Five top Aussie pale ales you’ve never heard of

Among Australian craft beer lovers, any way you slice it, the pale ale reigns supreme.

According to a 2022 study of 14,000 Australian craft beer drinkers conducted by Beer Cartel, pale out came out on top with 82% of respondents saying they were fans, just ahead of Hazy/New England IPA and IPA/Double IPA, and way in front of the wider nation’s most popular style, lager.

Add to that the fact that the No.1 spot on the 2023 GABS Hottest 100 was Mountain Culture’s Status Quo Pale Ale (for the second year running) and five of the top 10 fell into the same category.

Pale ale was also arguably responsible for the whole craft beer boom in this country, thanks to Coopers’ long running and much loved Original Pale Ale and Little Creatures’ trailblazing drop, which proved to be an inspiration and a gateway for many brewers.

Dave Padden, owner and head brewer at Sydney’s Akasha Brewery, says those two stalwarts of the local industry played a big part in his career path and should be recognised for helping to broaden the country’s beer tastes.

“When people first venture away from macro lager it was definitely into Coopers and I think they absolutely are trailblazers in this country in terms of getting people into better beer,” Padden says.

“But in terms of craft – and particularly American style craft beers – the trailblazers were definitely Little Creatures. That was my introduction to craft many moons ago and it’s still considered one of the classics, no different to Sierra Nevada Pale Ale in the States in that both have been given the mantle of that intro to craft for so many people, particularly right at the beginning. Little Creatures for me really was the trailblazer for the current craft movement, but Coopers was there a long, long time before, trying to show people what a real, expertly crafted beer tasted like.”

Padden says his company’s Freshwater Pale Ale has been its biggest seller ever since it opened nine years ago and the style is a winner for craft novices and veterans alike.

“Pale ale is right in that slot that really appeals to most craft beer drinkers, new and old,” he says. “It’s just a classic style that pretty easy to drink, but has that much more accentuated flavour profile. You can taste the beer as opposed to macro lager, which is pretty basic, and it doesn’t have a lot of flavours. Most craft drinkers appreciate the flavour aspect.”

“We find that with the classic pale ale, usually people who are new to craft love it and people who have been drinking craft for a number of years still love it because it’s a great beer. We would tend to direct our newer customers towards the pale ale. We certainly wouldn’t point them towards a triple IPA first up – that might scare them a little. Freshwater is one that we definitely recommend to our newer craft beer drinkers.”

Padden says that the key to making a good pale ale in Australia is firstly not to overthink it, and secondly to have a “malt base that sits back and lets the hops take centre stage”.

“Most of the market don’t really appreciate a really malty beer these days,” he says,

“so some classic ale malt is what we use, which is the base of every beer, and relatively dry and not too sweet, which aids and drinkability.

“Around 30 to 40 IBUs is what we look at just to keep it nice and dry but not too bitter at the same time. And those classic fruity and pine hops that we love, like Cascade, just to give it that flavour. That light malt base allows the hops to shine through and take centre stage, which is pretty much with beer for us.”

TOP AUSSIE PALE ALES

Given the high regard that brewers hold for the pale ale, Aussie drinkers are spoiled for choice in the category, but here’s five options from slightly off the beaten track.

AKASHA PALE ALE

Dry and very drinkable, not to bitter, with the malts backed off to allow the Cascade hops to take centre stage.

FRENCHIES PALE ALE

Dry-hopped with French hops from the Alsace, bringing citrus and floral flavours, balance by a robust caramel malt. A banger with the barbie.

URBAN ALLEY SLAPSHOT PALE ALE

Gold medal winner at last year’s Australian International Beer Awards thanks to a fruity, not-too-bitter blend of citrus, mango, passionfruit and pine flavours.

BRIGHT PALE ALE

Crisp and smooth with the locally grown hops full of tropical flavours. Also a gold medal winner in the category – from last year’s Independent Brewer’s Association Indies Awards.

TWO MATES LOVEMORE HAZY PALE

Deliciously hoppy, yellow hazy brew, with big tropical and citrus flavours, balanced by the pale malted barley.

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Originally published as Five top Aussie pale ales you’ve never heard of