Pike Brewing Co: Naughty Nellie Golden Artisan Ale

Sometimes a stroll down memory lane can be by accident. As I was roaming down the aisles of a local liquor store over the weekend I ran into a display of 220z bottles of Pike Brewing Company beer. I was surprised to see bombers from this brewery staring me in the face in the Golden State. I use to drink Pike brew back when I lived in the Seattle area, and even then it was difficult to find in bottles. Mostly I would stumble into a pint or two at a local restaurant close to Pike's Place Market. Excitedly, I snatched up a couple bottles.

I started with Naughty Nellie's Golden Artisan ale. This is an american style golden ale which at times is dubbed an american style blonde ale. Whatever you want to call it, this beer is tasty. Pike is able to make a great session beer that is easy drinking but full of flavor. Not very bitter the malts comes through very nicely. The beer has a very light malt flavor which exhibits a touch of a honey taste. The soft malt flavor works so well it made me question for a second my satisfaction from caramel, dark, and roasted malt flavors. Overall the malted barley creates a smooth taste when slugged down. A slight grapefruit citrus aftertaste along with a grassy hop flavor round out a full sip. There's great balance all around a makes for a easy to drink ale.

While I never visited Pike Brewing Co in my six years in Washington, I'm glad the brewery found me again in California. I forgot how much I enjoy their beers. Cheers.