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Review Fri Feb 05 2010
Taking the Green Line
This summer Uncommon Ground (1401 W. Devon) officially cut the ribbon on its rooftop farm. The first certified organic urban rooftop farm in the nation, it hosted a kick-off party for one of the nation's newest sustainable beers: Goose Island's Green Line Pale Ale
Several regional breweries across the United States have taken steps to reduce the environmental impact (I'm looking at New Belgium Brewing and Sierra Nevada among others), and here in Chicago, Goose Island looks to be leading the way. Taking time to study the environmental footprint of their brewing, Goose Island commissioned a study from the Chicago Manufacturing Center on the production impact of a keg of 312 Urban Wheat Ale. The results of that study can be found here.
What this study provides is a target against which more sustainable ales (like the Green Line) can be measured. So what makes the Green Line Pale Ale some much more "green"? Glad you asked!
Goose Island has purchased a more efficient grain mill, which means the barley can be produce with less waste and less energy.
Within the brewhouse, the brewers have made an effort to implement more efficient practices like reduction in natural gas usage, and effective beer transfer to minimize waste.
The beer itself is brewed with water from Lake Michigan, regionally produced Pale malt and only hops grown in the United States (Amarillo, Liberty, Simcoe, and Columbus). By using only U.S. produced hops, Goose Island eliminates the environmental impact of having them harvested and shipped from hop producers in Europe.
In addition, Green Line is only being sold as a draught beer and only in Chicago, eliminating landfill waste from bottles and packaging. Another green effort is that the tap handles are made of ash harvested from trees killed by the Emerald Ash Borer Beetle.
The point being is that from start to finish, Goose Island's Green Line Pale Ale might be the "greenest" beer around. But is it any good?
The short answer is: most definitely.
A slightly longer answer would be that it is a copper colored ale with a great malty aroma tempered with notes of citrus. The flavor is a light-bodied malt balanced by a pleasant bitterness and a bright clean finish.
Described at the tasting as the "3PA", Green Line Pale Ale does have several of the best characteristics of Goose Island's 312 Urban Wheat Ale and their India Pale Ale, meaning that Green Line may just be the perfect session beer. Light, flavorful, hoppy and clean, this is a beer that you could drink all afternoon while watching the game at the pub.
Goose Island Green Line Pale Ale is only available on tap at these locations.
