Bear Republic XP Pale Ale

XP is short for Exceptional Pale Ale. This light golden pale ale balances the malt and hops for a smooth, drinkable beer that compliments any meal.

2009 California State Fair – SILVER
2008 Colorado State Fair - GOLD
2006 California State Fair – 1st
2003 Real Ale Fest (Chicago) – BRONZE

3.5

634 reviews

Cloverdale, United States

Community reviews

3.2 Bottle: golden red to a,Ber. Slight haze. Medium froth. Malty lift. Some reduction. Esters. Roast. All grain and little hop. Light to medium sweetness. Bitter. Medium weight. Malty palate. Lacks complexity and balance. Medium length only. English style pale for California.

3.4 Bottle at home. Pours clear amber with a medium, frothy white head, medium retention with good lacing. Aroma is earthy, minty, and spicy hops, pear esters and cracker, biscuit malt. Flavor is moderate hops and bitterness, supporting crisp malt and a dry finish. Medium to light body and moderate carbonation.

3.5 Bottle. Light to moderate roasted grain for the malt, pine and grapefruit peel for the hops, light dough or the yeast, with a hint of brown sugar. Head is small, fizzy, white with good lacing and is mostly diminishing. Color is slightly hazy amber. Favor starts faintly sweet and lightly aicic, then finishes lightly acidic and bitter. palate is on the lighter side of medium, a bit slick with a lively carbonation. Nice smooth and well balanced American Pale Ale.

3.2 Hazy golden yellow pour with a small dense white head. Lots of grapefruit, sweet mango, and orange in this. Juicy and delicious. Not bitter at all, just sweet.

3.4 Pours orange with a slight haze and an off-white head. Aroma is mild citrus hops. Taste follows nose and includes a nice malt balance.

3.8 Had it out of a 22oz bottle. Poured a partly hazy orange hue, with a light beige head and uneven lacing. Taste is of light cascade hops with a smooth medium taste, and a malt finish.

4.2 22oz bottle. Great hop flavor and aroma. Well balanced with the malt. Really good beer.

3.4 In short: A Textbook-generic citrusy American pale ale. Clean and refreshing. Good. How: Tap at Pizzeria de Pirilo, San Juan, PR. The look: Clear pale golden body topped by a small white head. In long: The soft fruity-hoppy nose is typical citrusy hops, and American pale ale like we’ve all smelled a million times before. The light-medium malt backbone is honeyed fresh cereals, very smooth and bready. Flavors are mostly juicy-fruity, like fresh soft cereals swimming in fresh citrus fruits. Nothing new here, this is clean beer, slender body, hopped with moderation, designed to be consumed a six-pack at time without palate fatigue. My rating number 5600, another great milestone, I’m so glad ratebeer broke me of that awful doing sports addiction I used to have, I mean, what a waste of time that was!

4.5 Amber with large white head. Aroma is grassy hops with a slight nuttiness. Flavor is lightly hoppy with notes of fresh cut grass. A slightly toasted malt finish is pleasant and it finishes slightly bitter. Really nice, easily drinkable pale ale. Great for spring or sessioning. Wife: 4.3

3.1 Bottle from Proof. Clear deep gold pour with a loose bubbly white head. Aroma of pale sweet bready grains with piney hops and a hint of citrus. Dry sweetish malts up front and through mid palate with a floral piney hops on the back end. Quick slightly bitter end. Decent, and very drinkable.

3.5 22 oz. bomber served in a snifter. Pours orange-amber with a light white head. Modest head retention; spotty lacing. S: Grassy and herbal hops with some faint citrus. A solid malt base. T: Nice fruity-grassy flavor from the hops grab attention from the underlying sweet malt with it hints of toffee. Orange is the most obvious component of the citrus character. M: Light/medium body and mild carbonation, smooth; exceptionally dry finish for style. O: An exceptional example of the APA style from a very reliable brewer.

3.2 A - Pours a clear amber with a fluffy 1 finger off-white head. Good retention with a decent amount of lacing. S - Honey, bready, red apples, T - Apple, biscuit malt, soft citrus around the edges, honey, walnuts, mild bitterness at the end. Finishes crisp and dry. Citrus really comes out on the aftertase. M - Medium body, moderate carbonation, nice. A fine example of the Pale Ale. Nothing complex but good all around. Wish this was in 6 packs here. Serving type: bottle 05-20-2011

3.0 Bottle. Bear Republic does great work, but this beer did not stand out when tasted next to BR Black Racer and Stone Cali-Belgique.

3.2 Draft at Farmers Cabinet. Hazy orange pour with a short frothy head. Pleasant aroma. Taste has a slightly funky element that could just mean I have a bad batch. Toasted wheat. Green grapes. Hay. Oyster crackers. Red leaves. Biscuits. Dried figs. Anbesol. Certainly more complex than most Pale Ales. Still not positive if I have a tainted batch or not. Feels a bit thin so it could be an old keg. Enough good odd elements that I can?t seem to stop drinking it!

4.0 Old bottle. Nice golden orange color with not much head. Plenty of carbonation though. Aroma is pleasant cascade hops, onion, and caramel flavors. Malt profile is nice. Hop taste isn’t real complex, and body is a bit thin. Aftertaste is sharp and full of hops. A nice, easy drinking pale, I just wish mine was fresh.

3.2 Press a clear golden orange from the bottle with thin white head and light lacing. Aroma of bready grains, slight odd soapiness. Taste is bready grain and slight citrus hops on the back. Meh, kind of thin and mediocre.

3.3 clear, light amber, lots of bubbles, frothy white head. a whole lot of biscuit, which im not a huge fan of, citrus, flowers, caramel. medium bitter, medium sweet. light body, slick feel, lively carb. enjoyable

3.6 Pours clear copper color with off white head. Aromas of of biscuit malts with some floral and pine hops. Caramel and biscuit malt flavors with moderate bitterness. Medium body with average carbonation.

3.3 Bomber poured into glass. This is just a straight forward Pale Ale. Hoppy up front with a nice balance between the malts and hops. Not a life changing beer but a solid choice.

3.8 Pours a beautiful golden copper with a quickly attenuating half an inch off white head. Light, but sticky lacing around the glass’ edge. Wonderful bouquet of bold yet soft pine offset with a perfume of sweet grapefruit and mown grass. Thin, underwhelming mouthfeel. Grain-centered taste that is coated with a light hop dusting. A finish that disappears a little too quickly. Very clean and quite drinkable. Just not a great example of the style.

2.7 Pours nicely with a big fluffy head. Aroma is very heavy. Taste has a very light malt and a small trace of citrusy hops overall it smells better than it tastes. I would drink then if offered but probably wouldn't purchase again.

3.5 Bottle from mane liquor. Pours a light golden with fluffy white head. More biscuit malts than usual for a pale and citrus is only coming through mildly. taste with a slight bitterness. Nothing special but could happily have a few!

3.6 22oz bomber poured out a yellow color with a white head...had a very nice pleasant aroma of citrus hops and mild malt background. some lacing on the side of the glass. dont remember when i got this so it might be a little old but the flavor was smooth hops and malt. even my buddy who is not a hop head liked this one. the citrus hops dont bite you it just rolled off the tongue. i thought it might be to old. fresh might be better dont know because i dont remember where i bought it. but it is very drinkable and very good.

3.5 Backlog rating 11-30-2008. This beer poured a medium sized off-white fizzy, frothy head with poor retention, fast-rising carbonation, hazy body with some floaties, a fair amount of lacing, and a golden hue. The aroma is citrus hops, some pine, malty, and caramel. The flavor is malty, citrus hops, some pine, and caramel. The mouthfeel is tingly and this is a medium bodied beer. Overall, this beer has a nice flavor for the style and it was worth trying.

3.2 Pours amber with a fading head. Nose shows soft sweet clean malt, faint grapefruit and pine. Very drinkable flavours, light sweet clean malt and a bit of spicy hops. Perhaps a bit too sweet. Could use more carbonation.

3.3 Pour from a 22oz bottle. Medium amber brew with very thick and creamy head. Aroma of biscuit, floral and citrus hops. Rather subdued. Taste is light sweet malt, a little caramel, dry finish with citrus overtones. A little orange peel in the very finish.

3.7 This is what a American Pale Ale is supposed to taste like. Lovely copper color with an awesome rich foam. Smells malty and sweet but with some background hops. Tastes great. Sweet caramel malt with a slight nuttiness. Hops are mellow but full enough and fresh. Rich and full for a APA but still exceptionally smooth. Great pale ale. Best that I’ve had in a long time.

3.8 A lustrous amber-gold with a thickish film of cream coloured head (although it may just be the light I am reviewing this beer in). Aromas of orange juice, grapefruit peel, a bit of tangelo and ginger. Flavours are similar with finish enhance bitterness that accentuates the orange peel side of the aroma. A perfectly tasty ale, well made, good looking and sadly almost all gone. Bugger.

3.8 A - Pours a clear golden-orange with a finger of frothy white head atop. The head fades down at a normal pace leaving behind some nice lacing. S - Aroma is a mix of grapefruit, citrus, and floral hops with some sweet caramel and biscuit malts. T - Starts off with a mix of grapefruit and citrus hops with some bitterness and some sweet caramel malts. Through the middle, some floral and light pine hops come through with some more bitterness and some biscuit malts. The finish is a mix of grapefruit and pine hops with some light bitterness and some sweet bready malts. M - Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Feels smooth with a dry and lightly sweet finish. D - Very drinkable. Nice malt and hops balance. Good overall APA.

3.1 Dark golden colour. Flavour has bitter citrus peel (orange). Overall quite fruity with a dry, bitter and slightly warming finish.