"Jai Alai, the "merry game," is a game native to the Basque region of Spain. Tampa was once home to this high speed game, but sadly all that remains here is this India Pale Ale that we brewed in tribute to the merry game. Pair Jai Alai India Pale Ale with Empanadas, Deviled Crabs and other spicy dishes."
Man, how many of these do I have sitting in draft status? I know I've been AWOL for a while. Wanted to make a better effort to get these out there, preferably in a reasonable amount of time.
Anyway, I had the opportunity to go to Florida for work and met up with my wife's cousin and her husband. After dinner, they took me by a beer store they frequent and I had the chance to pick up a few cans of beer that I can't find in NC. I always heard good things about Cigar City and Jai Alai, so I picked up a can and brought it back to my hotel to enjoy it.
Since I didn't have a glass to use, I drank it straight from the can. Didn't get the chance to see how well it poured. I could detect some tropical aromas with papaya and orange, but the dominating aroma was pine.
Since I had read other reviews about this beer, I was expecting this pop of tropical, fruity goodness. Nope. I tasted a beer that was more akin to a Sierra Nevada Torpedo. It had that bitter IPA bite, with the pine notes coming through. There was a bit of a malt backbone to it, but that was it. Pretty one-note, not overly complex. The other flavors didn't come through for me. It was medium bodied with medium carbonation.
Maybe I got a bad can or an older can. Granted, based on the feedback I got from the owners, they tend to cycle through these pretty quickly. It was just underwhelming and I'd be hard-pressed to try another, not when there are better options out there.
Grade: C+
Price Paid: $2.99 (12 oz can)
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