Double Simcoe IPA
Received as part of a generous trade from jdoncbus. Thanks again! Pours from the 12oz brown bottle into a snifter. It has a hazy copper orange color and thick white head. Great head retention. Lacing is strong as well. Aroma is very hoppy with a definate sweet citrus punch. Flavor comes on strong with big hop-forward bitterness. I noticed on the bottle that Simcoe is a trademarked name so I figure this is an engineered hop. It tends to come across that way too. Fruity and floral aspects are very enjoyable but sometimes they come across too strong, almost artificial. Strange too how some sips are better than others. I'm not eating anything but each sip tastes slightly different from the last. Good sweetness up front but hops come on strong in the end. Mouthfeel is fine for the style with big bitterness and medium-plus body. Carbonation is at a good level. Drinkability is a tough call. If you like big relentless hops, you could drink this all night. For me, I might be looking elsewhere after this. The reason I really like this beer is that it gives me a good idea of what to expect from a certain hop, in this case, simcoe. As a homebrewer, it can be very useful to have a single hop beer so that it's characteristics are on display without interference from other types.