Wikipedia determines a pale ale as ‘a kind of top-fermenting beer, made pre-dominantly with pale malt’. But the origins of pale ales can be traced back to 1642 the term ‘pale ale’ is derived from pale malts used by English brewers. Not to be confused with an IPA, the difference between these two beers is a IPA is usually much more heavily hopped whereas a Pale Ale will have a slightly more malty characteristic.
To make things a bit more confusing, American styles of IPAs also traditionally differ depending on which coast of the United States your beer happened to have been brewed on. West Coast IPAs, which are typically the IPAs most people seem to prefer, are known for their much more intense hop characteristics — paying homage to the vast amount of fresh hops available to brewers in the Pacific Northwest.
IPAs made on the East Coast, on the other hand, traditionally use a stronger malt presence to bring more balance to the hop intensity. There is also a sub-category of Pale Ale ie: an Imperial Pale Ale which is basically a much more intensely hopped Pale Ale that has the body of a Pale Ale but the taste profile of an IPA. The Extra Pale Ale, also referred to as XPA, Session IPA, Strong Pale Ale, and Hoppy Pale Ale, is a beer style that originated about 5 years ago. Simply put, the beer is a variant on the traditional American Pale Ale and sits somewhere between a Pale Ale and an India Pale Ale in terms of hop bitterness, aroma, and profile, as well as alcohol content.
So why is an ‘Extra’ Pale Ale…Extra? Good Question! in some circles it is because of the extra flavour and aroma as well as being slightly lighter than its Pale Ale cousin. Some beer gurus would describe a Pale Ale as a ‘transitioning’ ale, what is meant by that is if you have been lighter-hopped beers ie: Pilsners, Cream Ales etc. it is a good stepping-stone beer to graduate towards them more heavily hopped beers eg: IPA’s. Average IBU (Imperial Bittering Unit) of a Pale Ale is generally agreed upon to be approx. 30 whereas the ABV (Alcohol By Volume) is typically 3.5%-7% although in rare instances a Pale Ale has been measured much higher. (see Brewdogs Ghost Deer at a whopping 28%ABV!)
Not to go into too fine a detail but when it comes to Pale Ales, there is a plethora of different ranges from American Pale Ales (Sierra Nevada, Samuel Adams, Three Floyds Zombie Dust) to British Pale Ales (Fullers London Pride, Tetley's English Ale, Brewdog Dead Pony) Australian Pale Ales (Coopers Pale Ale, Fat Yak Pale Ale, Little Creatures XPA) and of course my favourite — not that I’m biased — New Zealand Pale Ales (PanHead SuperCharger XPA, Tuatara Hazy Pale Ale, Epic Pale Ale)
Pale Ales are a great summertime beer, refreshing and effervescent and go great with food. Burgers, fries, steak etc. The typical colour for a Pale Ale is brownish-amber although this is dependent on the amount of hops added to the beer. So in conclusion if your neither a big fan of overly hoppy beers or not too fond of malty beers, the Pale Ale is the ideal beer for you.
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