use are pale, carastan, crystal 60L, and even some wheat. They must be trying to give this some sort of distinct American character as they go with Cascade and Chinook hops. The pour is very nice, my favorite color for a pale ale- clear and orange. The smell is grainy, with some earthy, dirty smelling hops that kinda remind me of Dogfish Head's 60 minute IPA. The taste is much different though, and what comes to mind is Firestone's Double Barrel Ale- another English pale ale. The taste is bready with an earthy and peppery finish. Not bad overall, although there are pale ale's I prefer more (ie the ones that tend to be more hoppy), but this seems good for the style.

It averages 3.8/B+ on BeerAdvocate, I gave it a 3.9/B+.