New Planet Pale Ale

New Planet Pale Ale

Gluten Free Pale Ale Brewed in Colorado

New Planet has relaunched their gluten free beer offerings! Recipes have been changed and packaging has been updated, so I thought it was time to give this review a makeover. Today I’m pouring the New Planet Pale Ale.

The current gluten free Pale Ale is brewed on a malt base of millet, gluten free oats, and corn. It has a 6% ABV and it’s packaged in 12 ounce cans. Last time I reviewed this beer it was still packaged in 12 ounce bottles. It’s amazing how quickly glass bottles have vanished from the beer industry.

Before we got on to the beer pour, I want you to know that New Planet also makes a gluten free Blonde Ale. Both of these offerings are brewed with gluten free ingredients. New Planet also used to make a line of gluten reduced beers (crafted to remove gluten) but I believe those are a thing of the past.

Here is the fresh pour of the gluten free New Planet Pale Ale…

2021 Taste Test

New Planet Pale Ale

The New Planet Pale Ale pours with a beautiful light gold color and extremely high clarity. It makes a lovely head, and once that bubbles away, there is still a thin layer of bubbles perched at the top of the glass. This gluten free pale ale has a very nice visual appearance. 

Its aroma holds a nice mix of malt and hops. There’s a light citrus quality on the nose. The first sip reveals the malt character is heavier than expected. As a west coast kid, I often expect Pale Ales to pose as a slightly lighter IPA, but this one drinks way more carmely than I’m used to. 

When the New Planet Pale Ale first hits your lips, you’re met with malt. Lots of it. Its fairly sweet, with notes of caramel. You notice the body the most as this gluten free pale ale moves through the palate, which I would place at the light end of medium. The beer finishes with more malt on the palate than hops. It’s bitterness is quite low.

Overall, I think my palate is wishing for a bit more hop kick in this New Planet Pale Ale. It may be my west coast bias, but I’m getting more malt than hop and that remind me a bit more of an amber ale…although it’s worth noting this pale doesn’t share the roastiness or hue of an amber.

Carbonation is mild, which may be affecting my perception of malt vs. hops. It’s texture is sweet and fairly smooth. The flavor holds a light bit of citrus. I also notice the corn less in this Pale Ale—relative to their Blonde Ale. 

If I was opting for one of the gluten free New Planet beers, I think I would choose the Blonde Ale. This isn’t my favorite pale, but it is sweeter and less hoppy than most—so if that’s your jam, perhaps this beer is meant for you!

2017 Taste Test

New Planet Pale Ale

New Planet recently reformulated this brew (both of them actually) to remove sorghum from the ingredient list. So if you’ve tried New Planet before and weren’t a fan, now is the time to give them a second shot. See if you like this one, which is brewed with millet, oats, and corn.

This beer has a crystal clear golden orange color. It’s so clear, I could read the newspaper through it. The head is light, but develops into a silky film of bubbles that continue to hug the glass for some time.

The New Planet Pale Ale has a heavy caramel taste to me. It also has a very smokey quality. It’s not very bitter, but it’s quite sweet. This pale utilizes Sterling and Cascade hops and is rated at 35 IBU. The lingering flavor is not my favorite…I’d love to have more bitterness to balance out the sweet. Without it, I feel like the candy syrup taste lingers instead. (Edit: I received a note from New Planet about this particular batch of Pale Ale…they said that this batch got under-hopped, and that I should expect future batches to be more hoppy.)

This is great news for me. You know my attitude…bring on the hops…all the hops! Perhaps I’ll have to give this one another try later.

This ale has a 5.3% ABV and is available in 6-packs of 12 ounce bottles. They are brewed in Colorado, so if you are anywhere in the midwest, keep your eye out for New Planet’s reformulated brews. Especially if you dislike sorghum…because New Planet decided to ditch it!

Cheers!

P.S. Like what I do for the gluten free beer community? Consider buying me a beer for my efforts! ;)