Southern tier brewing co. IPA

Rating:

image“The India pale ale we brew is our version of a brewing legacy. IPA’s name hails from its colonial roots. British soldiers in India didn’t have access to good beer, and all the malty ales they attempted to take on the boat with them would go stale. The addition of a generous amount of hops to their already popular pale ales created a drinkable brew that could survive the heat and motion of the sailing ships, and a new style was born: ale with a vigorous hop profile, well balanced malt background, and medium body. At Southern Tier, our IPA is intrepid ale, triple-hopped on its journey to your glass for a truly aromatic experience.”

This is our first crack at this breweries range. Served in an IPA glass, the amber orange pour produces a tight two finger head that slowly collapses. Nevertheless there was still a good lace trail to be seen. Although there is a decent hop profile in the aroma it’s actually dominated by the 4 different strains of malts used in this brew. The one taking main stage is caramel malt which gives off caramelised, toffee and biscuit aromas, which are all here to be enjoyed. The slightly dismissive but fruity hop profile is represented by resinous pine, lychee, passion fruit and candy. Very well balanced aroma. The mouth feel is soft and round with medium carbonation. Medium body. Flavour is quite light on with a more fruity profile upfront. Some hoppy bitterness is also evident. From the mid-palate to the finish a decent little arm wrestle between the hops and malt play out with the dry fruity and grassy hop bitterness winning in the end. The 7.3% ABV definitely leaves some sting in the tail but never overpowers. Overall it’s a good IPA but nothing spectacular.