Jai Alai IPA - Cedar Aged (Humidor Series) - Cigar City Brewing

Idodgepucks

Florida

4.2/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Poured from a growler into a beer mug. The color on this beer was a real nice amber, with very little head. I made two pours from this bottle though and on my second pour there was about a finger of head so I think it had more to do with my pour than the carbonation.

N - Real nice nice, not too overwhelming, but solid nose with your typical IPA notes.

T - Loved the malt/hoppy taste on this beer. Has a natural, earthy taste to it. It leaves a real nice feel that makes you want to take another swig.

O - Excellent IPA in my opinion. Doesn't have as much typical bitterness as you might expect from the American IPA's, but definitely feels more like what IPA's were originally meant to taste like.

Serving type: growler

09-09-2011 01:04:25 | More by Idodgepucks

fields336

North Carolina

4.58/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

32 oz growler, from CCB draft room.
Poured into SN Snifter

A: 2 fingers creamy off white carbonated head, tight bubbles, leaves nice lacing on the sides of the glass. Appearance is similar to normal jai alai, ambery orange color, some nice bubbles on the bottom of the glass. Head stays around for a while, looks really really nice

S: Mango, Citrus, Pine, with a slight caramel and a full bodied bready malt smell emanate from the glass. slight alcohol is present. some slight woody, earthy notes are present.

T: Really sweet and malty upfront like honey, then a wave of delicious piney, citrusy, mangoey, pineappley hops comes crashing through. Finish is really really nice, nice and dry with a lingering sweet, earthy, vanilla-y wood taste from the cedar. Wow. there is a slight burn from the alcohol but it's well masked.

M: Full bodied, this one is a sipper but it is nice. The carbonation lingers and tickles your tastebuds. not too heavy, but on the heavy side for an IPA.

O: despite its (miiniscule) flaws, this is an amazing beer, you really can't ask for much more. Everyone praises DFH for experimentation but look no further for the king, than in florida at CCB, for their Firkin's and wood aged beers are some of the most flavorful, fun, and awesome beers I've ever tasted

Serving type: growler

09-01-2011 22:39:49 | More by fields336

shand

Florida

4.63/5  rDev +13.8%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 32oz growler into a CCB snifter. My experience with this fresh from the source is substantially different from my bottled experience, thus the re-review (I tend not to review the same beer bottled and tap unless there's a noticeable difference between the two).

Pours a great hazy red color crested with a good two fingers of head that retains nicely. Absolutely huge chunks of lace make their way down the glass. There's quite a bit of apparent carbonation. The aroma is awesome, fresh zesty hops pair perfectly with the Spanish cedar. This has a lot more hop presence than the bottles I've had. The pungent hop strike sticks around for quite a bit until the second dimension comes into play - the Spanish cedar. This is a highly aromatic wood, and keeping my nose in the snifter after sipping brings the cedar much more forward. The cedar completely covers up the malts, which almost pushes the hops even more forward than in the base Jai Alai, with a very interesting backend. The cedar is much more prominent in the bottled brew I've had, this is surely more hop-forward. The aftertaste is a great spicy hop with just an bit of cedar.

The mouthfeel is nice, it's nice and sticky with a medium body and a fairly high amount of carbonation. The drinkability is absolutely exceptional. Overall, this is just a great beer. It's a great twist on the traditional IPA that any hop head should adore. I enjoyed this a lot more fresh from the source than bottled.

Serving type: growler

05-17-2011 01:33:54 | More by shand

beerwolf77

Wisconsin

3.93/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Growler thanks to fogdog. Poured into my duvel tulip.

A: deep golden orange, full two fingers of cream hued head, tons of sticky lace

S: holy cedar chips, This smells like a new set of dresser drawers that someone spilled a fresh IPA in. Once you get past the cedar the citrus fruits really shine. Unique for sure.

T: The cedar does not let up in the flavor. Nice mix of citrus and pine help to balance the cedar out. smooth malty finish.

M: Medium body moderate carbonation

D: Overall a strangely tasty IPA. Not something I could drink all the time but a refreshing change of pace for sure.

Serving type: growler

09-11-2010 02:19:58 | More by beerwolf77

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.15/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Fresh growler sent straight up from Florida, I cracked this puppy open on Saturday afternoon and watched Avatar and ate Pizza while I enjoyed it. Consumed on 04/24/2010.

Nice pour here, mellow amber in color with a nice head of white that caps it off quite well leaving some nice lacing down the sides of the glass. Aroma is citrus, mango, lots of cedar and tobacco notes. Very nice and complex. Smooth, very rich creamy feel really lets the flavor settle in very nicely. Rich notes of cedar dominate here but letting them breathe lets the hops come through and leave the mark. Rich follow though with hints of pine, light herbs, touch of grassy notes, but the wood and tobacco dominate here for sure. Really easy to drink, I would not have even guessed this was 7.5 percent to be honest. Easily polishd off the growler and was looking for more.

Overall I really liked this, it worked well for me, then again I really liked wood aged IPAs.

Serving type: growler

04-25-2010 01:32:37 | More by mikesgroove

illidurit

California

4.3/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Growler from the free table at Woodshop 5.0. Pours a clear orangey gold with a thin white head. Aroma is massively cedary with a big spruce/pine hoppiness as well as grass and citrus. Cigar City does not fuck around when it comes to cedar, according to this beer and Humidor Zhukov. If I was molested in a 100% cedar lumberyard and with every subsequent breath of my life I couldn't get that aroma out of my lungs, it would still be less intense than the cigar box battering received upon each inhalation and sip of Humidor beer. But anyway, the flavor has some unripe citrusy notes and the bitterness marries well with the woody dry finish. Rad.

Serving type: growler

02-23-2010 10:00:30 | More by illidurit

RaulMondesi

California

3.85/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Pretty solid brew for Raul. It definitely doesn't make you want to say "uh!" but it's aite like. Smell kinda like an ex-girl; it's inviting, but not intoxicating. Taste is all beautiful n kind of smooth; the cedar is slight, but it's a nice enough curve (not Kershaw nice) but nice enough to change thangs up.

Good offering, but Raulsky wouldn't hunt this thing down like the o'possum that has been waking him up every night at 2 AM.

Peace!

Serving type: bottle

04-29-2013 02:58:00 | More by RaulMondesi

jvillefan

California

4.34/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25

A: A very hazy orangish goldish body with a pure white half finger head.

S: The cedar is very obvious. It is behind the intense grapefruit, lemon, and pine aromas that the hops are giving off. There is also a subtle caramel aroma.

T: Very good. There is a dry bitterness to start it off and then it goes into a pine and grapefruit flavor. The caramel and toffee flavors form the malts come forward next and the body finishes with a smooth cedar flavor. Complex and works well.

M: Nice heavy yet silky body with perfect carbonation.

O: Great IPA. Get this one if you can.

Serving type: bottle

04-29-2013 01:44:22 | More by jvillefan

mnphish

Minnesota

4.01/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Looks like a Jai Alai. It's the same stuff but slightly less tropical and less bitter. It starts with tropical flavors of peach, citrus, guava, and orange which are balanced nicely by some smooth caramel malts. The finish is where the bold wood character almost overwhelms the base beer.

It's a very good beer, but I don't know if the cedar necessarily benefits it. Still got to give it to CCB.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2013 07:09:02 | More by mnphish

milliCAN

Indiana

4.45/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Poured into Dark Horse Brewery pint glass.

It pours a soapy head that diminishes to a beautiful lacing with loads of sediment that suspends perfectly and a few bubbles of carbonation sneaking through. I smell straight up cedar and mild hops. Breathing in while taking the first sip reminds me of my cigar smoking days. The unmistakeable cedar smell and taste gives me a beer boner. What a unique and balancing marriage of flavors. Mouthfeel is a nice and thick but unexpected hearty gulping beer. It's hard to not chug this. Ultimately I want these all day long. I have a theory on people that create art, as this beer clearly is, and that is: weather or not you have direction what you do passionately the only thing that comes out is something not of choice but something that is pure. This is a solid ass beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2013 02:39:11 | More by milliCAN

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

4.3/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

HUGE thank you to Coldsnack for just killing it in a recent trade and generously giving me this and many others!

Appearance. Pours a rich and very hazy golden-amber complete with lots of chunks (despite a somewhat careful pour). Topped with a finger of white head.

Smell. Big grapefruits, fresh cedar chips and toasted caramel malts. There are also hints of some lemons and tropical fruit.

Taste. Wow! Spicy, peppery cedar wood, some citrus hops and a touch of sweet and toasty caramel malt. The cedar is pretty interesting and awesome with those hops.

Mouthfeel. Medium+ body, medium-low carbonation.

Overall. Unique, spicy, and very flavorful. This one stands way apart in a sea of IPAs. So happy to have tried it, thanks again Coldsnack!!

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2013 02:30:19 | More by Rutager

ThisWangsChung

Maryland

3.64/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Thanks to Momar42 for the 12 oz bottle! Poured into a Duvel tulip.

A: Pours a hazy dark copper color with many yeast particles floating about. The head is a two finger white shade. Retention is fine, but the lacing left behind is great.

S: The cedar qualities here are downright shameless - to the point where they nearly overpower the trademark tropical fruit aromas of the regular Jai Alai. Honestly, though, it works in a strange way. Strong black pepper, smoke, and phenolic notes are prevalent, too.

T: Again, the word 'shameless' comes to mind when describing how the wood aging impacts the flavor profile. Citrusy hops exist as a secondary player behind the cedar, and create a minor effect of emphasizing notes of black pepper, pine, and smoke. One of the more complex IPAs I've ever had. It never balances fully - considering how much of the wood qualities come through, it's probably as balanced as it could ever be. The cedar harshness calms down after several swigs, too.

M: Like the base (Jai Alai), it's very dry yet unclean. The texture is light and crisp enough where I'd call it refreshing. Good ease of drinkability, as well.

O: I applaud the experimental bend of this brew, and it succeeds at a moderate level. It's quite tasty, but I think regular Jai Alai is just a smidge better.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2013 21:10:10 | More by ThisWangsChung

silverking

Florida

4.4/5  rDev +8.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A- Hazy amber with suspended particles, lots of them. IT has a fluffy light tan head with excellent retention and lacing.

S- Grapefruit and spicy cedar dominate the nose. The cedar also lends a delicate sweet aroma to the mix. A small amount of malt is detectable.

T- Grapefruit and citrus rind. The finish is long and shows excellent notes of cedar with a light malt presence. It's a spicy/woody treat.

M- Medium bodied with light carbonation. Silky, smooth, very easy going down.

O- The cedar does wonderful things when combined with an already wonderful IPA.

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 17:21:29 | More by silverking

NoLeafClover44

Delaware

4.43/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

12 oz. bottle poured into a JMU shaker pint. No bottling info to be found, but I have been assured this is very fresh. Thanks for sending this one, Will.

A - Pours bright amber in color with just about as many "floaties" I have ever seen in a beer. They remain in uniform suspension throughout the entire body. I wasn't expecting this, but it is an unfiltered, cedar aged beer, so maybe I should have been. The nearly white head sits at around a finger and paints the glass with lacing. I don't want to penalize a beer for being intentionally unfiltered/cloudy, but this takes it a bit far. I was more delicate on my next pour and was able to keep most of the junk in bottle through sedimentation.

S - Holy cedar! Smells like grapefruit juice soaked lincoln logs. Sweet clover honey and spicy hops complete this very unique blend of smells. Great aroma with a healthy dose of cedar.

T - More of the same. Tastes strongly of grapefruit with a big, drying, cedar wood bite. Juicy hops hint at flavors of mango, pineapple, and mandarin orange. The cedar hits hard on the back end with a spicy dry finish. The linger is the same aftertaste I experience with grapefruit juice. Dank, almost lactic, and dry. Again, a little bit different than any other IPA with generous cedar flavor.

M - Medium bodied with sharp carbonation and a drying finish. Leaves my tongue coated with resinous hops.

O - Some beers claim they are aged on "this" with "that" added and you have to convince yourself you can taste the special ingredients. This is not one of those beers. The cedar packs a punch in both the aroma and the flavor. I was blown away by how much goodness the cedar imparted on this beer. It paired wonderfully with the tropical fruit and grapfruit flavors found in the base IPA. One of the most strikingly different beers I have tried in a while, but it gets very high marks from me.

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 01:02:18 | More by NoLeafClover44

MDDMD

Pennsylvania

3.96/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A-clear amber color with a nice off-white head and good lacing

S-citrus, cedar, pine, hints of sweet malt

T-citrus, pine, big cedar flavor, slight sweet malt and tobacco, moderately bitter finish

F-medium body with moderate carbonation, smooth and more viscous than a typical IPA

O-a decent variant with unique flavor, but I prefer the regular and the White Oak

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2013 02:24:11 | More by MDDMD

mscudder

Georgia

4.13/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Served in a pint. Big thanks to Corey for bringing these back from the release last week!

A - Translucent amber with a citrus glow. Two finger light-ivory head with excellent retention and lacing.

S - Grapefruit, citrus and cedar. All in a nice delicate balance. Could be more robust.

T - Big cedar presence among citrus and hops. Cedar is at center-stage, although I do not think I have a problem with that...

M - Nice medium body with enough carbonation to keep it alive. Lets the cedar curb the feel nicely.

O - A unique IPA for sure. Nice hop profile that is tamed by cedar, cedar, cedar. Happy to have 7 left!

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2013 04:30:06 | More by mscudder

Star80

Illinois

4.34/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks Blastbeats for sharing! Too cool, just got a fresh bottle from the brewery.

A - Appears a cloudy orange color with a sticky, frothy head.

S - Smells extremely interesting, actually reminds me of the smell of Binney's liquor stores when you first walk in, haha. Smells like fresh cut cedar, backed up with a spicy hop aroma. Very enticing aromas!

T - Taste is more hops and grapefruit and less cedar, but you catch it when you exhale through the nose. Lots of bittering piney hops, actually the cedar wood really accentuates the pineyness and resinous grapefruit without any of the tropical hops like Jai Alai.

M - Mouth feel is smooth, rich and full,

O - Overall an extremely unique and interesting beer that seems to work. I can imagine this beer really shines when paired with food, particularly spicy seafood or cajun dishes.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2013 23:23:36 | More by Star80

BeerMeBrah

Florida

4.63/5  rDev +13.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Poured into cigar city snifter. Smell has many piny citrus and hoppy notes. Great overall rush of hops and nice dark orange look with the Cedar flavor being very apparent. This is another huge hit for me and further proves why Cigar City is one of the best breweries in the country. Overall a very enjoyable beer and plan on drinking whenever I find it available. Cigar City never fails.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2013 01:41:13 | More by BeerMeBrah

PerHops

California

4.29/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Beer has a dark almost amber color with very little head after the first few seconds. It smells much better than I anticipated from a barrel aged ipa. Huge tropical fruit and grapefruit nose with just a touch of cedar. The taste follows suit, at first, but the finish is almost all cedar. This adds a lot of complexity to the beer giving it notes of wood, tobacco and leather. I didn't think I would like this beer, but it exceeded my expectations by a lot. I would love to try the base beer, but this was for sure the best barrel aged ipa I've tried.

Serving type: bottle

03-09-2013 05:04:38 | More by PerHops

Justin_Neff

Ohio

3.79/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Bottle received from Smokinoak. Big thanks!

A: Pours a cloudy dark, burnt orange body. Creates a massive pillow-like beige colored head. Clings to the glass the whole time it slowly disappears.

S: The cedar smell dominates, underlined with exotic fruits and a bit of citrus - Mango, Papaya, Pineapple, Orange, Grapefruit. The cedar smell comes off a little bit like tomato juice. Peppery.

T: The Cedar is the star of the show here. Definitely some fruity citrus character, as well as some hop bitterness to take away from the sweetness of the fruit. Again, as the smell suggests, the cedar has a tomato juice resemblance. A little bit of a different taste with every sip - IMO that reveals a high level of complexity.

M: Medium Body. Moderate carbonation. A little dry actually. Sticky.

O: It took a few minutes for this one to sink for me honestly. At first I thought the wood was overly dominant. Then I took another sip and got seemingly an entirely different taste. As it warmed even more complexity came out. Definitely not my favorite, but definitely a cool twist to an already stellar IPA.

Serving type: bottle

03-09-2013 01:24:25 | More by Justin_Neff

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.79/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

On tap at Cigar City Tampa FL for 5$

Appearance - Slightly hazy gold colour with a large size fizzy white coloured head. There is a low amount of carbonation showing and there is some great lacing. The head lasted for only a few minutes.

Smell - Hops, malts, grapefruit, wood/smoke

Taste & Mouth - There is an average amount of carbonation and I can taste caramel and malts mixed with hops. There is also some grapefruits mixed with cedar/smokey/peppery notes. It ends with a bitter hop aftertaste and some lingering woody notes.

Overall – I had this along side a regular Jai and this one seemed to lose a bit of the tropical fruitiness while gaining the woody flavours. It's a really interesting beer, but not something I'd want to drink a whole lot of.

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2013 01:28:45 | More by spinrsx

Mounty4Life

Pennsylvania

4.48/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

750ml bottle at ginos in Tampa
poured a nice orange color with a lot of foam. Nice pacing and small head stuck around.
Smell was similar to jai alai but more subtle. Citrusy but didn't have the pop of regular ipa. Taste of pine citrus and just a bit mellow for what I was anticipating, the cedar must mute some of the hops. Not a bad thing just after jai alai was expecting major hop pop on tongue. Medium mouthfeel for ipa with nice aftertaste. Overall great job again by cigar city! I was just expecting more reading they just aged jai alai in Spanish cedar and after paying 15$ for 22oz. Glad I did, but know that your better off saving some ding and sticking with the reggie jai alai!

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2013 21:29:06 | More by Mounty4Life

sweemzander

Illinois

3.03/5  rDev -25.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

750mL bottle poured into a tulip. Thanks to Matt for sharing!

(A)- Pours a slightly hazed goldenrod yellow/orange color. Some decent white froth and lacing.

(S)- Very woody. I can see how much the cedar is playing a role in this beer. Citrus gets kind of lost in the deep cedar and pine notes.

(T)- Again, intense notes of the cedar and pine. Some citrus is there, but it sure gets lost behind all the wood.

(M)- A good carbonation level. I appreciate the nuance of the cedar in this, but it really overwhelms the rest of the beer's profile.

(O)- I always appreciate and enjoy different ways to make the same beer, but I think in this instance, it gets lost behind all the wood characters.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2012 17:12:03 | More by sweemzander

IrishHockey

Indiana

4.6/5  rDev +13%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Recieved this awesome beer in a trade from Immortale25.

Poured into a Founders tulip glass

Pours a cloudy orange color with a 1 finger off white head.

The smell on this beer is amazing! It's like smelling a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice.

The taste on this incredible. Lots of citrus taste. I can taste the orange, grapefruit, and maybe some peach. Not a bitter hop forward brew, but a very tasty easy drinking IPA. I love it. A little less carbonation would have made this a perfect beer.

Overall I would buy this again and again. Very well done!

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2012 02:30:27 | More by IrishHockey

superspak

Michigan

4.23/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 9/17/2012. Pours extremely hazy orange amber color with a nice 2 finger dense off white head with great retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Nice dense foamy lacing clings to the glass. Aromas of big orange, mango, orange rind, grapefruit, pineapple, caramel, cedar, floral, grass, toast, and herbal earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great hop complexity and good balance. Lots of sweet hops with minimal pine or spiciness balance. Taste of big orange zest, pineapple, grapefruit, orange rind, caramel, floral, grass, toast, light cedar, light pine, and herbal spiciness. Good amount of citrus bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of citrus, pineapple, caramel, toast, light pine, grass, and herbal spiciness on the finish for a good bit. Fantastic balance of hop flavors with a nicely balanced malt backbone; zero cloying flavors noticed after the finish. Cedar wasn’t too noticeable, but it probably also smoothed out the beer flavors. Medium carbonation and body; with a nice creamy, lightly slick, and crisp mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is extremely well hidden with pretty much zero warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a highly excellent IPA! Great hop complexity and flavor balance; very smooth and easy to sip on. A highly enjoyable offering as I expected.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2012 05:30:40 | More by superspak