Man do I love a good IPA: Appendix

One final note on yesterday's IPA post. I don't want anyone to think that Southern Tier 2xIPA isn't good. All the elements were there for a good beer, I just didn't like the taste of alcohol-that I'm assuming is the whole point of a 2xIPA.

SO, it was more of a warning against the style than the specific beer, which I'm sure is quite good (for the style). In particular, I think it's not a great choice in the heat. Knowing how the taste of beer changes depending on the circumstances, I may end up quite liking it in the fall, when it's a bit chillier and the warming effect of the alcohol is welcome, and doesn't make me feel like I'm drinking the fire spewing from the gates of hell. In fact, to be fair, I may buy their regular IPA and give it a try, just to see.

A note on this site as a whole, I don't think I WILL be posting my tasting notes for beers I don't like, I think it's much better that I recommend things. I'm not here to slag any brewers whose tastes may not align with mine. So, if it's posted, I generally recommend it.

But what the hell do I know anyway?

Man do I love a good IPA II: The Tasting Notes

In yesterday's post, I promised some tasting notes for some IPAs, which I didn't include. There was a great article in the Globe and Mail today about IPAs, the link to which I tweeted out. They mention Red Racer in the article - They had some at the LCBO one weekend (special shipment), but it sold out in hours, so I couldn't get my hands on it :( So I still haven't tried it, but from what I've heard it's the Canadian gold standard for a good IPA. If you find it, I recommend you buy it.

Here are the eagerly awaited tasting notes:

In my neighbourhood, there are two widely known local craft IPAs available: Muskoka Brewery's Mad Tom IPA, which I've mentioned before, and Ontario craft darling Flying Monkey's Smashbomb Atomic IPA. I recomment them both. The Mad Tom IPA seems much more widely available than the smashbomb (I even found it on tap at the Duke of Kent pub at Yonge and Eglinton). Flying Monkey's Hoptical Illusion (their "almost" pale ale) is much more easily found, and is pretty good, but, in my humble opinion, not quite as delicious as smashbomb.

Flying Monkey's Smashbomb Atomic IPA:

Dark copper color, small head/Subdued hops aroma/Snap! hops blast, then a lingering taste of alcohol/Raspberry? Some fruit?/nice, subtle coffee, roasty backbone adds some depth/really interesting/which it was easier to find this beer/Packaging is pretty wacky.

Muskoka Mad Tom IPA:
Great head/beautiful bitterness, but a nice malt base/I love this beer/slight taste of bubblegum/This is probably my favourite widely available beer right now/I'm a big fan of Muskoka's style and packaging.

A quick note on 2xIPA

A quick note on 2xIPA: this is an IPA with twice the bang for the buck. More alcohol per volume, and more hops! At this point, for me, it starts to get a little bit too much. For example, I tried the Southern Tier 2xIPA this Summer, when it was REALLY hot out, and found it just didn't do it for me. I couldn't even finish it, which never happens with me... I tried it again later, to give it a better chance, but the same thing happened. I think it's the taste of alcohol that rubs me the wrong way.

Southern Tier 2XIPA:

Small head/little yellow/light carbonation/smell of citrus hops/good hops plus some other nicely balanced subtlety/not THAT hoppy/can taste alcohol/Malt: cake? vanilla?/Taste of alcohol overpowers everything else going on/I think I'd like their IPA, but this is too much.

Man do I love a good IPA - tasting notes for Mad Tom and Southern Tier 2 x IPA

Man, do I love a good IPA.

For those who don't know, an IPA (India Pale Ale) is like an American Pale Ale (APA), but supercharged. Generally (in America), it has that citrus/grapefruit hops flavour that American hops have (and that are characteristic to APAs), but cranked up a notch. It also generally has a higher alcohol per volume than an APA.

Fun fact: It is the way it is because, in the past, they used to ship it off to soldiers in India. Hops being a natural preservative, they had to really hops it up to survive the boat ride. Eventually, the folks back home found a case, opened it, and discovered the deliciousness. (edit note: this might be wrong, but I don't think so.)

Tasting Notes for some IPAs to come...

I'm back! please comment!

Good to be home - and glad to see this site was a hub of activity while I was away.

I was out in the Kawarthas and was surprised to see that Kawartha Lakes beer was NOT plentiful up there. I DID see some flying monkeys, and lake of bays pale ale was everywhere. I was also able to scrounge up some mad tom ipa, and got to try another of Muskoka's offerings for the first time: Muskoka Craft Lager. It was pretty good, but I tended to alternate between creemore (of course, available everywhere) and Mad Tom. I was pleased by the craft beer availability in such small towns, particularly compared to my earlier trip this summer to the Land O'Lakes area in Ontario (where DI was reduced to some pretty gnarly beer).

Anyway, I'm back, please comment!

Gone fishin'

and like my dad always taught me, step one of fishing is "go grab daddy a beer."

But now I'm the daddy.

Be back in a week.