Bunker Buster IPA - Blue Hills Brewery

smcolw

Massachusetts

4.15/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Lasting, if modest, head. Leaves a blanket of lace...initially. Very cloudy with a green-orange color. No permanent lace.

The smell features a combination of grapefruit rind and pineapple. Attractive.

The taste starts with the aforementioned pineapple but quickly gives way to a hot pepper bitterness. The aftertaste is one of the longest I've had. The body is mildly thin but the carbonation is cask-conditioned low.

Serving type: cask

09-02-2012 17:37:30 | More by smcolw

andylipp

Massachusetts

2.73/5  rDev -27.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 3

Pre-filled growler from the brewery. Poured into a Corsendonk tulip (my standard taster).

A – Pours a hazy pale gold with a surprisingly effervescent white head that receded quickly. Almost no lacing on the glass, even after a few swirls.

S – Considering the hop bill, I assumed that this one would be quite fragrant but there was, surprisingly, mostly grain in the nose. The citrus hop aroma was there, but I had to really look for it.

T – Fairly tasty, but grainy. Anything but sweet. High bitterness, but simultaneously exhibiting more muted hop flavors (tangerine, Mineola orange, some piney accents). A fairly long, biter finish.

M –Light body, with a club soda-like carbonation that was a bit too much.

O – I was expecting more. I appreciate that BHB attempted to dial up the hops to make a more traditional American, perhaps "west coast" IPA (their original IPA is so unusual as to put off many IPA drinkers), but this one is a bit of a miss for me. A lack of hop aroma, thin body and the the seltzer-like mouthfeel means I likely won’t go out of my way to buy this one again. I prefer their original IPA.

UPDATE: 2 days later, after the carbonation fell off a bit, the hop flavors and aroma came out a bit more. I updated my Taste score appropriately.

Serving type: growler

10-01-2012 21:46:49 | More by andylipp