Beer review: Garagista Pale Ale

Bremistress Rating2halfoutof5

Garagista Pale AleGaragista Beer Co’s debut beer is a pale ale brewed with American hops, though I‘m not sure I’d go quite as far as to call it an APA –  think they held back a tad on the hoppage for that.

That said, when you delve into the beer there is a pleasant whiff of guava – a characteristic c-hop aroma – and peach. It’s a fairly highly carbonated, amber-coloured brew with a hint of haze (it’s unfiltered). This pale ale has been designed as a gateway beer, if you will – something to lure lager drinkers away from their green bottles. It’s pretty crisp and refreshing and at 4.3% ABV, I’d call it a cricket beer – something you could easily drink a few of on a hot day.

Flavour-wise, the slightly sweet aroma follows through, though it’s a pleasant bitterness that sticks around in the end. The beer we tried at Garagista’s Woodstock Taproom was, in my opinion, being served way too cold and it was only on the last couple of sips – when I’d been cradling in my hands for 15 minutes – that I was really starting to taste much.  I look forward to getting the bottled version when it’s available and re-tasting as a temperature that better showcases a pale ale.

How much: R35 for a 440ml draught or a 440ml bottle.

Where: At the moment, Garagista Pale Ale is only available at the brewery, which is at 139 Albert Road, Woodstock, Cape Town.

2 Comments

  1. Paul

    The beer is indeed very tasty. I’m not sure I agree with your comment about the brewery serving the beer too cold. That’s not possible unless it’s frozen. There’s nothing more unpleasant that an improperly chilled or flat beer

    Reply
    • Lucy Corne

      Thanks for commenting Paul. We as South Africans typically drink our beer too cold. The colder it is, the less you can taste. This is fine if it’s a style (light lager for example) that is designed to be largely flavourless and meant to be drunk super cold, but when a brewer has worked hard to get certain flavours in his beer, drinking that beer at 2 degrees is a bit of an insult. There’s some great info on this here: https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/how-to-brew/proper-beer-serving-temperatures/

      But try it out at home. Take a beer you love and let it warm up, just a little. You might find even more flavour in there! Now try the same with a Castle Lite – let that warm up to room temperature and you’ll see why it’s usually served as near freezing point as possible!!

      Reply

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