Sierra nevada pale ale

Every week I sit down to work on something fun for beerandbrewing.com, usually in the form of picking a recipe and talking through it with you. Sometimes it’s a beer I just brewed, other times it’s a good seasonal fit, and sometimes it’s just one that someone asked me about recently.

How beer is made

Today, I’m writing about a style I haven’t brewed in quite a while, but I’ve just been reminded how good it can be even though it’s become so ubiquitous as to be overlooked by brewers and beer geeks alike: the American Pale Ale.

How have we never done this style before? Well, because, to be frank, it’s not one that many people bring up. I get questions all the time about IPAs, lagers of all strengths and colors, sours, Belgians, and more—but I don’t know that anyone has ever asked me about how to brew a great APA.

Well, this past Memorial Day I had the privilege of popping open a flag-bedecked can of Stoudts American Pale Ale, and those “just got into craft beer” memories came rushing back. So here we go!

Style

It’s a mistake to think of this style as a kind of

what is pale ale