Route 113 India Pale Ale - Sly Fox Brewing Company

dogfishandi

New York

3.93/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz can out of the fridge poured into a snifter.

the crack and glug reveals a nice, slightly hazy bronze, amber, orange color with a nice foamy, bubbly 2 fingers of slightly off white head. very nice retention with lots of sticky lace. loving the color of this brew, darker than your average IPA.

not the most exciting aroma. metallic malts are at the forefront. next to that theres some candied caramel, bready, biscuity malts with some orange like citrus and some woody hops. kind of lacking with the hops however.

i enjoy the taste more than the aroma suggested. a very nice balance. earthy, leafy, citrusy, woody hops balanced by candied caramel, biscuity, bready malts. lots of bitterness in the finish.

medium bodied, a little towards the heavier side of medium. carbonation feels good for the style. lots of resinous oils in the mouth after each sip. wrecks the palate a bit.

drinks very good, exspecially love that they started canning this. for me that makes the drinkability even better. many days of frisbee golf ahead with this beer.

overall: a stand up IPA, ill be enjoying this again for sure, hopefully just a little bit fresher, make that aroma pop out a bit more. i reviewed this in a 22oz bottle roughly one year ago and i enjoyed just as much as i did then. i would recommend this if you can find it.

Serving type: can

03-15-2011 01:54:55 | More by dogfishandi

pburland23

Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On tap at Sly Fox Royersford.

Pours a nice copper color with about a finger and a half of decent off-white head that did not keep long nor did it make any noticeable lacing.

Aroma is of faint citrusy hops. It's a good smelling IPA, but not a great smelling one. The taste is a little on the sweet side, citrusy and moderately bitter, maybe a little caramel for good measure.

Medium bodied and slightly sticky. As for drinkability, this a decent middle of the pack IPA, it's a good call at the Sly Fox pub, but it's not an IPA I'll seek out regularly.

Serving type: on-tap

02-20-2011 17:52:09 | More by pburland23

harrymel

Washington

2.48/5  rDev -31.1%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Best by: 5/9/11
poured to NB globe.

A: Pours a surprisingly amber/caramel ale with limited head which recedes to sheet of fine white foam. This hugs the sides and reaches upward. Little lacing.

S: Plenty of resinous, earthy hops. Hints of conifer. Plenty of malt in here too. Again, a surprise for this style. Fairly unimpressive.

T: Metallic, resin, pine. Good bittering. Fairly robust malt with plenty of caramel in the background.

M: medium body with spritely carbonation. Very slicking in the mouth.

D: drinkable, but overall, very forgetable.

Serving type: can

02-14-2011 16:22:12 | More by harrymel

Bouleboubier

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Sly Fox needs to develop some diversity between 3 of their core offerings: this beer, Pikeland Pils, and Phoenix Pale Ale. I've had each several times and they all just about taste the goddamn same! Here's the rundown of this'un:

EYES: Poofy, super-mousse head at first - fizzy on the outskirts, deep haze - looks like a British Pale Ale - amber color straight up.

NOSE: Smells like (candied hops) Centennial and Cascade hops - west coasty, typical spicy/zesty citrus hop character Sly Fox peddles - a marginally-lesser degree fresh pine. Malt: quiet rock.

BUDS: Tastes like their pale ale or pils pretty much - just a bit maltier, some faint alcohol in early in the end. The hops work better for this IPA than it does for their pils. Malt is predominantly biscuity and to a lesser extent highlighted with fruity flavors (prob from hops). Leaves a pleasant sugary (a perfect degree less than their pale ale), vibrant hoppy, vaguely minty (lingering) aftertaste OR looking at it another way those hops take on a car-air-freshener-essenced, breath-freshener-tongue-strip-essenced almost delicate bitterness. Not bad, not great.

MOUTH: Surprisingly smooth English feel. Stupidly drinkable as far as feel. A smidge dry in the end, helping the hop showing, but mostly retains a plus-medium-bodied weight. Dextriny? Alcohol certainly creeps up - boom, your buzzed! It's a debate in my brain whether IPAs should flow dry or malty. This one's malty and I guess it works, but I'd really love to see this a lot drier and crisper.

SWILL: Seeing as how those 3 of their beers are extremely remarkably similar, it leaves me wondering which one benefits most from the house hop profile. IPAs ought to be the hoppiest of the lot, so I'll have to select this as the one that needs no hopstrating.

Serving type: can

02-13-2011 06:17:58 | More by Bouleboubier

KickInTheChalice

Illinois

3.88/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12 oz. can into a pint glass.

Appearance: Pours a dark caramel amber color with some floating particles in the middle of the glass. A 3 cm off-white head rests on top, eventually fading but leaving a hieroglyphic shaped lace on my glass.

Smell: According to the can, they use British, German, and Pacific Northwest hops, and I get all three in the aroma. An interesting variety, even if I may not eventually love the combo. I get East Kent Goldings, Cascade, Centennial, and Simcoe, but identifying Northern Brewer was beyond me. Fragrant, slightly sweet, floral, citrus - mainly grapefruit, and a bit of mint at the end.

Taste: There is a quick caramel sweet malt backbone, but this is hop-centric. The bitterness definitely dominates, with some citrus, light spice, mint, and pine to satisfy my hop cravings. The finish is undoubtably bitter.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, with medium carbonation. It starts out juicy, but gets a bit dryer at the end of each sip. The hoppiness leaves some resin behind.

Drinkability: Definitely complex and enjoyable, I don't know if this hop bill combines that well for me though. Tasty, worth trying, and I definitely think they executed well, but it didn't connect with my palate completely.

Serving type: can

02-03-2011 06:34:32 | More by KickInTheChalice

Franz4

Ohio

3.8/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A- light brown golden, creamy head with good retention.

s- citrus, toffee, and a little mustiness

T- All lemon that turns into bitterness, but it's not entirely unpleasant bitterness. I'm not sure what I think about this, my palate may be changing and what I may have thought of as overwhelming bitterness before I'm actually seeing as enjoyable.

M- medium bodied, slight carbonation, solid in this area.

D- probably more bitter than I'd like, can't say I'd seek this one out, but it may suit others more. It seems to be a solidly well-crafted beer.

Serving type: can

01-13-2011 00:41:59 | More by Franz4

nbbd

Pennsylvania

3.65/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Interesting IPA

Poured into A Glass from a 22oz bomber

A: Copper, Good head

S: Malty, not a big Citrus Smack, earthier mossy...

t: Smokey, Moss, a slight berry component before the hops set in for the finish. Long lasting finish

m: thin, good carbonation, astringic finish-

I like it overall, Lots of IPA's out there and its a bit different than what I usually pickup. That may be why its standing out as a nice drinking beer.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2011 21:44:41 | More by nbbd

BarrytheBear

Wisconsin

2.9/5  rDev -19.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

Right out of the box and into a tulip. Thank you Robert for this extra.

Amber in color with a very thick fluff that nearly breaches the imaginary border along the to of the tulip. Sticky suds cling and grope to the glass all along the way.

Smell is very faint, mildly herbal and not much else. Disappointing to my sniffer.

Liking bold citric or other fruit driven flavors along with a healthy bitterness, this beer falls short on both fronts. Hops present themselves as mostly minty and the bitterness is dry and chalky rather than robust or abrasive.

Mouthfeel is too watery for a nearly 7% IPA. A continual and abundant army of bubbles race to battle leaving this highly carbonated.

I'm feelin' a one-and-doner here.

Serving type: can

01-07-2011 23:15:03 | More by BarrytheBear

baldmasterflex

Pennsylvania

3.8/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured out of a 12oz can. Body is a consistent dark amber with a billowing off-white toffee colored head that filled to the brim of my 19oz wine glass. Lacing is thick and chunky and stays put throughout the drink.

Smell is very sweet and caramelly with much less citrus and pine that you would expect from a beer claiming 113 IBUs.

Taste is nice and bitter, but not facemelting given the good sweet bready malt balance.

Drinkabilty and mouthfeel are great. Beer has sufficient body and a smoothness that prob has something to do with it being at a more sessionable alc. range.

This is my 3rd session drinking this beer and its price, style, abv, and quality cant be beat around here ($9 for a six-pack). I hope Sly Fox continues to expand its canned lineup.

Serving type: can

12-26-2010 23:38:26 | More by baldmasterflex

flexabull

California

4.15/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Tasted blind courtesy of KimR, thanks again!

Pours a bright and clear copper color, with a nice rocky off white head. Looks good.

Aromas are of earthy hops, light caramel, and some pine. Smells like a nicely hopped pale ale.

Taste is quite nice. Light creamy, caramel sweetness, hints of hard candies, and mellow grainy malts. Finish is nicely hopped, really earthy, with a very green resiny taste. This nice, and well balanced. Still thinking pale, possibly an IPA though.

Mouthfeel is quite good. Really full, nice body, but not heavy at all.

Drinkablility is great. This is a very tasty beer, that isn't to strong, I really like it, and would happily drink another.

Serving type: can

12-26-2010 05:50:33 | More by flexabull

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

3.48/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Highly hazed, deep bronze color, slim beige head, settles as a tight ring.

Aroma, deep, dank, herbal, and raw. Big hop attack, some pine, some citrus, and the English hops are showing their side, definitely. An intriguing mix, one you don't encounter often. A little butterscotch and toffee, too. Soft, and surprisingly sweet. Much malt in the mix.

Taste: Bitter and herbal, with a hearty malt backbone. Apples and cherries, with citrus in the background, pine is there, too, but faded, in the distance. Slightly grassy.

Why did I fall in love with craft beer in the first place? Hops. Hops in English ales, and then hops in American pale ales and IPAs, west coast or English IPAs. I've loved them all, and here they are together as one.

Does that work? Well, this one doesn't really shine or sing like a 113 IBU IPA should, doesn't spank the tongue in a feverish fashion. Much malt below does it's work, and I'm not sure if the cocktail of hops really delivers. Perhaps I'm too used to English ales that are just so, or American IPAs that smack of citrus and pine. This is a bit muddied, some of those flavors I yearn for are missing, or in the back, just a ghost, competing with the English and German hops character.

Medium bodies, soft, light hoppy finish.

Despite those criticisms, it's a good 'un, and I'd drink it once in a while if I were in PA, but it just doesn't trip my trigger.

Serving type: can

12-25-2010 02:17:41 | More by feloniousmonk

allergictomacros

Ontario (Canada)

3.58/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Clear copper with a hefty, frothy head

Nose is sweet, fruity, with citrus/grapefruit. Light caramel and toasted notes.

Quite bitter and fairly one-dimensionally hoppy. A bit of a leafy tobacco. Could use a touch more sweetness to balance out a bit of a coarse hop.

Smooth. Light-moderate body.

A bit on the bitter side, but still drinkable. nice hoppiness.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2010 23:26:55 | More by allergictomacros

StJamesGate

New York

4.13/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours glowing cherry amber with a lumpy white head that trails. Juicy floral resin nose. Big juicy red berry and fruit jam malts, some toast and caramel, then citrus and tropical fruit hops with some grass and deep spice - very layered hops. Tight finish. Incredibly long, bitter, almost heart-burning linger. Chewy, some burn, tingly, on the light side of medium.

Dunno about 113 IBUs, but this is a big, sticky, red IPA. I can taste (or imagine I can) the German, American, and English hop strands. Almost like Gordon, so verging on a hoppy amber.

At the same time, a bit thin and doesn't go down easy. The taste rating is based more on being impressed by the complexity than it actually being tasty.

Something of a flawed masterpiece.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2010 02:10:39 | More by StJamesGate

JunkYardJake

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz can poured into tulip.
Nothing pale about this pale ale. Deep amber in color with a soapy off-white head. Plenty of hop haze going on. Alot going on with the nose. Caramel malts and citrus hops along with a mild musty, earthy smell. Good palate that follows the nose with an even malt and hop balance, typical of an east coast IPA. Bitter grapefruit and mango compliment the caramel malt. Alot of bitterness in the finish. Moderate body with a fluid mouthfeel. Overall, a decent brew, but fails to be special in the bloated IPA market.

Serving type: can

11-21-2010 04:41:33 | More by JunkYardJake

tigg924

Massachusetts

3.18/5  rDev -11.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: 1/4 inch head, cloudy, orange/brown in color

Smell: caramel, bread, and small citrus hops

Taste: caramel, bread, some earth, and citrus hops

Mouthfeel: light bodied, medium carbonation, sweetish start--bitter middle and less bitter finish

Drinkability: This one was a lot more bitter and earthy than I expected. A slightly above average IPA. I could have a couple, but am unlikely to rush out to get this.

Serving type: can

11-15-2010 14:29:29 | More by tigg924

Chaz

Minnesota

4.1/5  rDev +13.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Pours a dark-amber/red in color, and fairly clear apart from a bit of chill haze, and topped with a thick, luscious dark-tan head. Plenty of lacing and a good head retention/duration here, and as far as a visual impression 113 is definitely better than average.

Big nose, full of an unconventional (?) or more accurately a *varied* hop profile: three hops here, nothing uncommon in one sense, but there's no single overwhelming sense impression (C-hops, Noble hops...), and instead it's quite intriguing and inviting. A whiff of musty yeast here and there, along with notes of dark and tropical fruits (pineapple!) . . .

Solid bitterness on the first sip followed by a lightly sweet/tangy tropical fruit melange and a lighter aromatic quality from the yeast. Quite dry.

Light and easy-drinking, and I imagine that this one would be good with food (nothing on hand to pair it with, alas). At 7% I was expecting a bigger body and a sweeter beer, but this is not what I was expecting. It's very quaffable for the strength, and reminds me a little bit of Lips o' Faith! With 113 IBUs this one pushes the IPA style into Imperial IPA, but for whatever reason it doesn't strike me as being as astringent/bitter as e.g. the infamous Surly Furious.

A lighter biscuit malt character emerges long into the drink, once the bitterness becomes a bit more familiar. Great hop interplay here, and that's worth noting.

A good sipper and a very good American IPA, with an excellent sense of balance, drinkability, subtlety, and nuance.

Recommended, and not just for the Tick -- buy a sixer!

Serving type: can

11-14-2010 20:41:03 | More by Chaz

pvsob

Pennsylvania

3.43/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Best by date 01/22/11...

A- Clear brown color with a two-finger (off-white) head. Excellent retention and lots of sticky lacing. A 1 cm film last the whole pint long.

S- Citrus, caramel, and some earthiness (British Hops?). Nice, but not outstanding. It's very balanced/subdued.

T- Same as aroma, but with a little spiciness in the finish.

M- Medium feel (very slick) with some carbonation.

D/O- A tasty, but average American IPA. Alcohol is there, but it's not apparent in the aroma/taste. It's nothing earth shattering, but I could see myself enjoying a six-pack of this around the campfire or out on the lake for a day of fishing. It has enough flavor to keep me interested and enough alcohol to keep me feeling alright. Give it a try. Cheers.

Serving type: can

11-07-2010 23:39:45 | More by pvsob

therobot

Minnesota

3.53/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Serving from a can, drank form a tasting glass.

A: Orange-brown, a good amount amount of head about a finger in the small glass, lots of lacing.

S: Much less citrus and hoppy than expected of a 113 IBU beer, but still present.

T: As with the smell far less citrus and bitter than expected, but a really nice balance of hops, very present malty backbone.

M: Refreshing level of carbonation higher then most recently.

D: Found this beer to be strangely hard to drink.

I feel like my expectation didn't match was I was drinking, at 113 IBU I was expecting a good kick in the mouth, a burning bitter smell in the nose and I just didn't get either. Theory is that it is possibly older and hop character has faded.

Serving type: can

11-04-2010 03:45:36 | More by therobot

mcnabb0001

New Jersey

3.48/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Poured from 12oz can no freshness date

A - poured a clear deep amber with nice off-white head good lacing.

S - smells of sweet grain and citris

T - sweet malt up front with a dry citris hop finish. Pretty good balance of malt and citris hops.

M - smooth creamy consistancy nice sharp dryness

D - Pretty good goto IPA nothing spectacular here but nothing bad either pretty solid beer.

Serving type: can

11-03-2010 21:05:10 | More by mcnabb0001

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

3.48/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a clean orange-ish copper color with a light tan head. In the aroma, pine like hops and a small sweetness to the malt. In the taste, pine hops, with mango like hints, however a bit watery. A smooth and light bodied mouthfeel, with a dry, small pine like hop in the aftertaste. A bit watery, almost big pale, but a nice east coast IPA in a can.

Serving type: can

10-29-2010 13:10:41 | More by OWSLEY069

nickd717

California

3.6/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Can via trade thanks to StormKing47 on BA.

The appearance is...whoa...this is an India PALE Ale? It's not pale. Dark rusty amber color with a large, creamy, sticky light beige head.

The aroma is caramel and roast along with big-time floral and citrusy hops.

The flavor is stepping way into Black IPA territory. This beer is somewhat of a hybrid of a black IPA/CDA/IBA/whatever they're calling it now and an IPA. Deep caramel malts and lots of roastiness. Besides that there are citrusy hops and intense resins.

The palate is fairly syrupy with soft carbonation and rather full body. Feels bigger than 7% ABV.

Overall, this is bold and pretty successful in my opinion. A different beer, to say the least. Tasty if not terribly drinkable.

Serving type: can

10-28-2010 04:49:30 | More by nickd717

wagenvolks

Texas

3.7/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz can courtesy of xnicknj for the Nice Cans II BIF.

Really enjoying the look of Sly Fox's Route 113: clear copper-amber body with a tinge of yeasty haze. A trail of carbonation from the New Belgium goblet's etching supplies a well-retained cap of custard head. Sheets of sticky lacing coat the glass. Aroma has a good amount of hops, both grassy and fruity. The malt balance is higher than most IPA's, but I don't mind--the caramel sweetness is enjoyable and blends well with the tropical fruit notes hiding in the background.

The flavor has all the markings of a good IPA, with a big burst of resinous pine at first, followed by a lasting bitter kick that dries the palate. More tropical fruitiness, too, but the caramel malts get a bit overshadowed. A hint of mineral off-flavors in the finish, but it's a very minor nitpick. Mouthfeel is full bodied for the style (feels more like a IIPA) and nicely carbonated. Creamy/oily mid-palate and then dry on the finish. Overall, a more-than serviceable IPA that reps the East Coast nicely.

Serving type: can

10-20-2010 00:31:38 | More by wagenvolks

nukem5

Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Nice pour with a 1/2 inch tan cap tightly clinging to glass to the end with a great carmel color.

S: Hops floral and spicey light piney scent, sweet malts.

T: Wonderful balance of hops and malt great malts up front with hoppy finish.

M: Creamy smooth, medium body, slight alchohol finish.

D: Very drinkable and would drink a few if I had them. Will definitly search out some more of this beer and more from the brewery.

Serving type: bottle

10-12-2010 02:39:00 | More by nukem5

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.68/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bomber poured into a pint glass

Appearance - The beer pours a clear amber/orange colour with a medium size off white frothy head. There is a low to average amount of carbonation, and there is some faint lacing. The head lasted for a couple of minutes before it was gone.

Smell - hops, roasted malts, caramel, and floral/pine notes.

Taste & Mouth - The beer has a nice mouth feel, perhaps it might benefit from a touch more carbonation; but it is still good nonetheless. It is creamy and smooth with a sweet malt taste combined with an above average amount of hops - the hops aren't over powering though. There is a toasted caramel flavour that sticks with the entire mouthful and it fades into a nice bitter hops aftertaste.

Drink - this is a nice pale ale that I would say somewhat compares to Rogue's Brutal Bitter. Worth a try if you happen to see it on the shelf.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2010 23:26:01 | More by spinrsx

CHADMC3

Connecticut

3.85/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a nice deep copper with bronze hues and a foamy off white head that is quite deep and patient to give way to a dense, sticky lacing.

The aroma consists of pine and citrus hops with a bit of complimentary sweet malt.

The flavor is very similar to the aroma with up front pine and citrus hops, a bit resinous with sweet malt appearing for some balance as it warms.

This beer is medium in body and carbonation with a drying finish and quite a hop punch.

This is a good beer, nothing over the top, just a nice IPA that is a touch on the hoppy side, relatively speaking.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2010 01:18:45 | More by CHADMC3