22 oz bomber courtesy of Damian (Solomon420). Thank-you.
Pour yields a classic orange color with a mild cloudiness, a beautiful head, great lacing BUT a little more in the way of suspended particles than I was expecting. Were it not for those particles I might have giving this a 5 for appearance.
Nose as expected, but a little sweeter than some of the big, West Coast IPA’s. Taste is pretty much as expected for a beer of the origin and the style. The hops ARE big, but there is a subtlety about the beer – an uncommon trait in this type of brew. Either the malt backbone or other features temper the hop boldness to some degree – this helps the drinkability. Mild grapefruit rounds the beer out. Less pine-resin than other West Coast examples and I think this may be why this is very well thought of by many – a more rounded example of the style.
A little alcohol warmth in the finish but its all in check. Obviously much bigger than a contemporary English IPA, but a classic example of the West Coast, American version.