From Bryce Eddings,
Your Guide to Beer.
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What the Brewery Says...
"Anniversary Ale is an American-style IPA featuring Cascade hops, the signature hop used in our Pale Ale. The beer has a pronounced pine and citrus hop aroma balanced by the sweetness of two-row pale and caramel malts. The result is an unusually well-balanced IPA that proves an IPA can be both assertive and elegant. Anniversary Ale is a medium-bodied, well-hopped ale that finishes with a slight malt sweetness."

Do About Beer's panelists agree?
(Only one review! Would you like to join About Beer's panel? Check out beer tasting panel information and FAQs.)

Brian "Buff" Urgo - 3.5 out of 5

I've always wanted to give this brew a go. I am a big fan of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, what many consider to be the quintessential American Pale Ale. Funny thing though, I always thought that Anniversary was a dark, porter-like brew; how wrong I was. Pours a beautiful copper, clear as day. Head was a bit hard to produce, even with a violent pour, and didn't last as long as I'd hoped. Nice tight bubbles and a nice lace on the glass as it resides. A bit of bubbles slowly float up from the bottom of the glass, almost giving the impression that the beer is thick. Nice mild, yet recognizable hop aroma. The label says Cascades are spotlighted, so that must be it. A slight sweetness is barely apparent beyond the hops. The smell of this beer certainly makes you want to take a drink.

Wow, hops are all over this one, but not overwhelming by any means. From the moment it touches your lips, bitterness engulfs your mouth all during the intake and swallow. The hops themselves leave a nice lingering taste well after finishing. I can pick up a bit of a caramel malt flavor, but it's the hops that this beer is about. As suggested by the bubbles on my initial inspection, this brew is a bit thick. Perhaps slick is a better term. It coats the mouth and tongue, in a pleasant way.

This certainly is a nice beer if you're a hophead. Well, maybe a hophead in training. It doesn't have the punch of SNPA, but the overall highlight of the cascade hop it does have. It's a nice beer, not for the faint of heart, but a good welcome to the world of hops.