Full Sail LTD 02 Review

Brewery: Full Sail Brewing Co. | Beer: LTD 02
Style: Maibock/Helles Bock | ABV: 6.4% | IBUs: 32
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into Pilsener glass

Full Sail's LTD series is designed to give the brewers a chance to experiment. LTD doesn't just stand for limited, but for "Live the Dream," and each new beer is one in a series of small-batch brews available for a limited time only. The series is limited to lagers only, which I have to say its a pretty ballsy move.

The second beer in the series is LTD 02, a Maibock (or Helles Bock). The backbone is built with Two-Row Pale, Caramel, and Vienna malt, along with wheat. The hop bill consists of Czech Saaz and Styrian Goldings. Here's how Full Sail pitch the finished product:

A light-bodied nonetheless hella good limited edition lager that is golden colored with soft malt undertones and is nicely balanced with a crisp clean finish.

Sounds hella solid to me, let's get crackin'!

Appearance: A crystal-clear, golden-amber body. Up top, a creamy whitish head that features great retention and lacing. Very pretty.

Aroma: Mildly spicy hops over a bready malt base. Maybe some hints of booze if you go looking for it.

Taste: Biscuity, bready malt leads the charge. Towards the end, the mildly bitter and spicy hops show back up to help dry up the finish. The aftertaste is of biscuity malt and a few hints of bitterness. If I had to guess, I think I'd probably have flagged this as an Ale, rather than Lager.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. It dries a bit in the finish.

Drinkability: Rather sessionable I suppose, but I don't really see myself ordering a second.

Verdict: I have to say, this is just a little boring, especially for a limited edition beer. It's inoffensive enough, and might make for a decent gateway beer, but it's just too unremarkable for me.

Grade: C+

Note: While the review above is being posted in 2011, the tasting notes contained within were taken when the beer was fresh in 2008.

Full Sail Pale Ale Review

Brewery: Full Sail Brewing Co. | Beer: Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale | ABV: 5.4% | IBUs: 37
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into pint glass

Earlier today, we tried out one of Full Sail's core brews: their IPA. Now, it's time for another of those core brews, the Pale Ale. They're pretty proud of this one, describing it on their site as "the godlike nectar that is our Pale Ale." They also play up the concept of balance, which bodes well for the liquid in the bottle.

Full Sail keeps the the hop bill a secret for some reason, but does mention the malt bill consists of Two-Row Pale and Crystal. Anyway, here's how they describe the resulting brew.

Our Pale Ale has a fresh, hoppy aroma that comes from two (top secret) Northwest hop varieties, while two-row Pale and Crystal malt give it a mild sweetness that finishes clean and crisp.

Well, let's see if it's truly godlike, or a little more agnostic.

Appearance: A crystal-clear, golden-amber body with a finger of off-white head that features decent retention and lacing.

Aroma: Spicy, herbal, and nicely citrusy hops over toasty malt. The hops definitely have Pacific Northwest character.

Taste: It follows the aroma perfectly. Those citrusy and herbal Pacific NW hops on top of toasted caramel malt. The malt backbone is more than strong enough to match the hops, making it a balanced proposition. An herbal and toasty aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light bodied with good carbonation and a dry finish.

Drinkability: With mild flavor, alcohol and mouthfeel, this is rather sessionable.

Verdict: While Full Sail Pale Ale may not be the most exciting Pale on the shelves, it certainly works. Overall, this seems like a nice combination of an English Pale Ale with a good dash of Pacific Northwest hop character thrown in.

Grade: B

Full Sail IPA Review

Brewery: Full Sail Brewing Co. | Beer: IPA
Style: English India Pale Ale | ABV: 6.0% | IBUs: 60
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into pint glass

Founded in 1987 in Hood River Oregon, Full Sail was the first successful retail microbrewery in the Pacific Northwest, helping pave the way for the region to become one of the meccas of beer. Today, Full Sail is still a leader in the craft beer space, ranking as the 18th largest craft brewery in 2010.

While their Amber is the flagship brew, I decided to start off with their IPA, as that's usually a pretty good measure of a West Coast brewery. Unusually, it's an English-style IPA, brewed with two-row pale malt and hopped with Challenger and East Kent hops. Here's how Full Sail describe the finished product:

[A] well-balanced, golden-colored brew that has a crisp hop finish that doesn't bite. With its palate cleansing finish, IPA is a perfect for highly spiced dishes with curry, ginger, garlic or cumin.

Sounds like a refreshing brew, let's dive in.

Appearance: A crystal-clear, golden-amber body capped by two fingers of off-white head that sticks around a while and leaves good lacing.

Aroma: Citrusy and earthy hops over rich, caramel malt. Very much an English style IPA.

Taste: Up front it's mildly bitter, eathy, herbal, and citrusy hops. Underneath, a lightly toasted caramel malt backbone provides plenty of balance. Perhaps a little too balanced if this were an American IPA, but acceptable for the English style. The aftertaste is toasty and just a little juicy.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with sharp carbonation. Dries in the finish.

Drinkability: Full Sail have brewed up a very sessionable IPA here.

Verdict: A decent English style IPA, but to be honest, generally unexciting. If you've never tried an English style IPA, this would be a good way to see what some of the differences are.

Grade: B