The can read: Extra Delicious.
I thought: I'll be the judge of that.
A couple of weeks ago, when I was enjoying one of the many IPAs that I've had over the past month, one of my followers on Twitter contacted me and asked me if I had ever tried a certain IPA. I responded, saying that I hadn't tried it yet. And then that brewery, having its Twitter name mentioned in the tweet, chimed in, saying "once you get it in your face, let us know how you like it."
When I poured this IPA in my glass, I was met by a bright orange glow that was crystal-clear. Light almost seemed to emanate from the glass. There was lots of carbonation, which made the liquid seem to dance. The head was a thick, foamy off-white that lingered through most of my tasting. It's a very pretty beer.
One might say, extra pretty.
On the nose, I caught a sweet orangy citrus with hints of tropical fruit; possibly, mango. On the palate, there were good hops with orange that balanced from a juicy mandarin to bitter orange rind. The alcohol produced a slight toffee finish.
It was a good, all-round, pleasant IPA.
But was it "extra delicious"?
For me, I would have liked a little more. A little more flavour; something that would set it apart from other IPAs. Maybe, I would have liked some more of that orange flavour to come through. It was nicely balanced, but could have been more pronounced.
The finish was good, but it could have been either a little cleaner, making me crave another sip, or it could have been longer, letting me savour the flavours.
Is Hops & Robbers extra delicious? I'd say that it's middle of the road. It's good, but for me, it's missing a certain something. Would I drink it again? Yes, definitely. It's a very easy-going IPA. I recommend it to anyone who likes a good IPA (I called it "good" while I drank it: just "good"). If you don't like huge hops in IPAs, don't go for something like a Mad Tom or something from Flying Monkeys, this is the one for you.
No comments:
Post a Comment