Swamp Ape IPA - Florida Beer Company

womencantsail

California

2.58/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

Thanks for sharing this one, Bobby.

A: Pours a very clear golden orange color with a finger of white head and some sticky lacing.

S: Much sweeter than expected. Most of the aroma is reminiscent of sugar and candy. Some light fruitiness, maybe some grass. Not much hop aroma, though.

T: Very minimally bitter. Intensely sweet. Sugary and candy-like without much balance or depth to the flavor. No real hop flavor to this beer either.

M: Medium in body with a moderate level of carbonation.

O: It could be worse, but there's really just very little going on other than the sweetness.

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2011 06:38:28 | More by womencantsail

brentk56

North Carolina

2.68/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Appearance: Pours a clear golden color with a nice head that leaves several strands of lace

Smell: Smells like a barley lollypop with a bitter edge

Taste: Candy-sweet on the front end with a growing bitterness that builds both before and after the swallow; no citrus or pine - just bitterness; the finish, however, has a lot of residual sweetness; overall, a boozy mess

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation; a bit slick with a lot of warmth in the gullet

Overall: Recent reviews being more encouraging about this beer, I wanted to see what the fuss was about and after two or three sips I have made my determination and am done; no need to ever come back to this again

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2013 03:23:56 | More by brentk56

drabmuh

Maryland

3.03/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

This was a DIPA? I am not afraid to admit that I only drank this because of the label. Badass, I hope the picture gets posted soon.

Beer is copper with almost no head, carbonation low, no lacing.

Aroma is mildly hoppy with a lot of caramel malt character. IPA...really?

Beer is really sweet and boozy, mild hop presence but ultimately it falls flat. It's pretty not good for an IPA. I wouldn't have it again, unless they come up with an even cooler label.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2011 20:18:52 | More by drabmuh

zeff80

Missouri

3.33/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

On tap at Tap 42 in Fort Lauderdale.

A - Poured out a clear, copper color with a one-finger white head of bubbly foam. It left some sudsy patches of lace on the glass.

S - It smelled malty and piney. Not alot of depth here.

T - Spicy and little hot with some strong pine notes. Good roasted malt flavor, but the hop bite seems unbalanced.

M - It was crisp and sharp. A medium bodied ale with a hot alcohol punch.

O - This is an okay Double IPA. I feels like it need more balance to be good.

Serving type: on-tap

04-14-2012 02:54:00 | More by zeff80

MasterSki

Illinois

2.58/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

Obscure Florida brew courtesy of Beerlando. Batch 0001?, served in a Russian River tulip.

A - Pours with half-finger of white foam that settles to a thin ring and a few patches of bubbles on top, but negligible lacing. Transparent golden body. that is pretty attractive.

S - Booze, apples, dorm carpet, some mild vomit. Not much in the way of hops here. Pretty dismal.

T - Taste is slightly better than the aroma, with cookie, lightly browned sugar, and a strange mid-palate astringency. Still pretty bad, and still very little in the way of hops.

M - Soft texture, medium body, lower carbonation - drinks smaller than the listed 10%, although there is a bit of warming after a few ounces. Not as bad as the rest of the brew.

D - This is just not very good. Did this really need to be 10% - the bottle calls it an IPA (and not Imperial or Double) which implies these guys don't really know what they are doing. In any case it'd be a struggle to finish 12oz of this one.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2011 20:31:44 | More by MasterSki

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

2.93/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

First had: bottle at Riverside Market Cafe, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Copper colored pour, clear, with a thin white cap that mostly dissipated, leaving a bit of lacing on the glass. Aroma was pretty strange, sweet malts, caramel apple, overripe melons, not much in the way of fresh hops. The taste reflected the nose. There was something off here. There was a bit of piney hop bitterness, but it hovered in the background, never really coming out as it should (considering it's supposed to be an IPA), caramel malts and more overripe fruit sweetness, with a bit of booze, though no real heat was felt from the higher ABV level. About medium in body, awkward and sticky, not undrinkable, but not really what I'm looking for in any kind of IPA.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 21:21:48 | More by Rifugium

stakem

Pennsylvania

2.85/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

12oz brown bottle with no indication of freshness. Poured into a pint glass, this brew appears a clear color of light orange. A finger of white froth sits atop the brew and quickly recedes down to a thin film. Rising bubbles of carbonation maintain a thin film across the top and a light swirl agitates a few bubbles out of solution. As sips are taken some small spots of lace stick to the glass.

The smell of this brew includes some mellow fruity hops that have a bit of citrus inclusion somewhat reminiscent of grapefruit and other citrus zests. A bit of mellon character exists through the middle as well as a bit of dank character emerges and mixes with a bit of stinky almost cheesy grain inclusion. More smells reveal some solid alcohol character that is lightly solvent that has some acetone. This is one of those brew that doesn't smell too bad while it is cold but as it warms up it turns.

The taste is as much hoppy as it is grainy. Hops are present with a flavor that is lightly pine-like and cheesy character is present with a musty grain inclusion. The alcohol is quite bold and solvent and imparts a bit of plastic character that gets increasingly noticeable as the brew warms up. The aftertaste is primarily plastic and solvent alcohol which just isn't that enjoyable.

This is a medium to full bodied brew with a light amount of carbonation. It is smooth in the feel and the alcohol, while not as aggressive as some at this level, is still noticeable for double-digits. Overall I felt like this brew needs some work. It has some nice points about it but the plastic character has got to go.

Serving type: bottle

11-22-2011 03:02:00 | More by stakem

thagr81us

South Carolina

2.7/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Big thanks goes out to cmrillo's wife for sharing this one! Served from bottle into a Mikkeller taster flute. Poured a golden yellow with a minimal white head. Maintained decent lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, citrus, citrus hop, fruit, grapefruit, and kitty litter. The flavor was of sweet malt, fruit, citrus, citrus, kitty litter, and woody hop. It had a medium feel on the palate with medium-high carbonation. Overall this was a fairly average brew. Just something about this brew was a little off-putting in my opinion. Not sure what was going on here but it was just a little weird. Worth trying if you are a ticker, but otherwise, I wouldn't bother.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2012 15:53:14 | More by thagr81us

kylehay2004

Florida

2.55/5  rDev -12.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

A: Single finger foamy head. clear amber with golden hues.

S: Sweet, grapefruit, little hops.

T: Very malty and piney but where are the hops? The initial taste hits hard. Some what bitter with some citrus and caramel at the end that drops off rapidly. It almost finishes like a whiskey but not as tart.

M: Moderate carbonation. Medium to Full bodied.

Overall: I can get why so many posts gripe about this beer. Its unique but a poor representative of its genre.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2011 06:36:21 | More by kylehay2004

nickfl

Florida

3.68/5  rDev +26.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - The beer pours with one finger of dense, white foam on top of a clear, amber-brown body. The head has good staying power and it leaves moderate lace as it settles.

S - Sweet, caramel malt with some brown sugar and sweaty orange flavored hops.

T - Thick, dark caramel malt up front with notes of molasses and toffee. Some pine and grapefruit hops come out in the middle with more dark malt that brings up spicy, mustard like notes in the hop profile. Things finish up with more spicy hops and caramel malt.

M - Medium-thick body, moderate carbonation, and a fairly sweet finish.

D - This is a pretty nice, if unremarkable, east coast IPA. The hop aroma is pretty well put together, and the malt more than keeps up with it. There is a lot of sugar character in the flavor profile with an intense caramel note. The finish has just enough bitterness to keep it balanced while the spicy hops match the toffee. I would like to see more hop character for a DIPA, but its pretty drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2011 06:10:04 | More by nickfl

smakawhat

Maryland

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

Poured from the bottle into a nonic pint glass.

A real nice colorful orange amber body, quite crystal clear also, just some faint haze, but a creamy and very even off white head that barley makes three fingers and settles into a one finger cap with some ring lacing. Pretty nice looking.

Nose is weak. Mild malt backbone but not much of a hop presence here. Nothing faulty or offensive, just a hint of juicy citrus but really reaching.

Taste is just weird. I don't know how else to describe it. Strangely malt forward with neither a hop action, but a thick sugary syrup maple sweetness and texture. Hop action seems to resonate some sugary bitter that doesn't stick around, with an almost sugar toffee finish. For the high abv this isn't very boozy at all which is a good sign.

Overall this beer is just too strange, and comes off as a sort of malty strong juicy ale with an angle that doesnt mesh in the DIPA realm. This just doesn't jive with me at all, it's too bizarre. It's not by any means awful at all, but in the DIPA realm this is just not delivering at all. Wont be having this again.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2012 00:57:25 | More by smakawhat

GarthDanielson

New Hampshire

2.75/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Poured on-tap and served in a pint glass, the beer is a bright, hazy orange-copper coloring with a steady flow of bubbles and a thick, light, frothy white head that settles quickly. The nose is super-citrus lemon/lime with overtones of dark, wet hops. Smells like an IPA mixed with Sprite. Syrupy malt backbone with lots of peppery-noted hops bouncing off. The aftertaste is spicy and slightly citus sweet again. Smooth finish, despite the heavy booze influence and flavors.

Serving type: on-tap

06-16-2011 01:47:32 | More by GarthDanielson

cjgator3

Florida

3.78/5  rDev +29.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle

A- Pours clear copper color with a nice off-white head.

S-The aroma is has a good dose of malt, more balanced than expected. Sweet malt and hints of caramel are in the nose with some citrus from the hops and some alcohol as well.

T- The taste like the aroma is sweet and malty up front with some bitterness from the hops in the finish and some warming from the alcohol as well. This is a nice, well balanced IPA. Not sure why there are some of the really harsh reviews.

M- The mouthfeel is between light and medium bodied with a good amount of carbonation.

D- Overall, this is a pretty solid IPA in my book. It's not a world changing beer by any means, but a nice solid beer that I enjoyed. Recommended!

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2011 03:19:01 | More by cjgator3

cpetrone84

Pennsylvania

2.8/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Pours a light orange, mostly transparent with a touch of haze, and a tight cream colored head and a few large bubbles mixed in. The nose is a bit grainy for an imperial IPA. There are notes of citric orange with some nail polish type acetone. The flavor is a bit hoppier, thick syrupy feel, rather sweet with some citirc hops, the grains are lighter and more balanced, assertive carbonation, semi dry finish and fairly present alcohol and bitterness.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2011 21:10:25 | More by cpetrone84

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

2.95/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Review from BeerAdvocate Magazine Issue #46 (Nov 2010):

The head reaches high off a moderate pour; retention is great as well, as is the pale amber clarity of the brew. Pungent, hoppy nose meets a big twang of estery alcohol. Smooth, creamy and a little bitty. The alcohol and hop pro- files are a one-two punch to the palate. Some toasted grain comes through, but the sweet fruity and peppery alcohol esters push it aside. Hop bitterness is a little pungent with a thick, leafy, herbal tone that casts some citric and mint on the taste buds. Esters and a veggie-like hop cling on and make the beer a bit of a chore to drink. Not half bad.

Serving type: bottle

02-04-2011 02:15:45 | More by BeerAdvocate

scottfrie

California

2.03/5  rDev -30.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Thanks for the tick, Dan.

A: Pours a super light clear straw color with basically no head or lace.
S: I’m not getting very much hop aroma on the nose, and what hops do come through are pretty rotten smelling. I get what smells like burnt malt as well.
T: Watery booze. There is almost no flavor at all except some bitterness in the aftertaste, a touch of sweetness, and harsh booze. Hops are rank.
M: Body is on the thin side of medium, and the alcohol isn’t masked at all. Thin carbonation.
O: An atrocious dipa and an awful beer. Avoid the swamp-ass.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2012 17:37:35 | More by scottfrie

Chaney

District of Columbia

1.9/5  rDev -34.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

I had this on tap at the Yard House in Palm Beach.

A: Poured a clear, fairly translucent golden color (a tinge of haze), with very little visible carbonation. It had about a 1/3 finger sticky white head.

S: Muted citrus, candy sugar +++. That's about it.

T: OMG! This tasted like formaldehyde! Additionally, the aftertaste was very boozy, sugar-infused (+++!), and with a tinge of skunky sourness. Not good...

M: Swirly lacing, but I honestly didn't give a shit since the taste was so bad. Low carbonation. Sugar bomz r' us in spades!

O: This was by far the worst beer I've tried so far in 2012.

Serving type: on-tap

01-20-2012 21:06:11 | More by Chaney

RonfromJersey

New Jersey

2.2/5  rDev -24.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Number 2 on the 2013 spring break tour.

Tarnished gold body, a rapidly disappearing white head that turned into an oil slick immediately. Good clarity. No lace.

Strong pine aroma. Leans a little too much to cleanser than fresh forest.

Big front load of malt, sweet like a dopplebock. Very low key fruit. Abrasive, abusive bitterness. Not in a good way.

Too thick mouthfeel. Needs more carbonation. Again more bock than IPA.

A major disappointment of an IPA. Great name though.

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2013 21:58:13 | More by RonfromJersey

Drew966

Florida

3.25/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Swamp Ape IPA pours a pale amber with a thin off white head from the tap (at the tasting room of the brewery). The aroma is a bit fruity, a bit hoppy too but overall is quite mild. The flavor is hoppy, mostly a pine like hop quality dominates. There is a bit of a fruity flavor too, and a touch of peppery alcohol. So-so, I wouldn't turn one down, but not especially great.

Serving type: on-tap

02-27-2011 05:41:05 | More by Drew966

CampusCrew

Florida

4.13/5  rDev +41.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

appearance: golden orange and cloudy complexion

smell: heavy citrus, orange peel and some nice floral aroma, strong pineapple and tropical aromas.

taste: Lots of citrus mixed in with tropical fruits like pineapple and mango. A sweet malty IPA. well done.

mouthfeel: medium full bodied

drinkability: very nice offering from this brewery and I look forward to many more like this. Thanks

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2010 15:25:35 | More by CampusCrew

katan

Colorado

3.65/5  rDev +25.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12oz into a pint

A - Deep gold in color, perhaps a little bit orange. Light head formation, almost none actually. The pearl white film is all that you can see. Very hazy and opaque.

S - All kinds of hops here, mainly a citrus start with a rather earthy and piney background. It seems to be sweet, but when you inhale deeper you can detect a pretty hefty hop body.

T - Starts off with just a hint of malts, but that is immediately bombed by all the hops. Citrus, sweet at first - then in the middle gets rather bitter and resinous. Finishes even more better - lighting up the outside of the tongue.

M - Full bodied but not enough carbonation to bring it back to balance. Thick and sweet, clingy, with a big oily aftertaste.

O/D - An over the top kind of citrus hop bomb - perhaps a little too monotone for me. Generally a slow sipper, and the high alcohol will roll you.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2012 19:46:09 | More by katan

PorterLambic

Florida

3.85/5  rDev +32.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I've read the other reviews and had several of the Florida Beer Co.'s offerings over the years, dating back to the Ybor City days and Gaspar's Porter (nee Ale). Admittedly, the beers are not standouts but they seem solid MOR options with consistent quality. And they are fairly on-style (unlike Sam Adams). Well, we all have our opinions. Here's mine.

Arrives a clear golden color with a white head that has no real retention, just a ring of foam.
Smell is citrusy and piney hops notes with light malt and pepper flavors. Not a hop bomb, a more balanced mixture.
Taste is pine, malt, citrus, ginger and a sweetness reminiscent of cane sugar. The ginger note is unexpected but works for the style.
Full bodied with a medium plus carbonation. Finish is dry with a lingering evergreen aspect to it. As expected for an IPA. I liked this beer and while I'm not a big fan of IPAs in general, I'm finding the Double/Imperial IPAs to be quite good. Having more to it than a dump truck load of hops is a good thing in my opinion.

Serving type: on-tap

10-09-2012 15:15:45 | More by PorterLambic

mntlover

Tennessee

2.83/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

Pours a clear burnt orange color with two finger cream colored head that falls slow to ring with some lace.

Aroma is kind of nice more barley wine like overripe tropical fruits mingled with caramel malts, stale tobacco leaves light alcohol notes. Maybe smells like an aged I2PA. Not bright and hoppy as most I2PA's.

Taste is malty caramel again tastes kind of aged with that overripe fruit notes mingling with the malt. Hops are more sticky tobacco like then anything, some fruitiness but really seems like that's coming from the malt? Some pretty good alcohol ester floating around it is noticeable but not really detracting per say. Bot sure whats going on here but not a double IPA. Label talks about a hop monster with 5 hops but if that's the case maybe its old, can't find date on it but it has recent reviews.

Mouthfeel is big medium with lightly peppy carbonation that fits the supposed style well.

Overall a bad I2PA but not terrible beer, kind of reminds me of some old I2PA's I tried to age before but not as good as those either?

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2012 23:47:21 | More by mntlover

JayS2629

Alabama

2.93/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

This poured a clear golden color with a great white head that stuck around and left nice lacing.

The aroma was a little hot with orange marmalade, grapefruit, apples and dark caramel with a touch of honey. Alcohol smell not well hidden.

The flavor is a little hot and clashes with a hop profile that is astringent and tangeled. Its a bad mix of citrus, pine, and medicinal flavors. Very band-aid like.

Mouthfeel is fine, crisp and medium bodied.

I wouldn't buy it again.

Serving type: bottle

09-15-2011 03:00:25 | More by JayS2629

AdamBear

Pennsylvania

2.55/5  rDev -12.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

A-cloudy amber with a nice cream colored head. slow bubbles

S-strong scent of spicy hops with some grassiness. smells boozy with a hint of vanilla.

T-hits the tongue with a bitterness and oddly spiced hops. the taste is between skunky and buttery. the after-taste is bitter and reminds me of those multi grain wafers. there is a woodiness there as well. this is not a good balance of ingredients.

M-medium carbonation with a semi-dry finish

O-by far the strongest DIPA i've had that does not satisfy any hop cravings. its really not a terrible beer, but there is a complexity to it that isn't well balanced. i feel that the choice of hops was a bad one, either that or they added the hops not in a good way for IPAs. i think this beer has potential but has some major tweaking to be dealt with. i do wonder though how a beer like this has made itself as common as it is in this area. i can't imagine anyone enjoying this.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 06:23:45 | More by AdamBear