Widmer Brothers Drifter Pale Ale
With its unique citrus character, smooth drinkability, and distinctive hop character, Drifter Pale Ale is truly an original. Brewed with generous amounts of Summit hops, a variety known for their intense citrus flavors and aromas, Drifter has a taste unique to the Pale Ale category. True to style, the bittering hops are perceptible enough to give the beer a crisp, clean, quenching finish, yet also soft enough to keep the beer smooth and balanced.
2006 GABF Silver Medal Winner
2006 GABF Silver Medal Winner
3.4
608 reviews
Portland, United States
Community reviews
My first favorite pale ale. I find this crisp and refreshing. It has a nice hop bite, some bitter citrus, but a healthy malt backbone. My favorites for pale ales now are Dale’s Pale Ale and San Tan’s Devil’s Ale, but this one still holds a place for me.
expired (bi-lo)....good slightly fruity flavor..tad bitter on the finish but not too bad... good medium flavor that isn’t overpowering...slightly malty... good all around beer...second one is a bit watery (had after liquor though and I don’t think this one is expired) x2
January 2010. From bottle. Amber color with a white head. Citrus, malt and fruit aromas. Caramel and hop flavors. Bitter, dry finish.
deep amber pour neat block head mild carbonation and the aromas citrus pine caramel the flavours resin rich caramel citrus grassy hops nice rich body medium bitter the finish likeable pale ale best tastes fruit grassy note lasting malt bitter finish good for the style
The 6-pack box refers to this beer having a ’unique’ citrus character. How? The same citrusy hop aroma has greeted me with many pale ales. It pours a clear rust colour with a thin tan head. Plenty of citrus in the aroma, yet it is balanced out by caramel and spice. The flavour is a tad hoppy.
This is a decent beer on a sunny day, but it's nothing special. It has a citrusy, hoppy nose that the flavor doesn't live up to. If flavor isn't overly important then this beer could be what you're looming for on a warm day.
Very nice beer. You don’t often get beers made from Nelson Sauvin hops. Rumor is that Widmer has stopped making this. - Guess I’ll just have to brew it at home.
12oz. served into a SA perfect pint glass.
A - Pours a chilled hazed amber with a uniform off white.
S - Freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, soapy hops, soft cereal grain, strawberry. Biscuits really start coming out as it warms.
T - Soap and grapefruit hops with a sweet graham cracker malt center. The citrus zest is very clean and carries through to the finish. Some strawberry and spice notes linger.
M - Medium carbonation drops off and turns smooth and creamy, light bodied.
Love the grapefruit. Very clean citrus flavors. Nice graham cracker-like malt adds good balance. Light bodied and very session-able.
Serving type: bottle
04-27-2012
Appearance:
Copper and apple skins. Off white pithy head fades blotchy while sticking to the sides of my glass. Swirls equally blotchy and sticky.
Nose:
Sweet cereal grains in the back with a crunchy caramelized apple skins zip. Citrus pith in the middle and up front.
Palate:
Sweet and bready with a nice freshly cut apple sweetness in the middle. Citrus skins along the sides mingle with freshly cut green grass. Slightly dry finish.
Final Thoughts:
An alright session with just enough going on to satisfy the need for some flavor but if you’re looking for any kind of complexity, don’t look here. On that note, I’d drink another one.
(An original written work by Beer Ambassador, LLC. Plagiarism is not tolerated)
The nose is piney and citrusy, typical for an American Pale Ale. The are a lot of pineapple and grapefruit notes up front with caramel maltiness playing a equally balanced role. Bready notes and a mild earthy hoppiness round out the end. Clean finish, not much lingering flavors, a very solid balance between hops/malt.
Caramel malt and citrus herbal hop aroma and flavor. Also some buttery character (stronger in aroma).
Pours a reddish gold with a minimal tan head. Aroma is citrus and berry. Incredibly dry. Nice finish. Salty instead of malty followed by fruity citrus notes. Clean.
Great citrus scent and taste in this, which is one of my favorite qualities in a beer. More tangerine than anything, but also orange, kumquat. Bright juicy taste, not overly sweet but not bitter, either. Very drinkable while maintaining complexity. Great.
Pours a clear copper-amber with nearly no head at all. Very little lacing around the edges of the glass. The bouquet is characterized by sweet lemon, almost Pledge-like. There’s a mild sting in the nasal passages that has a piggybacking aroma that is difficult to distinguish. A very nice, pleasing, balanced mouthfeel. Beef jerky and buttermilk flavors compete with a little tart citrus. Not a magnificent beer, but certainly a better effort than their lifeless hefeweizen.
Pours orange with a thin head. Medium-low carbonation. Crisp citrus hops, balanced. Smooth mouthfeel.
Has a fruity almost sweet aroma that transfers as to how it tastes! Can taste and smell the caramel. Pours a nice amber color with normal head. Crisp, clean...will drink again.
Pours clear red-amber with a short tan head.
Fruit aroma...tangerine and flowery hops.
Taste is sweet, caramel, nectary fruit.
Blended hops, malt.
Subtle...yet, overall...this is a great tasting beer.
Almost too sweet, but I really enjoyed this one.
Pours copper with a slightly off white head. Fruity aroma, can smell the Nelson Sauvin hops. A tart fruity bite to start, the caramel notes from the malt come through in thr finish. Very balanced and smooth. A go to APA.
Crisp. Clean. The citrus is prominent but not over powering. Unique IPA worth a pint
The beer smells terrible- unlike its hoppier cousins and isn’t an amazingly attractive pour, but the Drifter remains my favorite pale ale. Balanced and full-bodied for this beer style. Not for hop-lovers.
Not bad, neither something to remember as a special one. Was good, somewhat creamy and not boring.
A nice and smooth pale ale. Better than I expected. Crisp with and straight forward. There's a distinct, unique flavor I'm having trouble identifying. Subtle but present hop character.
Beautiful strong floral, hoppy aroma. Clear appearance and despite the strong aroma the hops really don’t kick you in the head, perfect level of hops for a pale ale. Well worth a gargle if you haven’t tried it yet!
Bottle. Nice looking maroon brew with a small white head. Nose is faint hops, some earthy notes. It has some nice caramel flavors, but they’re "complemented" by stale, old tasting hops. Maybe this was really old, but regardless, it tastes like it’s long past its prime.
Draught at Beer Authority NYC sept 2012. Clear amber beer with a small offwhite head. Fruity and hoppy aroma. Hoppy and some strange artificiell flavour. Not a nice tasting beer....
Pours amber with no head. Aroma of citrusy hops and milled grain. Taste is very citrusy, slightly bitter. Light and refreshing. Nothing special but really drinkable.
This was a pleasant surprise. Nose is sweet citrus. Taste is malty with an orange to grapefruit sweetness. Medium body that lingers to only a slight hop finish. Taste of baked bread at the end. I could drink this one regularly.
Bottle. Amber, small to average and fully diminishing head. Moderate, malty and sweetish aroma, caramel and some floral fruitiness, some piney - grapefruit hoppyness. Body is medium, malty and sweetish flavor, some caramel and some floral fruitiness, some piney and light grapefruit hoppyness. Finish is average, malty and sweetish, light caramel and some floral fruitiness, some piney - some citrus hoppyness. OK hoppyness but too much caramel for me/not dry enough.
bottle. amber with small head. light malt body with mild hops. some citrus. good but not great -- i think i was expecting a bit too much with this one.
From the 12 fl. oz. bottle stamped: 1548-NH-JUN1912. The color is a medium to deep amber with a short lasting head. The nose is quite floral, fruity, and sweet. The body is creamy and medium. The taste starts out sweet and malty with a dark fruit character akin to pomegranate followed by a vibrant hopped bitterness. Very nice.