High Tide Fresh Hop IPA
22 ounce bomber picked up at 6-and-Save, poured into my Sam Adams Perfect Pint glass. I've had one or two offerings from "Lost Abbey", but never anything under the "Port Brewing" label... The glass says it was bottled on 9/21/2011, which means this beer is about 5.5 weeks old. Not bad. A: Pours a hazy golen color with a huge white (2+ fingers worth) head with LOTS of lively carbonation. Huge, thick lines of lacing cling to glass long after the liquid goodness has disappeared below. S: Lots of earthy, piney-hops in the nose, and something smells a bit "bittersweet" and maybe even a touch sour/skunk? I hope not... T: At first taste I'm relieved that the hint of sour/skunk does not arrive. What does arrive is a wave of bitterness. There are notes of citrus (not much in the way of grapefruit) here, and certainly some pine as well, but the overwhelming flavor is that of bitterness. There is however, a good level of sweet malt backbone on it to balance this out and give it that desirable bittersweet flavor. Me? I'd prefer a bit more citrus and grapefruit, and a bit less "bitter for the sake of bitter", but I much prefer this over the earthy-and-overly-sweet variety that plagues much of the East Coast. M: Light in the mouth, with lively carbonation and a good bit of stickiness and hop residue left behind after the finish. D/O: A good, drinkable beer. I finished the 22 ounce bomber, but was growing a bit weary of it as I was nearing the bottom. It has some great flavor, and all that *bitter* certainly has a bit of novelty to it, but after a while that novelty wears off for me.