Alright, it's time to catch up on some of my misadventures from St. Patty's Day weekend, and I'm starting it off with the first brew I helped myself to as soon as I made it to my friend's place at the beach. Stone Brewing's Cali-Belgique IPA! The majority of the brews I had for the weekend were the beers that I just bought, mainly because I didn't want to bring them inside the house and have my wife see that I brought home more beers. Shhh! Our little secret! Stone (http://www.stonebrew.com) has a pretty good reputation around here..I never thought about buying their stuff, mainly because it all looks the same and I can't really tell it apart. That said, when I first bought this bomber, it stood out from the normal offerings, so I was glad to pick up.
The beer was poured into your standard pint glass. Since I was visiting, I had a limited selection. No complaints coming from me though, it was better than drinking out of the bottle. A hazy, yellow color poured out of the bottle, with about a finger and a half of white head. Pretty good lacing with this one too. The aromas wasn't as overpowering as American IPAs. I'm guessing that had to do with the Belgian yeast, which gave it more of a bready aroma, malt, then the light fruit and grassy notes.
It tastes more like a Belgian brew on the forefront. More malt, more sweetness. Towards the end, the IPA portion comes around, with the citrus. I'd say IPA, but as mild as it comes through, it's more like a Pale Ale, less like an IPA. The beer itself is light bodied, with average carbonation. This beer is just..different. I don't have a lot of Belgian IPAs, so having one instead of an American IPA makes it stand out. I'd definitely help myself to another down the road.
Grade: B
Price Paid: $4.49 (22 oz bomber)
No comments:
Post a Comment