BeerDorks.com: Reviews, Commentary and Opinions on Midwest Craft Beer and Microbreweries

 

Beer Reviews

Pride And Joy

Three Floyds Brewing Co.
Munster, IN
USA
http://threefloyds.com/

Style: Mild Ale

Eddie’s Rating:
one beerone beerone beerone beerone beer   (Recommended)


Comments:
Only in the wild, wacky world that the freaky folks at Three Floyds inhabit could this brew, Pride And Joy, be called a mild. There is, indeed, such a style called “mild,” and, given the Brits’ penchant for turning adjectives into nouns, it is a very English one at that. The designation refers to the low amount of hops—and, usually, but not always, alcohol—when compared to the other beers almost unique to fog monkey land, the bitters. These brews are (usually) not that light in color, despite their title, normally being almost akin to browns. And “mild” doesn’t necessarily apply to taste, either, as many milds can be quite flavorful.

But that’s over there in England. Over here in La-La Land, also known as Munster, Indiana, the mild pours a pale gold, pretty much a dead ringer for an American pale ale, but shows a subdued carbonation, which would jive with the style. And there any pretense toward this being a true mild ends. The nose is all citrusy, lemony hops, not even an iota of malt even in the farthest reaches of the sniff. The brew flows across the tongue with a soft mouthfeel and little to no body. Pretty much the only flavor profile here is a double tier of hops, first a dose of earthy bitterness followed by citrusy flavor hops. As the beer warms, and if you are really paying attention, you can detect some very slight caramel-like malt in between the different hops waves, but for all intensive purposes it isn’t really there.

The crazed (or maybe deranged) jester on the front of the bottle isn’t winking, but he should be, because calling Pride And Joy a mild is basically a Three Floyds in-joke. A beer hoppier than most brewers’ pale ales is their mild, and considering the alpha-potency of their “pale ale,” the Alpha King, it makes perfect sense. Although not as solid as their other offerings, it is a decent, drinkable brew, especially if you’re a hophead. If not, I’d say stay away from this one, but if you’re addicted to the bitterness along the lines of Nigel, this brew is an ideal choice if you want to knock back more than a couple without making your liver swell.

Reviewed by Eddie Glick on April 7, 2008.
Agree with this review?
No
Yes