Free Beer Review: Drake’s Alpha Session

Most beer reviews are of freebies, but most beer writers never say so. Thus I introduce a new blog feature, the Free Beer Review. At least I admit it

For my first beer review on this site, how about a total softball? A beer I know I like, from a brewery I know I like, delivered to my door by my neighbor who works for them? Yeah, it’s hard out there for a beer blogger. Happy Session Beer Month to me! (See you at the NorCal Session Fest on Saturday?)

See what I did there?

Drake’s is not exactly known for low-alcohol beers. Denogginizer and Hopocalypse, anyone? How about those big boozy Barrel House creations of the last few years? But when they go small, they do it well. For instance, Drake’s 1500 is fantastic. Nine out of ten Bay Area bartenders enjoy it as a shift beer (I just totally made that statistic up…though it IS a great shift beer). At 5.5%, you can still make change after you have one but it doesn’t quite fit most people’s definition of “sessionable.” Enter the seasonal Alpha Session at a liver-saving 3.8%.

Drake’s calls this guy a “Nor Cal Bitter Ale.” Forget everything you ever knew about English bitter, if in fact you’ve ever known anything about English bitter. This is pretty much a baby IPA. It’s got 50 IBUs, which hasn’t blown anyone’s face off since the early 90s, but against a wonderful light, dry, malt base that just stays the hell out of the way, it’s just the right amount of hoppy goodness. It’s a good thing you can drink two of these without serious impairment because I can already tell I’m going to want another and it’s only 3pm.

To prevent skunking, don’t put your beer in the sun. Unless it’s the only good light in your apartment. In which case, be quick about it.

If you dig this: you might also want to try other sub-5% hoppy beers like 21st Amendment Bitter American (4.4%), Heretic Gramarye (4.4%), Dying Vines/Linden Street Hop Candi (4.5%, draft only), and Triple Rock Pinnacle Pale (4.8%, draft only).

Specs from the brewery: 3.8% ABV, 50 IBUs. 2-row, Marris Otter, and “a touch of” C45. “Classic West Coast hops” and dry-hopped with Simcoe, El Dorado, and EXP 01210. Drake’s is so hipster they use hops that don’t even have names yet.

Semi-pretentious tasting notes:
Appearance: Good clarity, golden yellow color, awesome frothy head with good retention. Pour this down the middle of the glass and enjoy the show.
Aroma: I know your allergies are terrible this year but that’s some nice west coast citrus and pine aromas there. Malt and yeast hard to detect. Wait, let me blow my nose again.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied, well-carbonated, gentle but persistent lingering tingly bitterness.
Flavor: Moderately strong hop bitterness. Balance is toward moderately strong hop flavors of citrus and pine, with a hint of light malt offering support. Well-attenuated; clean yeast and a good ferment left no trace you can find behind all the hop goodies. Strongly flavored but not extreme or unbalanced.
Overall impression: Gimme.

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