We’re always trying to be just a little bit different.  The Pale Ale style is as hybridized as most things we call ‘American’.  Brewers in the Western U.S. (think Sierra Nevada Brewing Company) in the late 70’s had knowledge of beer styles and techniques they had learned in Europe, but had limited access to the materials that would help them mimic those styles.  The materials they did have were American grown and processed.  They took the techniques they knew would make good English beer, and applied them to their water, malt, hops, and yeast. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale was one of the first notable results available in the world, and still stands up today.  

Various Tubes, in an ever-present attempt to remain just a little different, utilizes a German Kolsch yeast alongside standardized Pale Ale techniques.  The yeast contributes a mild fruitiness which makes Kolsch stand out as a style, but fermenting on slightly heavier malt sugars subdues the estery profile and balances everything out with the addition of Saphir hops throughout the wort boil.  

Put plainly, we didn’t have any american ale yeast on hand, but we did have Kolsch yeast, so we used it.