White Widow IPA - Cambridge Brewing Company

Kegatron

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap during the 2012 Great Pumpkin Festival held at the Cambridge Brewing Company on 10/27/12. Served in a pint glass. American IPA brewed with Mosque du Provence heirloom pumpkins and Galaxy hops. This could easily have been added as an American IPA or Pumpkin Ale but I decided to go for the latter since well, I had this at a Pumpkin Ale festival!

Pours a clear gold, with a ½ finger of bright-white head. This retains with a rich look, leaving back a good bit of sudsy spotty froth. The aroma is floral and herbal, with a moderate tropical character and punctuated with light notes of pine and grapefruit. Surprisingly, the pumpkins are rather prominent here in the nose as well, with a ripe fleshy feel that stands out. Soft doughy grains sure up the back.

Those Galaxy hops mostly control the taste with a green and piney character and then light herbal and tropical notes that hang on the edges. Neutral malt sweetness hangs along the back. The pumpkin flavor isn’t quite as noticeable as it was in the nose but I’m definitely still getting it and it more than holds its own against the hops for the most part. The finish is dry, bitter and a touch resinous. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with a combination of crispness and smooth creaminess along the back. This has a nice easy feel on it.

They described this as the pumpkin beer for people who don’t like pumpkin beers but despite the aggressiveness of the hops here I found that the pumpkin flavor really stood out here and actually not only complimented some of the more herbal and tropical aspects of the Galaxy hops but also helped smooth out some of the more assertive characteristics of it as well. This was definitely a highlight of the Cambridge Brewing pumpkin beers offered this day.

Serving type: on-tap

11-06-2012 20:29:19 | More by Kegatron

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