Sometimes, I think of myself as a sort of beer vampire. That’s because when I run across someone with even the slightest inkling towards craft beers, I pounce upon them for all I’m worth. I want to sink my beery fangs into them and infect them with my unholy thirst for malt-based beverages. To make them one of us. The living dead. Well, OK, the living dead may seem a bit extreme, though I can truly testify that in my day I’ve had hangovers where I’ve felt just like that.

But I do like to introduce others to the wonderful world beer. I suspect that most people are like that with their particular hobbies. They enjoy seeing others follow in their path and join in on the fun. One of my proudest accomplishments is, of course, my Beloved Barbara. (She’s definitely the cutest, but don’t tell her I said that. It will only go to her head).

When I first met Barbara, she was a dyed in the wool Bud drinker. Of course, I had to do something about that. And I did. I slowly introduced her to craft beer. Whenever you seduce someone with beer, its best to start out with the lighter stuff first. Give ‘em a Guinness straight off and you’ve likely lost the battle. Luckily, Atlanta has some great local breweries brewing great local pale ales. So I could not only get her to like great beer, but great local beer too.

Nowadays, Barbara loves Sweetwater 420 Extra Pale Ale. She’s exceedingly fond of Dogwood Pale Ale, too. But her favorite of all is Atlanta Brewing’s Peachtree Pale Ale. Named for a famous Atlanta thoroughfare, Peachtree Pale Ale is a very flavorful, yet very drinkable, southern brew. Much of its charm lies in the delicate interplay of flavors it exhibits. In many ways, it’s much like many other pale ales you can buy from microbreweries across America. But hey, that’s a great thing. It’s nice to know you can get beers of this caliber in most parts of America.

Peachtree Pale Ale pours to an orange amber color with a thick and creamy head and a soft, enticingly fruity nose. The palate is full of delicious caramelly malt, slightly toasty, and delightfully fruity with hints of citrus, pear and apple. In the finish, the citric character increases ever so lightly and melds with a gentle minty-grassy hop bitterness that lingers on the tongue after sipping.

This is a wonderful, easy drinking and delicate pale ale that’s sure to please. Barbara (a newcomer to craft beer) loves it. But how about a seasoned beer veteran like me? Well I love it too. Match it with seafood, poultry or beef: it goes well with all in my experience.

Home