Latitude 48 Deconstructed IPA - Hallertau Mittelfrueh
Poured into a tulip pint: Transparent light copper with some brassy, gold highlights under three fingers of dense, sticky head. Beautiful color, nice composition. Lookin' good. Head drops slowly & lumps, leaving tenacious patches of lace. Smell at first was strongly Hallertau, with that combination of field greens or arugala, pepper, & a little sulfur. Love that smell, same as with their Noble Pils. Sadly, I went back for a second whiff a half-minute later & found it had vanished. In its place is a much sweeter, orange candy character with a sweet tea background. Not bad, but way sweet & I miss that peppery zing. Sweet citrus up front that drops to a lightly pithy bitterness, ends with a little bite & rounds back up to caramel sweet & kind of lemony. Where's my Hallertau?! Still getting hints of tea leaves, a dry tannic quality. Pretty crisp at the start, but the sweetness in the end makes it feel a little thick, sugary. I feel robbed! I was so loving that Noble hop character & then it just disappeared. Definitely wasn't bad after that, but a little on the sweet side & not too distinct from many other East Coast IPAs.