Improviser IPA - Mia & Pia's Pizzeria And Brewhouse

zeledonia

Minnesota

2.03/5  rDev -38.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 1.5

On-tap at the brewery/pizzeria. Tasted 11 July 2012, reviewed from notes.

Pours a clear medium amber. Poured to the brim, so I couldn't tell much about the whitish head. Lots of lacing, loads of visible carbonation. Nice.

Smell is super faint, with a touch of distant grassy hops. It doesn't help that the beer is ice cold, and since it's brewed here, I put that on them (I've since discovered that they do this intentionally, "American style").

Taste starts out grainy and thin, then turns to an aspirin-like bitterness. Not enjoyable, not the flavor I want from hops. And that's the end of it. The vast majority of the flavor is this lasting unpleasant bitterness.

Medium-bodied, lightly sticky, with enough carbonation.

This beer is not good. I felt compelled to finish it, but only to avoid offending them.

Serving type: on-tap

08-10-2012 07:53:02 | More by zeledonia

oregonskibum

Oregon

3.55/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Tasted on tap on 5/13/2010 at Highland Still House. Drank two pints, but notes were taken from the first half or so of a pint.

Beer arrived in a standard shaker pint.

A: Color is an orange-brown. Head was minimal, thin and white. Some heavy splotchy lacing left on edge of glass.

S: Herbal hops with some citrus flavors. Big mix of hop flavors, including some floral notes. Strong malt backbone, sweet notes.

T: Hops continue up front. Then malts come in. Bready, grainy malts show up strong. Finishes bitter, without much hop flavor. Lots of sweetness throughout the taste.

M: Medium to heavy body. Definitely drinks like a double IPA.

D: Not bad, but it got increasingly sweet. By the end of the evening, my wife's IPA tasted far better. While not bad, I wouldn't seek this one out.

Serving type: on-tap

05-15-2010 05:07:07 | More by oregonskibum

RedDiamond

Oregon

4.28/5  rDev +30.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Improviser IPA exists at a potent conjunction of both lush, fruity malts, and biting, formidable hops, shaping a taste terrain that grants generous latitude to both sensations. The full, malty aroma is alive with juicy fruit. A soapy head with bubbles of mixed dimensions forms stratified lace over a honey-gold and slightly hazed body.

This muscular beer shuns delicacy in favor of bold, unadulterated character. At 7.0% ABV, it is Mia & Pia's strongest regular offering.

Serving type: on-tap

11-19-2004 01:20:35 | More by RedDiamond