A cream ale pours pale straw to light gold with brilliant, sparkling clarity and a low to medium white head. It tastes of soft, neutral, grainy or cracker-like malt, often with a light corn note, and just enough hop to hold it in balance. The finish runs from dry and crisp to faintly sweet. The BJCP calls it a “lawnmower” beer: smooth, easy and refreshing, at 4.2–5.6% alcohol.
Where it comes from
Brewers of the later 1800s made it as a sparkling ale for drinking young, to compete with the lagers of Canada and the American Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest. It survived Prohibition. Genesee Cream Ale from Rochester, New York, is the best-known example; Sleeman brews one in Canada, from a recipe of the late 1800s.
How to serve it
Pour it at 4–7 °C into a flute. It goes with salads and mild shellfish, Monterey Jack or a lemon custard tart.
Next to its neighbours
It is close to an American lager with more character, and lighter, smoother and fizzier than a blonde ale. Some drinkers find it a quieter Kölsch.
Cream Ale in numbers
- Classic examples
- Sleeman Breweries, Baja Brewing Company, Border Psycho Brewery, Genesee Brewing Company
- Original gravity
- 1.042–1.055
- Final gravity
- 1.006–1.012
- Food
- Salads and mild shellfish; Monterey Jack; lemon custard tart
- Classic examples
- Genesee Cream Ale; Little Kings Cream Ale; Sleeman Cream Ale; Sun King Sunlight Cream Ale
- BJCP style
- 1C Cream Ale
Sources
Checked .
- 1C. Cream Ale, 2021 Beer Style Guidelines — Beer Judge Certification Program
- American Cream Ale — CraftBeer.com, Brewers Association
