Soul Doubt IPA - Freetail Brewing Company

LambicKing

Virginia

3/5  rDev -22.1%

01-23-2013 00:05:08 | More by LambicKing

inlimbo77

Delaware

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

22oz, no date
Riedel tulip

A: Pours a hazy burnt orange amber color. Two full fingers of fluffy off white to light tan head. Sticky lacing.

S: Smells good. Earthy spice. Hop aromas. Some fruit, mange orange and overripe peach.

T: You get a touch of bitterness on the tip of the tongue. Some pine and earthy hops. There is some sweetness from the malt additions. But it's got nice hop character throughout. Dry finish. Lingering hops.

M: Medium bodied.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 15:46:40 | More by inlimbo77

jl28r1

Texas

4/5  rDev +3.9%

05-18-2013 15:56:40 | More by jl28r1

AlCaponeJunior

Texas

3.94/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Pours a nice amber to copper color, mostly clear, with a creamy head that left about a 1/4" sheet of dense foam capped on top the whole way down, leaving sheets of nice sticky resinous lacing.

The aroma doesn't blow me out of the water, by any means. It's somewhat subdued, but I get Cara-Munich malt first, then some herbal, earthy hops.

Flavors much follow the aroma, but they stand out more, and leave me wondering why I don't make it out to freetail more often! The Cara-Munich and aromatic malts (along with whatever crystal malts they used) make a great base, and an unusual one for an IPA. I like the innovation! It's well hopped, but balanced very well with the moderate ABV and bold malty backbone. There's a little citrus, but I am getting mostly heavily earthy and lightly floral or grassy hop flavors.

This IPA is very unusual, and very likeable. Just don't expect to be getting a standard west coast 47 lbs of hops per five gallons type of IPA. This beer is well crafted and delicious, but it's not Pliny the Younger or Heady Topper.

When I popped the bottle and had my first sip (before I looked it up) I thought it was going to be an English type IPA. Well, I was wrong on that one. But the fact that this beer is classified as an "American IPA," along with such a huge and highly diverse group of other beers, says to me that this category may be too broad. Just a few ticks lower on the ABV and I'd think it was getting into "session IPA" territory (but nowadays, that's practically an inflammatory statement, and is likely to initiate a raging discussion about the definition of session beer, session IPA, and who knows what else).

Overall: Freetail is a great brewery, and this is a very tasty beer. It's not going to impress west-coast uber-hopheads that much, because it's more of a reasonable, drinkable IPA (the horror!), than an in-your-face, over the top, high ABV, massively hopped (to near the point of over-hopping) double IPA. I don't think that way-over-the-top was what Freetail intended, and I doubt whether the double-IPA as the "gold standard" craft beer drinker was their target here anyway. I suspect their assistant brewer just knew this recipe would make a great beer, so they brewed it, and damn the classifications or ratings.

Cheers to Freetail brewery!

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2013 01:14:09 | More by AlCaponeJunior

Rau71

California

3.25/5  rDev -15.6%

05-01-2013 03:52:50 | More by Rau71

1424IpA

California

3/5  rDev -22.1%

05-01-2013 03:49:34 | More by 1424IpA

brentk56

North Carolina

3.89/5  rDev +1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours a clear amber color capped by an impressive layer of foam; both the retention and the lacing impressed

Smell: A rather oniony tone from the hops; biscuity sweetness underneath

Taste: Biscuity malts, up front, with a pithy/oniony character developing in the middle and lingering into the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate to high carbonation

Overall: The last of the Freetail beers that I have been enjoying over the last few days and, while good, is probably my least favorite of the bunch as it lacked the citrusy/piney character of some of the other offerings

Thanks, jl28r1, for the opportunity

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2013 23:56:00 | More by brentk56

bbadger

Texas

3.5/5  rDev -9.1%

04-19-2013 21:43:40 | More by bbadger

gtermi

Texas

4/5  rDev +3.9%

03-03-2013 06:23:59 | More by gtermi

mendvicdog

Maryland

4.5/5  rDev +16.9%

01-28-2013 02:11:44 | More by mendvicdog

beenitty

New Jersey

3.63/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Always happy to show Texas some love.

Got a buddy to send me some stuff from the brewpub

A: Pours Orange/Brown with a nice bubbly head and good retention

S: Earthy, Yeasty, Pine. A bid subdued for an IPA in terms of something that stands out here.

T: Bready. A bit watery. Nice hop finish.

M: Crisp, but nothing amazing. Flavor builds with each sip but still leaving something to be desired.

D: Easy drinking, sessionable IPA.

From the artwork, I was expecting a bit more flavor from this IPA. I figured that since its dry hopped it would stand out a bit more but it left me hanging a bit. I think I'd like to try this on draft to compare because the other reviews seem to indicate that on tap the taste stands out a bit more.

I think its good, but other Texas IPAs like Stash IPA blows this outta the water. I wouldn't go out of my way for this one.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2013 04:59:16 | More by beenitty

TxUltraRunner

Texas

3.25/5  rDev -15.6%

01-11-2013 20:00:24 | More by TxUltraRunner

dumptruck81

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +10.4%

10-20-2012 18:10:40 | More by dumptruck81

Ted

Texas

4/5  rDev +3.9%

09-30-2012 01:08:20 | More by Ted

Mayhewbc

Nevada

4.25/5  rDev +10.4%

09-26-2012 16:46:27 | More by Mayhewbc

BeerHunter76

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +10.4%

09-19-2012 01:10:30 | More by BeerHunter76

kjkinsey

Texas

4/5  rDev +3.9%

09-15-2012 17:06:43 | More by kjkinsey

duff247

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +10.4%

04-24-2012 00:01:58 | More by duff247

cisteve

Texas

3.25/5  rDev -15.6%

04-07-2012 02:41:24 | More by cisteve

Bondaddyjr

3.5/5  rDev -9.1%

03-06-2012 18:07:50 | More by Bondaddyjr

MikeH210

Texas

4/5  rDev +3.9%

01-27-2012 01:40:10 | More by MikeH210

elNopalero

Texas

4.43/5  rDev +15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Freetail is calling this a SoCal punk inspired IPA, which … well, I’m not sure what it means, exactly. They’re clever and creative, and anything west coast tends to be easily summed up as: hop bomb—but this ain’t your one-dimensional cliché of a hoppy IPA in the least.

It pours an auburn color, dark and caramelly.

There’s a lightly hopped aroma to it, along with a delicate hop flavor and a slightly bitter, crisp finish. This is more akin to a hoppy pale ale, with a well-balanced malt backbone and enough sweetness to contrast the hops. Another good one!

Serving type: on-tap

01-20-2012 20:14:51 | More by elNopalero

datphoo

Texas

4.5/5  rDev +16.9%

01-15-2012 19:17:46 | More by datphoo

drummermattie02

Texas

3/5  rDev -22.1%

12-28-2011 01:34:06 | More by drummermattie02

jamescain

Texas

4.33/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a pint glass

Appearance: Pours golden-yellow with about a fingers worth of head that fades into a thin lacing and clings to the side of the glass.

Aroma: Huge citrus notes with subtle tropical fruit and pine blending with malty sweetness.

Taste: Lots of grapefruit and piny notes with a nice malty backbone balancing it all out.

Mouthfeel: Medium body and medium carbonation with a dry finish and lingering bitterness.

Overall: I'm glad Freetail decided to have an IPA on tap at all times. So far this is my favorite of the versions that they have brewed. Good aroma, balanced taste and refreshing to drink. I would definitely recommend it.

Serving type: on-tap

08-01-2011 15:30:40 | More by jamescain