IPA (India Pale Ale)
Bottle from Wine Warehouse in Charlottesville, VA. Poured into a traditional American pint glass. Appearance: A slightly hazy but largely transparent orange amber with a sticky, creamy, slightly off-white head, great lacing, and slow, sparse, but pinpoint fine carbonation. Aroma: Very pungent and pleasant. Tropical fruits and citrus, floral notes, and a light herbal mint note wafts over a sea of sweet and slightly roasty barley. Taste: Much of the same, but with more floral notes, a slightly less complex citrus bouquet, and less herbal notes. It's biscuity, grainy, and semi-dry, but has a mild but persistent hop bitterness. Not overpowering by any stretch of the imagination, and actually pretty balanced, but a little too dry and lacking in true hop complexity. Mouthfeel: Creamy, oily, medium bodied and a little uneven. Drinkability: Not bad IPA by any stretch of the imagination - the aroma is very nice, mouthfeel creamy and smooth, and alcohol completely manageable. It's a little on the dry side, though, and compared to the nose, the hop notes in the taste are a little bit of a letdown. Definitely a quality brew from an above quality brewery, however - worth trying.