Head To Head: Oscar Blues Dales Pale Ale vs. Terrapin Rye Pale Ale

Welcome to another Head to Head challenge. Today have some more American Pale Ales to try. Both are from America. The first is the Oscar Blues Dales Pale Ale from Colorado. The second is the Terrapin Rye Pale Ale from Georgia.

As usual the tasting was done blind and to style.

Price: Winner – Oscar

Oscar – $7.99 (6 pack 12 oz cans)

Terrapin – $8.99 (6 pack 12 oz bottles)

Appearance: Winner – Tie

Oscar – Pours a yellowish amber color with a decent off-white head that leaves some nice lace on the glass.

Terrapin – Pretty much identical here with good color, decent head and some lace.

Aroma: Winner – Oscar with a strong win

Oscar – This beer has a very good aroma. It has hints of pine, some citrus and is lightly hoppy with some apple notes.

Terrapin – The rye has a very light aroma of cereal, and a bit of nice hop aroma.

Taste: Winner – Oscar

Oscar – The bitterness starts out lightly but continues to build until the bitterness is quite strong. It does not become overpowering, as some sweetness develops to keep it in check. Some apple hints also come out.

Terrapin – The beer has some bitterness but the rye flavor is the dominate taste here. This was a real giveaway during the tasting. And in this round it seemed to have more flavor than when it went up against the Anchor. Just not enough to beat the Dales.

Body/Finish: Winner – Oscar on the finish.

Oscar – Body is a little stronger than would be expected of a Pale Ale but the finish is relatively long and nicely bitter.

Terrapin – The body is perhaps a bit light for the style and the finish is short.

Overall: Winner – Oscar
This was not quiet the lopsided win I thought it might be. It was fairly obvious which beer was which. The rye flavor of the Terrapin means it stand out in these blind tastings. With the Terrapin losing out to the Anchor so strongly when they went Head to Head I expected the Dales to really shine. In its comparison with the Sierra Nevada it was so dominate. But This time around I seemed to enjoy the Rye character a lot more. The terrapin also seemed to have more bitterness than last time. In the end though the Oscar is the better beer and so it gets another win.

~ by alelagerlambic on April 14, 2008.