cream ale

noun

plural cream ales

: a pale, light-bodied American ale that is typically lagered and often brewed with corn or rice

Cream ales are relatively rare among craft breweries, and the style name in and of itself is confusing. Cream ales contain no cream, and, in fact, are not all that smooth in mouthfeel.

—Carla Jean Lauter

Cream ale is a style born of immigration and competition. Before the mid-1800s, American brewing was centered on making English-style ales. The 1840s, though, saw a large influx of immigrants from Germany who brought lager brewing with them. … Facing this new competition, the ale brewers responded by essentially creating an ale-fermented version of German pale lagers.

—Michael Agnew

Examples of cream ale in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sunny Vibes, Northern Pine Brewing, Oceanside, cream ale category. —Peter Rowe, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Mar. 2024

Liquid Intrusion’s South of D.C. cream ale accompanied by a smash burger with mumbo sauce? —Chris Kelly, Washington Post, 15 Feb. 2024

Not a dumb blonde, this cream ale is surprisingly refined. —Peter Rowe, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Oct. 2023

Lion's Tale's popular beers include IPAs, Oktoberfest, cream ale and lagers. —Jordyn Noennig, Journal Sentinel, 13 Oct. 2022

Brewed in collaboration with Everything Cincy, Queen City Crown is a cream ale brewed with honey and aged with peaches. —Matt Koesters, The Enquirer, 27 May 2022

Song gose, Turbo Love Juice IPA, and their Maize cream ale. —Blaine Callahan, Hartford Courant, 8 Feb. 2023

So Honey Blonde are crowd favorites; Oceanside Brewing Company, meanwhile, has one of the largest in-house brew selections in the region, ranging from a watermelon cream ale (called Summer Picnic) to English-style porters. —Debra Kamin, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Apr. 2022

The more famous Kilkenny beer, however is this light Irish cream ale. —Christopher Michel, Country Living, 27 Jan. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined above