“It’s time to get down and dirty. This West Coast IPA may be full of filthy amounts of fruity and tropical hop character, but it’s nothing but clean on your palate. All those other IPAs are a boar, we’re here to hog the spotlight.”
Glassware: IPA
Appearance: Deep bold amber with good enough transparency. It notches up two fingers of khaki head before peeling off. Nice wavy lace in its wake.
Aroma: Like taking a step back in to 2010! Proper old school, pine-driven West Coast style IPA balanced only by a hefty caramel malt sweetness. Maybe a bit of cloying honey too. Has a bit of a grainy, unfinished wort scent to it as well. But like the good ol days it’s supported by tonnes of grapefruit, orange/rind, dank sappy resins and weedy/tea leaf herbals. Some good and bad to it.
Flavour: The malts yield a fair bit of artificial sweetness along with a very subtle hint of buttery diacetyl. Still, nice hop profile which does counter a little…pine, grapefruit and orange rind pithiness, grassy/weedy herbs and distinct florals move in to a dry and bitter finish with some good ol West Coast aggression on the back.
Mouthfeel: Dry, bitter, a little prickly. Medium bodied. The 7.2% ABV is relatively well concealed. 76 IBU…we get every bit of it. What you’d expect from the style though.
Overall: There’s high points and low points all the way through. It’s quite messy at times and it actually reveals the inexperience of the brewer(s). Not fans at all.