Trader Session IPA - Uinta Brewing Company

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

3.63/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Translucent amberish orange. If this isn't the most common color for beer, it's damn close. Up top is a nice looking ecru cap that leaves a great deal of cheese grater lace. A quality look.

The nose is a good one as well. It's impressively citric hoppy with orange and grapefruit zest especially well represented. It's hard to go wrong with Centennial hops as long as enough are used, as is the case here. I'm not sure if this beer is dry-hopped, but it sure smells like it.

Although there's a bit of a drop-off on the palate, it's not a huge one. Citric, piney hops are more laid back in terms of flavor, but a sharp bitterness is still front and center. The bitterness is a little rough and raw due to what I believe is a relative lack of malt. It just goes to show that malt is important even in (some would say 'especially in') a hop-dominant style.

Uinta India Pale Ale puts the lie to the notion that it's difficult to brew flavorful low ABV beer. At only 4% this one can run with the pack. It struggles to keep up because of a less than optimal malt structure, but it has the (admittedly rough) hoppiness and the look down pat.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2004 22:36:41 | More by BuckeyeNation

brentk56

North Carolina

3.68/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Pours a clear amber color with a rocky head that leaves a fair amount of lacing behind

Smell: On the grassy side of grapefruit, though there is a nice citrus element

Taste: With such a low ABV, it is no surprise that there is not much malt character and the hops jump out right in front bringing a combination of grassy and grapefruit flavors; after the swallow, the bitterness lingers along with a bit of bready malt

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body with moderate carbonation

Drinkability: Though the beer suffers due to the state mandate of 4%, it is rather drinkable; the flavors are clean and reasonably well balanced

Thanks, Douglas88, for the opportunity

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2009 17:27:39 | More by brentk56

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

4.2/5  rDev +22.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Clear golden color, thick layer of white froth atop, leaving lingering lace.

Big, bold hops in the nose, citrusy, Cascades, very fresh and alive. Raw and vital. Exquisitely attractive.

Nice, brisk bitterness on the palate, well-balanced, matched by a solid body, and ample malt. Hop character squuzes it's juice in the mouth and gums with every sip...caramel/toffee taste comes through in the middle...nice balance, may I say once more...medium'bodied, with a bittersweet, sometimes harsh, sometimes mellow finish...I like it.

This is my kind of IPA...juuuust right. Just enough hops in every taste, just enough taste to meet the hops.

Well done, Uinta!

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2005 07:05:56 | More by feloniousmonk

Mora2000

Texas

3.05/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to blutt59 for sharing this bottle.

The beer ours a yellow color with a white head. The aroma is full of grassy hops and some bready malt. Not as hoppy smelling as I expect from an American IPA. The flavor is basically the same, with a lot of grass and citrus. However, I also get some orange citrus notes, but they are well hidden. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 21:05:34 | More by Mora2000

zeff80

Missouri

3.95/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Poured out a clear, copper color with hints of orange. It had an off-white, firm, one-finger head of foam.

S - It smelled of grasses and biscuity malt.

T - First sips bring a mild spiciness with a good dose of burnt toast maltiness. A mild citrus flavor emerges as it warms up.

M - A crisp and sharp IPA with a smooth finish. It's a light to medium-bodied brew.

D - This is a solid IPA. I grabbed it in my quest to try my first Utah brew and I enjoyed it.

Serving type: bottle

07-17-2009 02:14:02 | More by zeff80

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

3.8/5  rDev +11.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Acquired via trade from Wasatch, so a big “Thank you” goes out to him.
Poured from a 12oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a light gold color with a large foamy off-white head that fades slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is hoppy with a little bit of citrus sweetness and some caramelized malt in the background.

T: The taste is well-balanced with a good floral hops presence and a hearty caramelized malt character. There’s a slight flavor of citrus that enhances the sweetness but neither that nor the hops bitterness take dominance. All of the flavors involved seem harmonious. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

M: Crisp and very smooth, medium body, medium-to-high carbonation, slightly sticky finish.

D: Tasty, goes down very easily, not very filling, good representation of style. I could go with this beer for a while, but I’d prefer a little bit more a kick.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2007 03:06:47 | More by TheManiacalOne

russpowell

Oklahoma

3.78/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours an effervescent honey color with 3+ fingers of fluffy cream colored head. Great head retention & lacing

S: Grapefruit & lemon hops, plus honey malt

T: Citrussy hops up front, along with slight honey malt & metallic hops. Slight grainyness as this warms with more lemony hops. Finishes fairly crisp with some lemony hops. Almost pulled a 4.0

MF: Light/medium bodied with softness & good balance

Not a great IPA, but one you could sure session on, I think the lack of malt depth would get old after a while

Serving type: bottle

06-19-2008 05:57:55 | More by russpowell

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

2.78/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

This IPA pours out as a clear yellow color with a decent white head on it. The aromas have a little bit of hops in there, Could use a little more I think. The aromas mostly malts other than the light hops aroma. The Taste of this beer is average at best. The hops aren't really screaming out like they should in a IPA. They're in there but they just don't give you a kick like they should. This beers mouthfeel is ok, a little too light I think. Overall I wouldn't seek this brew out again.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2011 03:23:01 | More by Knapp85

Gavage

New Jersey

3.7/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: pours a clear orange color with a fluffy 2" head that lingers around a while. Thick lace paints the glass.

Smell: floral hops and some orange citrus are faint but detectable.

Taste: slightly thin bready malt, orange, red apple sweetness, and a floral hop bitterness are the main flavors that are picked up.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied. Lightly crisp throughout. Short aftertaste here.

Drinkability: easy drinking IPA that comes off a bit closer to a pale ale IMHO. Worthy of a try.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2010 12:37:40 | More by Gavage

jwc215

New Jersey

3.5/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to russpowell for this one!

Bottled on 4/14/08:

Pours chill hazed golden with a thin head that dissipates.

The smell is of mild citruys, some pine, caramel and a touch of floral. Nice, mild.

The taste is restrained/mild floral, citric, pine. Caramel soon catches up and balances out the hops. Hoppier pale ale, more than IPA comes to mind, especially with adding to it the modest alcohol level for the style. Soft, bittersweet finish.

Light-to-medium bodied, somewhat towards chewy.

Not a great example of an American IPA, but there's a nice hop blend and enough malt to keep it balanced and drinkable. Nice, but nothing particularly special compared to so many other IPA's.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2008 15:16:41 | More by jwc215

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

3.1/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Beer #8 in the great Utah Brew Hunt.

What an odd nose on this thing. It's almost candy-ish. Flavor is a bit unusual as well. Orange citrus tones with a touch of spicy aspect is there as well. Drinkable? Sure. It's consistent. But it's consistently different on its profile in a way that won't bring me back for another try.

Serving type: on-tap

09-08-2012 23:56:03 | More by RblWthACoz

Wasatch

Utah

3.38/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours a cloudy golden yellow color, some carbonation, tiny head which does not last long, nice lacing though.

S - Scents of hops and malts, and some spices.

T - The taste is hoppy, but not as other IPAs I've had. Nice bitter aftertaste/bite.

M - Medium body, well rounded brew.

D - Drinkable. Really not a bad IPA at that, but can always buy better. For a UT brew it's pretty tasty. Would make a nice session beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2006 01:36:20 | More by Wasatch

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

3.7/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A clear dark yellow pour. The aroma is different, can't put my finger on it, sorry, but its just different. I don't know how to describe a British traditional style smell. But this is what it is.

Taste especially, very British, restrained, a little fruity yeast aspect. Didn't do anything special for me afterwards, got thinner. Kinda pricey for something so sessionable.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2010 22:14:49 | More by Beerandraiderfan

beerthulhu

New Jersey

3.08/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A: Poured a bright, clear pumpkin orange with a 1 finger frothy, medium toned ivory colored head that lapsed after the first minute leaving fairly good full band lacing behind. Visible carbonation was light. Really liked the coloring here, bright, and vibrant.

S: fresh citrus aroma, moderate in strength. Some sweet grapefruit pulp lingers underneath. Pretty well tamed, well refrained and nothing obnoxious here.

T: The flavor starts off a little thin with watery wet citrus. A watered down maltiness as well which doesn't make for a good first impression. The bottle label claims to be extra hopped, but fails to say in what regards to. A light sweet maltiness manages to sneak in with some pine but was really nothing to get excited or talk about. A slight dry hopped awarness is barely detectable on the finish giving this just enough creditability per style to make this average overall. Take it for what its worth.

M: light, watery but very smooth with a light carbonation factor. Doesn't leave much of an impression hop or malt wise per style and really cant even justify an average rating here.

D: Easy drinkability, but so is water. A light drinking ipa but why bother when its comes off as watered down with little hoppiness or malting to make it enjoyable. Don't waste your money here, gets a big pass here.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2008 23:57:00 | More by beerthulhu

plaid75

New York

4.28/5  rDev +25.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

On tap at The Blind Tiger, NYC.

Poured a medium copper hue with a two finger frothy white head. There was good retention and lacing.

The smell featured a spicy and reather earthy hop, caramel malts and a touch of diacytl.

The taste consisted of sweet, doughy malts, an earht hop and a very biscuity finish.

The mouthfeel was a touch toward the thinner side of the style.

Overall a tasty and complex IPA.

Serving type: on-tap

01-12-2009 22:47:51 | More by plaid75

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This arrived with a thick, off-white head with decent retention. The color was a medium amber with NE-quality clarity. The nose had a welcome citrus-hop aspect. The mouthfeel was medium with a great hop presence on the palate. The finish had a dry, citrusy quality. I began to sweat off my hops jones that I had felt so strongly while visiting SLCUT. Feed the monkey!

Serving type: on-tap

05-03-2008 01:28:30 | More by woodychandler

mactrail

California

3.93/5  rDev +14.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Very mild IPA, not that there's anything wrong with that. It is more like an English Pale Ale than anything I've had lately. Rich flavor, medium body, a big wet kiss of hops. Aroma is really nice and adds a long flowery nose to every sip. Otherwise, it's extremely light weight but goes down with a great aromatic sizzle.

This won't win any friends with the Beat me Senseless with IBU gang, but it's a surprisingly pleasant beer. Don't hate it because it's not a real IPA. Totally quaffable. I submit this as the beer to get your Bud Light friends to try. Not bitter. Not offensive. A flowery introduction to hop flavors.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2011 06:00:16 | More by mactrail

alexgash

Connecticut

3.65/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

I consider Uinta bold for attempting an IPA while being constrained by Utah's absurd 4%abv law. With that said, this bold attempt pours a brassy tangerine with a small, fizzy, off-white head. Smells of very light fruit/toffee malt. The hops dominate; big citrusy, cascade hops that are all over the place. Taste starts with subtle biscuity malt. No sweetness to be found. Big citrusy hops come in. Very juicy! Light-medium body with an oily/watery feel. Finish is grapefruits and bitterness. Although this "IPA" needs more malt and alcohol for me to consider it a true IPA, I enjoy this law-constrained interpretation, as I think the hop profile is right up my hophead alley.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2004 17:55:38 | More by alexgash

GCBrewingCo

North Carolina

3.68/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

The beer poured crystal clear medium golden. The head was white and lasting to lace the glass.

The aroma was grassy when first poured and the lessened to a fruity hop aroma with a malt impression in the background.

The flavor was light and hoppy, but not overdone. Very well balanced, but not an IPA, a Pale Ale at best. The malt flavors are there, but way in the back and the hops are prominent and well done.

The finish was dry with a nice long hop finish. The body was medium light.

This beer goes down easily and has a great flavor for a Pale Ale but it missing malt and hops for an IPA. However if I lived in Utah this would be the house beer for sure...rated as a Pale Ale I would give this very high marks, but as an IPA is just doesn't quite make it.

12 ounce bottle. Best before Jul on label.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2004 23:39:48 | More by GCBrewingCo

NJpadreFan

New Jersey

3.5/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Uinta- Trader IPA

A- Light copper orange with a moderate foamy head. Slight lacing nothing heavy.
S- Light touch of caramel malt pokes its way out of a nice bouquet of sweet pine and floral hops.
T- Sweet pine and earthy green hops with a nice touch of caramel malt.
M- Again sweet, but not overpowering. Hoppy body with light malt in the tail end, slightly watery.

Overall- Flavors tend to be a little subdued, its flavor and mouthfeel just couldn't push it up to a 4(good) rating. Regardless, tasty session beer here.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2008 15:42:33 | More by NJpadreFan

kmpitz2

Tennessee

3.43/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Off tap at the brewery taproom. Without much room to work with to get a good malty backbone to overlay some bold hops, it is difficult for them to really make a true to style IPA.

This beer poured a nice golden yellow color, but still a few shades light for what I want in an IPA. The nise is really nice on this one. Lots of piney hop that entice me to drink it. The flavor is a bit thinner than the nose would tell me. Its almost a touch watery. The hop in the flavor is not as bold as the hop in the nose. The feel is also a touch thin. The beer is overall not a bad offering, but with the restrictions they face, it is not capable of being what I think it could be. I really hope the lawas change out there.

Serving type: on-tap

11-20-2004 21:15:01 | More by kmpitz2

beerguy101

California

3.28/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Medium gold color. Small white foamy head. Arom ais fruity and sweet. A medium bodied IPA. Malty and aggressively hopped. Good balance, nice flavor. Hoppy without being too bitter. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2003 02:14:59 | More by beerguy101

srandycarter

California

3.38/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Clear lightish honey, not much near white head. Fair amount of cling lace.

S - Grassy and hoppy. Not much else coming on.

T - Somewhat malty. Pretty one dimensional. Some hops. Reminds me of what a good non alcoholic beer would taste like.

M - Medium body, sweet finish. Good carb.

D - At 4%, pretty easy to drink, but rather boring.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2011 00:43:19 | More by srandycarter

RBorsato

Virginia

3.98/5  rDev +16.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bright gold with a full pillowy off-white head, very active carbonation, and partial sheets of lace. Perfumy and lightly citrus big hop aroma. Perfumy hoppiness dominates over any malt flavor. Light bodied and airy with a lightly bitter finish but refreshing.

Label states: "Extra hopped" & 4% ABV

Per Uinta website: "Dry hopped with Centennial hops"

Best Before: 03/04
Tasted: 01/31/04

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2004 18:53:45 | More by RBorsato

Beaver13

Colorado

2.83/5  rDev -17.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

12 oz bottle, bottled on 4/14/08. Pours a clear golden orange with a large fluffy white head that retains well and laces the glass a little.

The aroma is peppery, grassy hops with a little mint.

The flavor is some corny malts and vegetables with a decent slightly minty bitterness. The mouthfeel is light bodied and watery.

Overall, an OK IPA.

Serving type: bottle

08-11-2008 03:17:00 | More by Beaver13