Alaskan Brewing Big Mountain Pale Ale – A First Sampling (Imperial Red Goes Year Round & Hopothermia)

I was excited to bring you first news of this new brew coming from Alaskan Brewing, so I was even more excited to find a care package waiting for me from Alaskan Brewing today.  That’s right, here’s a first sampling of Alaskan Brewing’s new Big Mountain Pale Ale.

In fine Alaskan Brewing tradition, let me just say the packaging looks great.  I’m not sure I’ve seen this color yellow on an Alaskan bottle before, but I can tell you the color and packaging stand out.

Alaskan Big Mountain is a new rotating Spring Seasonal release and after sampling this one, you’ll wish it was around a lot longer.  Don’t delay, because this beer will only be available from mid-Jan through March when Alaskan Kolsch replaces it.

Big Mountain Pale Ale pours a bright copper color and you can’t miss the aromas.  The nose has a prominent tropical fruit aroma and some berry aroma with a subtle earthy/herbal/resinous finish.  There’s a lot going on in the nose, and that makes you want to taste the beer even more….so we did.

This beer leans a little toward the tropical fruits and dry lemon, but the resinous and piney notes are in there too…more (in a good way) than I was expecting.  The flavors balance well, and Big Mountain uses Simcoe and Mosaic hops (two of my favorites) so the flavors are pleasantly bitter and clean.

For those asking, Alaskan tells me this beer differs from their Freeride APA (which uses mostly Cascade, Citra and Centennial hops).  After sampling both I can tell you the Big Mountain has a higher ABV as well as a dryer-bitterness thanks in part to the 3 hop additions and dry-hopping.

Big Mountain finishes crisp and refreshing and it was a perfect pairing for the elderberry cheddar cheese we just received for the holidays.  While we didn’t try it, I suspect this beer will pair well with a sharp cheddar or even some spicy barbecue.

Try Alaskan Big Mountain Pale Ale for yourself and let me know what you think.  this seasonal release has all the hop aroma and flavor I really enjoy, with a well balanced finish that I know you’ll enjoy.  Cheers and thanks again to Alaskan for the early sample.

Over the summer I sampled Alaskan Pilot Series Imperial Red Ale (here) and last Spring we sampled Alaskan Hopothermia on the radio with Andy Kline (here).  Both beers were delicious and I have great news to report for Imperial Red Ale.  Beginning in 2015, Imperial Red Ale will become part of Alaskan ‘s year-round line up joining Hopothermia which went year-round last year.  I’m even happier to report, I just sampled two fresh bottles and the beers remain every bit as good as I remember.  Imperial Red Ale is deep mahogany with citrusy aromas and a nicely balanced grapefruit-y, herbal, lemon flavor profile (8.5% ABV & 80 IBU).  Hopothermia is loaded with resinous flavors and floral & citrusy aromas with an almost spicy finish (8.5% ABV & 70 IBU).  These are two of my all-time favorite Alaskan beers so I’m happy to report they still taste great!