Bell's Midwestern Pale Ale
A refreshing, blond colored pale ale. Bell’s pale ale is made almost exclusively from pale malt. It expresses a spicy floral hop aroma and taste.
3.2
1256 reviews
Comstock, United States
Community reviews
Flaska från Mikkellers webshop. Riktigt fin maltkropp, stor för stilen, mjuk, krämig som passar bar med den lite gräsiga och örtiga humlen med en lätt blommig touch. TRevlig.
pour golden with a small white head. straw, metal and bread aromas, taste medium bitter. medium bodeid, lively carbonation, long bitter finish
Muted sweet malt initially. Richer bitterness than expected. Pilsner like bitterness on the finish...peppery. Lingers a bit.
Bottle at home - shared with Mette. Clear amber - white head. Ok hoppy. Rather high bitterness. Spicy. Earthy. Mouldy. Gunpoweder. Cocoa. Toasted. Knækbrød. A bit wierd....
Bottle from Mikkeller Webshop. Pours hazy yellow with white head. Mild floral and grassy aroma with perfume and some spruce and yeast. Bitter, grainy taste with some lemon, caramel and spruce. Mild and balanced but with a little bit hard finish.
Bottle at home. Pours a clear golden with a small white head. Quite bitter with aromas of sprucey hops with gunsmoke hints. Also notes of a caramel malts. Medium bodied. Medium carbonation. Long bitter finish.
Bottled. Okay. A little bit thin in taste and hop character for a pale ale. Mediocre.
Bottle. Very slight hazy, golden in color. Medium to large head with just a tad of lace. Aroma is very mild floral, grass hops, just a tad weak and watery. Taste is a nice crisp hoppy bite up front with a mild, not too bitter finish.
From the bottle the pour is cloudy with yeast present suspended in the beer, the head is white, the aroma is yeasty and a little dank, the taste is a solid pale ale and carbonation is great, the finish is a little dank
Bottle. Grassy hop aroma with floral notes. Pours cloudy golden colored with one finger of white head with excellent retention and no lacing. Starts with grassy hop flavor with slight notes of floral hops. Finishes dry with the floral hops really taking control with a strong bitter finish. Started off ok but the finish was a bit harsh.
{from notes}
A good looking pale ale with a hazy, yellow-golden body topped by a good head.
The aroma is, perhaps lightly mild for a APA and slightly more yeasty. The flavor is mildly fruity and spicy. The hops mainly come out in the finish and aftertaste.
Feel: a bit too light bodied but well set carbonation level.
O: very good.
A standard apa...nose is some golden hay...notes of lemon...taste is a little lemony...some grain...bitterness is spot on...appearance is exactly what you’d expect...what comes around is all around...
Bottle in Chevy Chase, MD. Bold gold body with medium head. Nose is malty, spicy, floral. Taste is fruits, honey, malts, hops. Some pine and citrus. Pretty good.
Slightly hazy golden with a medium rocky white head. Earthy leafy hops on the nose with a little bit of pale ale malt crackeriness. Smooth crisp flavor with lots of cracker and pale ale malt, balanced by a smooth leafy and slightly earthy hop flavor and bitterness. It’s not resiny nor super butter but something about it is quintessentially American Pale Ale. Slightly lemony on the mid-palate.
bottle. Hazy orange-ish colour with small white head. Orange and citrus hops, crisp. Some bready malts. Decent.
You don’t see too many beers with “Midwestern” in the name, since it’s the two coasts that are known for certain niche styles. Judging by the packaging, Bell’s Midwestern Pale Ale wants to be associated with the Midwestern grain belt and farms, which would explain why there’s a rather earthy/spicy character to this beer typically found in farmhouse ales (though it’s definitely a pale ale). Tasty and easy to drink; I like it.
I poured a 12oz bottle into a tulip glass. It was bottled on 5/16/15 and cost $2.65 ($0.22 per ounce).
Appearance: A very hazy shade of brownish orange. No visible carbonation, but it does pour to a larger-than-average off-white foamy head which laces and retains quite well.
Smell: Quite malty, almost like that of raw grain. A slight citrusy component, but otherwise a mild nose.
Taste: The pale ale is an overlooked style these days, so I really appreciate the brews that can make it work. This palette is rather unique in that it’s not a citrus bomb, but actually well-balanced with light malts and some spicy hop character. Light bready notes at first with a tingling bitterness in the background. There’s a bit of a hop bite at the apex followed by a spicy sensation of rye, peppercorn and orangepeel (though none of those ingredients are in this brew). I detect a touch of orange marmalade in the aftertaste, reminds me of a British ESB or similar style. I hope Bell’s has pioneered a sub-genre with this as I’d like to see more beers that aren’t so conforming to East or West coast styles.
Drinkability: What’s impressive about Bell’s Midwestern Pale Ale is that it’s only 5.2% ABV. That’s fairly light for a craft beer these days; but it has the stronger body of a heavier brew. The mouthfeel is crisp from beginning to end with no spastic carbonation. A tad refreshing while crossing the tongue, it leaves a fairly clean finish (the hops do linger a bit). It’d be tempting to session this in the summer, though it’s also strong enough to stand up to a meal.
RATING: 8/10
12 oz. bottle. Pours golden with white head. Aroma of malts and some citrus. Taste was bitter.
Bottle--medium, mostly clear yellow color with an average, white head. The aroma is soft malts with a touch of hops in the background. Taste was bread with some slight sweetness. Light carbonation finished the drink. Produce place 1.79 I would say this is an underrated beer.
Bottle. Pours hazy golden with a fluffy white head. Substantially carbonated. Aromas of sweet malt and Pilsner hops. Citrusy flavors, slight herbal notes and mild hoppiness. Bready tones in the finish. Crisp and very dry. Just ok.
From a 355ml bottle on 22/7/2015. Pours a clear light golden with a medium white head. Has a slight lemony aroma. Flavour wise, there’s some light bready malt, and a sharp, slightly spicy lemony bitterness. Medium bodied with average carbonation. This is an odd one - it has a bit of character but doesn’t real come together.
Unfiltered hazy golden appearance. Smells bready/malty mostly, with some hops and floral notes. Mouthfeel is more abrasive than I expected. Taste is just OK. Not in love with this one.
Poured a slightly hazy orange color with a stable off-white head. Lots of bread in the aroma with some hops. Taste is nice and crisp with some fruity notes, spices, and bread. Very refreshing!
Bottle into pint glass, hazy golden color with off-white head. Aroma notes of toasted malt sweetness, grain, light earthiness and grass/citrus hops. Taste adds bread, light caramel, pepper, faint spices, grapefruit and pine. Light body, low-moderate carbonation, crisp, dry with citrus bitter finish. Solid refreshing pale.
12 Fl. Oz. Bottle. Poured cloudy, golden, nice white head and little bit of spotty lacing. Aroma of floral hops and some fruits and malts. Taste is sweet, fruity and somewhat malty, however very refreshing and very drinkable.
From a bottle. Pours opaque amber with a thin fizzy creamy white head. Tastes like toasted malt, grapefruit, dry citrus hops, light earth, and light caramel. Light/medium body and low carbonation. Smells like toasted malt, earthy hops, and dry grapefruit.
Bottle. Pours clear gold. Aroma is bready malts, light vegetal notes, grassy hops, and faint citrus. Flavor is balanced malt and hop character with soft bite and light fruit esters. Medium body.
Lovely dark golden pour w/ a big white head that leaves excellent lacing. The aroma is slightly faint for the style w/ the malts & breadiness standing out. The taste is really clean & crisp. There’s a minute hop undertone that sort of lingers after the finish. It has a really nice mouthfeel & overall Is a solid & drinkable brew!
First time trying this today from a bottle (pack date 10/20/14). As expected, a clear yellow beer with a white head. I wasn’t sure how to describe the taste/aroma until I saw another comment that said "grapefruit, lemon, crusty bread" which says it perfectly. Also strong bitterness, but not hoppy bitterness.
This is an under appreciated beer in my opinion. It’s way less hoppy than most pale ales on the market these days...but it’s still very good. Pours a clean golden color with a small white head. Taste is light with a slight bitter hop flavor and a crisp malty sweetness. The malt is really at the forefront of this beer, and it almost has a lager sort of character to it. Light body. Overall a nice spring/summer session ale that’s well balance. If you’re looking for a pale ale that is a little less hopped...this is a perfect choice.
Bottle 12fl.oz.
[ As Bells Midwestern Pale Ale ].
Clear medium yellow color with a average, frothy, fair lacing, mostly diminishing, off-white to white head. Aroma is moderate malty, pale malt, light to moderate hoppy, citrus, grass. Flavor is moderate sweet with a average duration, silage, grass. Body is medium to light, texture is oily to watery, carbonation is soft. [20140813]