March 18, 2009: Pike's Naughty Nellie

I know what you're thinking. Naughty Nellie either sounds like the name of a racehorse or the name of a call girl, not a beer. Why'd they pick a name like Naughty Nellie anyway and put a buxom pin up girl on the label? Oh yeah, that's right... because me like boobs.

Tonight's beer is Pike's Naughty Nellie, and like almost every beer, there is an interesting story behind the name of Pike's brewery. Pike's wasn't founded by a man named Pike, but rather a man named Charles Finkel. The name Pike comes from a 1941 slapstick comedy movie called "The Lady Eve" starring Henry Fonda. In the movie, Fonda plays the character Charles Pike who is the clueless heir to a large brewing fortune thanks to his family's Pike ale. Pike is a bit of a halfwit, and almost gets swindled out of his sizable fortune by a conniving father-daughter team of con artists, until the daughter of the duo falls for Pike and thwarts her father's sinister plans. This forgotten piece of cinema from the bygone days of old Hollywood was the inspiration behind Mr. Finkel choosing to name his brewery Pike. I guess I figured that not too many people would be lining up to purchase "Finkel's Ale".

Like the lighthearted comedy that it is named for, Pike brewery has adopted a whimsical approach to the naming of their line of beers including not only Naughty Nellie, but also XXXXX Stout, Kilt Lifter and Monk's Uncle. With the simple ingredients of malt, hops, water, organic barley and yeast stated plainly on the front label, Pike's Naughty Nellie is a simple beer that pulls no punches. Pike's Naughty Nelly is a golden orange tinted ale, with soft notes of pear, peach and freshly cut grass that combine for a fairly smooth and even flavor. Medium thick head and average lacing are what you can expect when you pour Naughty Nellie his one into a glass. The beer itself was actually pretty decent, but the fun and irreverant spirit of the brewers at Pike's is what really sold me on this beer. After all, marketing and presentation are large parts of the overall picture and I think Pike's has that aspect down to an absolute science. Pike's Naughty Nellie was not my favorite beer by any stretch of the imagination, but I would absolutely drink this beer again.

Cheers,
Ian

www.Pikebrewing.com