Atwater Grand Circus IPA - Atwater Block Brewery

pecokid

Pennsylvania

4.38/5  rDev +43.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

I am really surprised with the low “71” rating on this beer. I only had a sample at O’Rielly’s in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania but I was impressed. There is a lot of complex hopiness going on with this beer. I got a nice spicy peppery front end then a solid sweet finish. For only 4 plus / minus ABV it has a good balance. Now, the bartender did say this was this first poor of the day but I can’t believe oxidation from sitting in the lines would have improved this beer.

Serving type: on-tap

05-14-2013 23:56:44 | More by pecokid

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

3.33/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3

I am really grateful that I have not had this beer before. At least I'll get a tick out of the deal. (I didn't check to see, but thought it was new to me.)

Thin and watery with a hop influence that shows and disappears rather quickly. Thin is the word that keeps coming to mind. And there is a dirty aftertaste with some odd orange on there. Dirty and thin. That sums it up for this one.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2013 22:30:54 | More by RblWthACoz

SometimesIfart

Michigan

3.03/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A - Pours a medium gold with a massive, constantly foaming white head that leaves a decent amount of lacing.

S - Rotten banana, lots of caramel malt and a slight amount of lemon zest.

T - Some rotten banana with a bit of creaminess, along with a small amount of malt and lemon zest.

M - Medium bodied with heavy carbonation. Tastes rotten as it sits.

O - Ehhhh, Sessionable? Nah. Worth trying? Nah. It's very average.

Serving type: bottle

02-25-2013 21:47:47 | More by SometimesIfart

SerialHiker

Illinois

2.53/5  rDev -17%
look: 3 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

Appearance: Nice golden color, tons of bubbles along the glass and dancing inside…not too much head to speak of, but there is a little canvassing the top layer…(3/5)

Smell: Orange citrus and floral hops, very light and refreshing…grainy and grassy…sweet malts…mild smelling...(2.75/5)

Taste: Nice citrus hops flavor with a malt backbone…grainy throughout, floral tones offset and balance...it’s not extravagant in any direction…some bitter after tones, but not too bad…(2.5/5)

Mouthfeel: Light but very bitter…bitter without the hoppy feel…it finishes bitter…(2/5)

Overall: It’s got okay flavor, but the bitterness isn’t balanced well enough to make it something special…this beer is looking for flavor with low alcohol and it definitely accomplished one of these…I’d work on the pale malts and maybe give it a bit more “hmmmff”…(2.5/5)

Serving type: bottle

01-18-2013 01:32:03 | More by SerialHiker

DrDemento456

Pennsylvania

3.13/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Got a bottle of this for a dollar bottled in August 2012

A - Quite dark for a session IPA. Sort of hazy amber brown with quite a nice 1/2 inch of fluffy white head.

S - More herbal than I wanted but a nice bittering pine with equal balance.

T - Eh not bad it's simple enough with a mild acidic sort of hop profile that seems watered down. Kind of boring really.

M - Light to medium I question session ability

Overall a very forgettable session IPA not even worth a dollar.

Serving type: bottle

12-12-2012 02:30:23 | More by DrDemento456

searsclone

Arizona

3.3/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

poured from a can into a sierra nevada pint glass. clear yellow color with 2" on cloudy white head. tons of carbonation

smell is grassy hops, pine, and a touch of butter toffee

taste is mostly bitter hops, with a somewhat metalic finish

mouthfeel is crisp and wet

overall, better than average, and worth a try

Serving type: can

12-12-2012 01:54:25 | More by searsclone

horshack7

Massachusetts

2.73/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: Brassy in color with some copper hues an off white with a frothy texture one inch high.

Aroma: Musty, grapefruit and some piney notes. Apricot, orange, lemon zest. Malts lend a light biscuit dryness in the nose.

Taste: Citrus notes are light with lemon and grassy notes. Grapefruit notes are there but are masked a little bit by the malts. A rather crisp mouthfeel with a fairly dry finish.

Notes: It's halfway decent but certainly not dreadful and still drinkable. Cheers.

Serving type: can

11-24-2012 02:38:45 | More by horshack7

Bitter_Echo

Michigan

3.4/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This IPA looks like them all. Pours no differently, either. Smells malt, and grain, and some low floral hoppyness, but nothing very distinctive. Taste is malt sweet first, then surging bitterness, mostly on the pine side, but a little one dimensional, and not as well balanced between all the elements. This bottle was at most 7 weeks old, but might already be fading. Really nothing spectacular, but no hugely disappointing either. Oh, and mouthfeel is standard IPA, moderately fizzy, but with a lighter and not so heavy edge. Good, not great.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2012 23:10:16 | More by Bitter_Echo

PicoPapa

Connecticut

3/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

12oz can. Pours a hazy burnt orange with an inch of head. Some lacing. Smell is sour with some malts and faint orange hop aroma. The taste is mostly of malts, caramel, floral hops and some orange. Flowery finish. Little bitterness for an IPA. A bit watery. Drinks well for but alot of that has to do with the low ABV. Overall, nothing to see here.

Serving type: can

10-05-2012 03:39:01 | More by PicoPapa

puboflyons

New Hampshire

3.1/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

From the 12 fl. oz. can stamped 1062-1523. Sampled on September 23, 2012.

It pours a slightly hazy golden copper-yellow with a tremendous amount of fluffy white head that fizzles after a minute.

Loads of grains on the nose but fewer hops. Pretty average in the aroma department.

The body falls into the light to medium range and it is smooth on my tongue.

The taste is much like the aroma with a big up front grainy character while the earthy hops are noticeable but somewhat played down. One of the milder IPA"s I have had in awhile.

Serving type: can

09-23-2012 19:35:00 | More by puboflyons

buschbeer

Ohio

3.05/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

12oz can
Served in a perfect pint glass

A - It is a lovely amber with golden highlights. Three fingers of off white head cling to the sides of the glass.

S - I get some soapy floral hops.

T - I get a lot of floral hops. There is no bitterness, citrus, or pine. Just blah.

M - Moderate to thin. It is slightly chalky.

O - I got it on sale. I would drink it over BMC but that's about it.

Serving type: can

09-22-2012 21:02:41 | More by buschbeer

dfillius

Michigan

3.7/5  rDev +21.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: Aggressive pour yields 1 finger of fine snow-white head with good retention. Translucent/hazy straw gold liquid.
S: Citra hops, I bet. Orange and lemon, pleasant esters - tropical fruit mango and papaya.
T: Mildly malty with pronounced bitter bite up front all fades away to slightly astringent with maybe band-aid flavor. Nice grapefruit bite. Settles down in the 2nd half, otherwise would have been a 2.5.
M: Thinness is noticeable at first, then astringency. Nicely bitter after a bit. No heat. Again, it settles down in the 2nd half, otherwise it would have been 2.5
O: Enjoyable, but not exceptional. Okay, I'd maybe order a second, but I wouldn't make it my go to or choose it over huma-lupa-licious or two hearted. Probably wouldn't buy a sixer.

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2012 02:07:13 | More by dfillius

cosmicevan

New York

3.1/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Thanks to genuinedisciple for tossing this my way. We do get Atwater locally, though I've never seen this brew anywhere. Bottle is notched June 2012 so I better drink this puppy now.

a - brew poured a pretty murky and opaque orange with a massive foamy white head that had an almost bubble bath look to it as it fizzled away. big chunks of lacing.

s - soft hopping. crisp and clean smelling. sweet malts.

t - pretty malty and has a bite. some subtle hopping. lacks a lot of what i look for in an ipa...no fruitiness, no hop citric flavors. all in all fairly bland.

m - fairly watery. finish is odd, kind of bitter without any hop kick.

o - overall, when i saw the reviews i was a bit nervous...that combined with the notch on the bottle, but this isn't all that bad. this is definitely not a beer that i would seek out to try again, and it feels slightly a step ahead of BMC, but not a big stretch.

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2012 23:40:57 | More by cosmicevan

Billolick

New York

3.43/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12 ounce can, purchased as part of a 12 pack, at American Bev. in Brooklyn, NY ($12.99)

Pours lightly clouded almond amber, delicate off white head, leaves a thicker film, collar and fine mostly low lacing.

Nose is of some grassy hops and a hint of malt.

This is an easy drinking, lighter and refreshing IPA. Moderate hop presence, balanced by a nearly equal malty base. Lighter mouthfeel, with a watery note.

Nothing special, but enjoyable enough. Worthy summer sesioner

Serving type: can

08-31-2012 01:08:24 | More by Billolick

neophilus

Massachusetts

2.25/5  rDev -26.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

Atwater, Brewed in Detroit. I guess Detroit moved to Latrobe, PA.

Pours a golden yellow color, nice foamy white head on top.

Barely any aroma present, a bit of grassy, pine hop aroma finished off with a bit of malt.

Some bitterness up front downplays any malt flavor. Rough, vegetal hop flavor is present. Not very pleasant, mostly seems to be an aftereffect of the hop bitterness.

Thin, watery body with a rough edge.

Not a very good IPA. Too thin, hops flavor mostly comes from the bitterness, not a lot of citrus of pine aroma or flavor to spice this up. The only thing that makes this an IPA is the dryness from the hop bittering and the lack of malt flavor.

Serving type: can

08-17-2012 18:54:45 | More by neophilus

mountdew1

New Hampshire

2.7/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured into an imperial pint glass. Color was a medium golden with a 3 finger frothy head that lasted about 5 minutes. A few small streams of carbonation rose from the bottom. Aroma was primarily a citrus hoppy. Initially struck me as reminding me of a cheap beer bar aroma. Taste started off sour, then switched to nothing much, before finishing with a hint of hops. Felt ok in the mouth. Coated well, just a bit of carbonation, nothing wrong. Overall kind of a meh beer. The flavor was really strange and offputting for the style and seriously detracted from anything else it had going for it.

Serving type: can

08-13-2012 21:39:02 | More by mountdew1

Lauthaha

Michigan

4.05/5  rDev +32.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into a beer mug. Beer was bottled in May of 2012, and it is now July of 2012.

Appearance: Kept the beer in the freezer for 10-15 minutes before pouring. Upon the first pour, beer cascades out of the bottle's mouth with a bright copper color. Head is super-thick, sticky, and creamily meringue-like. Highly active carbonation visible through the glass. Looks great!

Smell: A good balance of heavy hoppiness (mostly floral) and understated malt sweetness. Nothing overpowering, but not diluted in the least.

Taste/Mouthfeel: Light and crisp at first, the beer has a nice gentle hop bite to it. After a moment on the tongue (as the beer begins to warm slightly), it foams up and spreads across the palate. Aftertaste is very bitter, almost on the edge of decency, but I think I'll let that slide a little.

Overall: A good beer! Billed as their "Session" India Pale Ale, it's another positive offering from Atwater Brewery.

Serving type: bottle

07-15-2012 01:22:58 | More by Lauthaha

Boto

Connecticut

3.38/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Draught @ Headkeeper: This one pours a clear, golden color. There was a small white head that left some lacing. Lighter nose for an IPA. Pine and some grapefruit notes. The taste is along similar lines. Pine and grapefruit hops dominate, with some biscuit and earthiness. Dry, almost stringent. Just rates an OK.

Serving type: on-tap

07-11-2012 14:49:37 | More by Boto

crossovert

Wisconsin

3.68/5  rDev +20.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 bottle, just under 3 months old, hopefully it holds up.

It is rather low in abv for an ipa. It pours a hazy amber with a foamy white head.

The smell is mostly citrus. Orange is a prominent scent. Maybe some peach in there too. Light fruits, subtle malt sweetness.

The flavor is decent. It isn't too sweet which is nice. It also isn't too massively hopped. With .5% less abv it does have a better flavor than Founders All Day IPA. It is not too sweet, but still nectary. Plenty of fruits and citru, medium to low bitterness in the finish.

It looks like the cans are brewed at Latrobe. The bottled version is fine, it looks like the canned version has some issues.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2012 02:18:49 | More by crossovert

jjanega08

Minnesota

1.88/5  rDev -38.4%
look: 4 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 1.5

No freshness dating. Bottom of can dated 2421 1403 maybe...

A= Pours a deep amber color with a two finger off white head on it that holds some steady retention and lacing.

S= A little light on the hops for an IPA on the nose. There is a little grassy floral aroma reminicent of the English variety hops or some sparingly used American versions. It has a sort of sweet wort smell to it as well that actually reminds me quite a bit of unfermented wort in a mash.

T= The taste matches the smell to a tee. The grassy hop notes and an unfermented wort flavor. It may have a little bit of a wheat taste to it as well. Really nothing to write home about.

M= This is about the only thing they got right. Lightly carbonated and perfect for the style I think.

O= This reminds me of a homebrew a lot. Unfortunatly this reminds me of a few homebrews of my own that I didn't hand out because I was ashamed. This is a mess of an IPA and barely a beer judging by the unfermented flavor.

Serving type: can

06-05-2012 04:47:35 | More by jjanega08

Brenden

Ohio

3.8/5  rDev +24.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The color is a hazed dark orange-brown, beyond amber but not quite copper, with a bronzed sort of darkness in the depth. A nearly pure white head grows to 2 fingers in height and shows stick, retaining one finger the entire time after it recedes and leaving lacing in broken sheeting down the glass.
A nice raw, leafy, green sort of hops bitterness with a citrus element is what greets the nose. Another sniff gives off more of the rich, raw, pure hops cone aromas.
The flavor is pretty good, but it seems more effort was put into hopping for the aromatics.
Crispness and smoothness are on par with a light carbonation in a medium body that sustains itself well.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2012 07:10:22 | More by Brenden

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

2.15/5  rDev -29.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Pours a clean yellow to orange-ish color with an off white head. In the aroma, mellow mix of pine and citrus hops. In the taste, mellow pine hops with a balanced malt. A small hop bite and a medium to lighter bodied mouthfeel, with a dry small hop in the aftertaste. More a pale ale than IPA, EH!

Serving type: can

06-01-2012 20:25:01 | More by OWSLEY069

Brad007

Vermont

3.53/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A buddy brought this back for me. Never heard of this brewery.

Pours a sweet (not literally) golden color with a frothy white head into my glass. It's an IPA! I got a chuckle out of the ABV.

Grassy hops that have a hint of citrus. Sweet malt underneath too. Smells about right for something of this ABV.

Here's where it gets tricky. Hops are not that strong upfront and I get the suspicion that this may be an older can? No canning date or year codes. Just a bit of sweet malt underneath too. I think this is closer to the English style IPA.

Lingering grassy hops and burnt caramel from the malt. Not bad but not great.

You could probably do better for the style. I'd like to see what else they have to offer. Still, it quenched my thirst.

Serving type: can

05-30-2012 00:04:32 | More by Brad007

schoolboy

Ohio

3.9/5  rDev +27.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This is a decent enough AIPA. Very sessionable.

It looks good in the glass with nice color, clarity and lacing. The head cold is weak as is the aroma. The taste is very pleasant - not over the top hoppy but not wimpy either. I only have one of these but I could see drinking a bunch if I had them.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2012 23:05:08 | More by schoolboy

WVbeergeek

Ohio

3.5/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured a deep copper at Smokin' Joe's the label says it's brewed in Latrobe. Actually pale copper crystal clear with a bright white head flowing thick. Head has trickled thin lacing layers with notes of grassy pale copper. The body although slightly stick with hop oils doesn't hold up to most big or light IPAs, medium body with a moderate level of carbonation flavor isn't bad at all actually quite hoppy and held together quite nicely for a bigger beer from up north in Michigan.

Serving type: can

05-24-2012 02:38:41 | More by WVbeergeek