Smuttynose IPA "Finest Kind" - Smuttynose Brewing Company

tectactoe

Michigan

4.2/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours a halfway hazy golden color with some bright yellow and faint copper-orange highlights. Lots of huge chunks of unadulterated sediment float around the class and kind of hang in suspension without much movement at all. The head is thick and fluffy, almost brilliant white, leaving generous amounts of chunky lacing in its path. The nose comes out swinging with a floral and fragrant hop aroma; flowery, wet, and abrasive - you can almost smell the bitterness. Heavy lemon zest and apple skins, and I'm actually getting a touch of wheat - strange, because I'm fairly sure this beer has absolutely no wheat in it. Might be something from the pale malts.

Smuttynose IPA rolls along the palate with a medium body, somewhat slick and wet. The first thing you notice is the extroverted bitterness that hits hard, beginning, middle, and end. It's like the watchdog of the flavor profile - no matter what you taste, that heavy floral bitterness it gonna be there, too. Very perfume-like on the palate, mostly floral and flowery. On the fruity side of things, you get some intensely sharp and bittersweet grapefruit pith, which is more on the bitter side than the sweet side. The flavor warms up and gets more zesty with time - the pine needles and resin start to come out and the hop profile is evolving right in front of you. Despite the resin that comes into play, it never tastes or feels heavy on the hop oil - interesting. Some slight orange zest flavors hit on the tail end, finishing with an earthy, vaguely peppery, floral hop bitterness. High carbonation shows no mercy on your tongue, either.

What a damn good IPA. It's not the MOST bitter thing I've had, but the bitterness is unique and it remains strong for the entire duration of the brew. Nice light citrus to back it up, too. Pale malts? Yeah, maybe. But who needs 'em? This is a nice IPA for the bitter loving freaks out there.

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2013 03:22:19 | More by tectactoe

John_Crozier

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-23-2013 19:52:51 | More by John_Crozier

SebD

Ontario (Canada)

3.53/5  rDev -14.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

I think I got a fairly old bottle. I'll have to re-review it when I get my hands on a fresh bottle or perhaps try it at ACBF next week if I get the chance.

Appearance: It has a nice hazy golden/orange color to it. It has a nice off-white head that dies down moderately and leaves very nice lacing.

Smell: The aromas give out hints of faint citrus, faint pine with bready and grainy malts.

Taste: Like the aromas, it has some resiny pine, faint citrus, some bready notes and grainy malts.

Mouthfeel: It has a medium carbonation with a nice overall balance and feel.

Drinkability: It's a very smooth drinkable beer accompanied with decent flavors and aromas.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2013 21:00:18 | More by SebD

DStoked

Ohio

3/5  rDev -27.4%

05-22-2013 13:34:46 | More by DStoked

irs

New Jersey

4.75/5  rDev +15%

05-22-2013 05:07:08 | More by irs

russwilliam

New York

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-22-2013 03:04:13 | More by russwilliam

nebula1999

Connecticut

4/5  rDev -3.1%

05-22-2013 01:01:13 | More by nebula1999

JoyHelfrich

Illinois

4/5  rDev -3.1%

05-21-2013 01:10:54 | More by JoyHelfrich

dheacck11

Connecticut

2.93/5  rDev -29.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Slightly hazy pale golden orange with a 1/4 finger of dense white foamy head. Nice lacing.

Nose is pretty non existent. Just a hint of lemon. Nothing spectacular.

Taste is pretty hopforward, with dry, straw flavors. Little bit of lemon and orange in the mix, but finish is lots of super dry hops. Mouth puckeringly bitter from the hops.

Feel is a little too thick for all that hoppiness.

I am skeptical that this beer may have been infected, as the tastes are so far from what I expected. Though as time passes drinking it, it does balance a little more. I think it's just not for me. Too much dry hop. Not enough fruit and juice, nor stickiness.

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2013 00:00:51 | More by dheacck11

bessborough

New Brunswick (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-20-2013 22:24:00 | More by bessborough

AMCPhD

Florida

4/5  rDev -3.1%

05-20-2013 01:15:46 | More by AMCPhD

Stonehill64

3.75/5  rDev -9.2%

05-19-2013 12:43:14 | More by Stonehill64

bzach

Indiana

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-18-2013 23:10:45 | More by bzach

inanity

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +15%

05-18-2013 00:15:04 | More by inanity

twenty5

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-17-2013 14:46:20 | More by twenty5

Glider

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-17-2013 13:46:57 | More by Glider

AR_Rios

Kentucky

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-17-2013 02:19:53 | More by AR_Rios

Kunstman

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev -15.3%

05-17-2013 02:12:02 | More by Kunstman

Nittanylion1991

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -3.1%

05-17-2013 01:43:03 | More by Nittanylion1991

MerriweatherRaven

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -15.3%

05-16-2013 20:29:40 | More by MerriweatherRaven

Andrew041180

Massachusetts

3.6/5  rDev -12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - Poured from a 12 ounce bottle approximately six weeks old. The beer is a light copper color with a slight haziness. The beer poured perfectly into a standard pint glass, with the head just barely coming over the rim of the glass. The head retention is incredible, and leaves nice lacing on the glass.

S - Not overwhelmed by the smell. I couldn't pick out anything in particular.

T - Again, not overwhelmed. It's definitely a well-balanced IPA, but I'm only getting a hint of the citrusy flavors that I expected, and a lot of bitterness that doesn't seem to add much.

M - Matches the appearance. This portion of the beer is solid, but weakened by the fact that I didnt' really want to keep the beer in my mouth for all that long.

O - A bit of a disappointment. I'd had it before, but after reading the reviews here I had hoped that my palate would be more welcoming of this East Coast IPA. Unfortunately it was not to be. Good beer, some great aspect, but didn't meet expectations for me.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2013 23:49:28 | More by Andrew041180

YalovaIA

Iowa

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-15-2013 20:49:55 | More by YalovaIA

jcarbaugh

New York

4/5  rDev -3.1%

05-15-2013 15:32:55 | More by jcarbaugh

jkane101

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +2.9%

05-15-2013 00:43:55 | More by jkane101

Jimbo4430

Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +9%

05-15-2013 00:36:28 | More by Jimbo4430