Green Monsta IPA - Wachusett Brewing Company

tobelerone

New Jersey

3.53/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Hazy golden orange colored body; big, fluffy off-white head, excellent retention and lace. Appearance is solid. Aroma is sweet caramel malt and grapefruit hops, spices, and pine.

A bit on the sweet side, again with citrusy, grapefruit forward hop flavors, some pine, general fruitiness. Light herbal and spice flavors. Malt character is mostly caramel and fairly generic, doesn’t detract from the centennial and cascade hop notes or make much of an impression at all. Bitterness is pretty moderate for a contemporary AIPA.

Carbonation is medium to high, body slightly on the thinner side. Semi-dry finish. Easy drinking. Overall a decent IPA but not a standout in a crowded field.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2012 04:00:25 | More by tobelerone

chefhatt

Pennsylvania

3.9/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This beer when poured into a pint glass, it has a dark gold color body with a nice 2"of white head, that doesn't stay around long,but goes to a nice thin lace. The smell is of earthy hops. The hops hits your taste buds pretty strong, then a little bit of malt comes on the back of the tongue. The hops have a bitter finish. Great mouth feel, easy drinking ipa.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2012 20:47:02 | More by chefhatt

OtherShoe2

Massachusetts

3.53/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours medium orange with a decent off-white head. Some lace, but none that sticks around.

Light herbal hop notes and toasted malt, Some bread and grain.

Middle of the road American IPA. A little lean in the flavor dept. Malt is toasty but not quite intense enough. Some bread crust and fairly nondescript hoppy notes. The bitterness is good in proportion to the malt, but there is some depth missing. Finishes with some malt and longer bitterness.

Medium bodied, a little bit thinner than expected.

A decent version of the style, but really middle of the pack. I'd have it again but there are many others out there that do it better.

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2012 06:00:23 | More by OtherShoe2

DrJay

Massachusetts

3.03/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Slitly hazy orange/amber with a short cap of beige bubbles. Decent head retention with a bit of clumpy lacing. Bready and malty aroma with a bit of citrus and pine, leafy hops - pretty mild overall. Fruity bitterness with an earthy, slightly harsh, edge to it. Moderate malt sweetness, mostly citrus. Medium bodied, moderate carbonation. A servicable IPA, but I didn't find it well balanced in the flavour and the aroma was on the light side for the style. Still, I wouldn't hesitate to order one on tap to see how it translated.

Serving type: bottle

01-21-2012 21:55:39 | More by DrJay

jaasen64

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A- brownish gold, about a finger of head, good retention.

S- hops and spices definitely come through.

T- Hoppy, but not overly so. Fairly crisp, a little bit sweet, light spices, but not too much flavor.

M- Pretty smooth and drinkable, but not the smoothest IPA I've had.

O- A pretty average IPA. Not bad, but by no means a go to IPA. I'd rank it pretty much in the middle of the IPAs that I've tried, being a Red Sox fan the best thing about this beer is definitely its name.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2012 22:53:43 | More by jaasen64

BigCheese

Massachusetts

3.98/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

From a mix 12 pack

A: amber copper hazy, nice tan head, some lacing but not a ton.

S: some cascade and centennial hops, pine and some citrus. Weak aroma overall.

T: taste packs more punch. I get an initial wave of mango, passion fruit, pineapple and tropical fruits. . Some honey malt is present to. Also some bready English ale yeast. Finishes with some floral hops and pine. Clean finish. Quite good. Legit hop character

M: slightly chewy but light, medium carbonation, quite sessionable. A tad watery.

O: pretty legit ipa. Better than many other local offerings. Nice tropical hop profile, with decent malt back one. Really solid option and great for the price, would love to try on tap, maybe next time I'm at fenway.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2012 02:57:11 | More by BigCheese

mikesgroove

South Carolina

3.08/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

t amber color and nice clarity to it. A small head of maybe a half an inch rose up from the bottom and settled down to nothing rather quickly with little in the way of any fan fare.

The aroma was rather light. Lots of malts in this one at first, not really getting the strong hop nose of an IPA. As it warmed though some nice touch of pine came through, but again nothing very heavy. Same can be said for the taste which was nothing to write home about. Light citrus hops, touches of grain and a bready malt base. Not bad really, just nothing really pushing it any direction at all

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2011 15:22:19 | More by mikesgroove

StonedTrippin

Colorado

3.03/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

overall a very average ipa. has a nose of pine and cascade hops, but they are not well balanced in the flavor. its got a strange bitterness to it, unconventional and off a little to me. big bodied beer, but cannot get much malt flavors in my mouth because of the overpowering hop element. i usually like hoppy beers and seek them out, but this one is not well done. a more balanced flavor is needed here.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2011 23:43:27 | More by StonedTrippin

danmcg62

Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A-Poured from a bottle into a pint glass. Pours a rusty color with thumb width head that slowly disappears leaving some nice lacing on the side of the glass, mild carbonation. Basically what an IPA should look like.

S-Citrusy hops come through with an almost bready smell pulling up the rear, a bit malty as well.

T-Mild hop bitterness comes through first, mild breadiness and malt is there too.

M-Smooth drinking, not too bitter.

O-Overall this is a solid IPA from Wachusett, easy drinking. It was one of my favorites over the summer. They had it on tap at Fenway Park near our seats.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2011 00:44:02 | More by danmcg62

biglobo8971

Minnesota

3.58/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

poured from bottle into a pub glass. Poured a "TV beer" with great color, great head, with decent lacing. The smell is of sweet hops with a slight malt back bone. The taste is very average, not much hop bitterness, not much malt sweetness, not much dank, not much of any out shining taste. Easy to drink because it is so well balanced, not in a good way. Would prefer more bite, bitterness, and sweetness from my IPAs, this one had not much of any of these. Will not seek this beer out again, but if its my only IPA choice at a ballpark, will drink plenty of them.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2011 21:08:34 | More by biglobo8971

soju6

Missouri

3.68/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a deep golden color with a big foamy head that fades slowly to lots of lacing.

S: Aroma of fresh grain, pine, herbs and bit of citrus.

T: Strats with a crisp nip and mild malt sweetness. There is a nice bitterness and a dry finish.

F: Medium body, crisp, smooth. Fresh and clean. Good balance, Has a nice character.

O: Nice IPA. Grabbed this to complete a 6-pack mixer. Enjoyable beer, nothing fancy.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2011 18:19:23 | More by soju6

ppoitras

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +19%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Enjoyed on cask at Brew City, Worcester, MA.

Arrived in a pint glass with a 1" off-white head over the cloudy coppery blonde brew. Tons of lace, with a long-lasting head. Nose is prominently spicy hops.

Taste begins lightly sweet upfront, with piney bitterness in the middle, which continues through the slightly chalky close. Mouthfeel is amazingly smooth, and oh-so drinkable. Would have this on cask again, no hesitation.

Serving type: cask

09-28-2011 01:07:54 | More by ppoitras

PDXHops

South Carolina

3.53/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On tap in a shaker pint. See-thru light amber with a half-finger head that soon becomes a bubbly skim. Nice little band of lace up top, though.

Big grassy and herbal aromas overshadow anything else. They could have called this Green Grass IPA; it's absolutely one of the grassiest beers I've ever tasted. Kinda odd at first, but it grew on me. Mint and herbal notes, some cereal grain. Fairly bitter. Dry and crisp malt profile allows the hops to do their thing. Interesting take on the IPA style that took me from 'huh?' to contemplating a second pint.

Serving type: on-tap

08-28-2011 14:39:54 | More by PDXHops

Jwale73

Rhode Island

3.68/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz. bottle served in my Wachusett tulip nonic. Best before Sep 2011 notched on the label. Pours a translucent copper with a one inch, frothy, bone-colored head. Head settles into a soapy swirl and a tight band that coalesces around the edges. Swaths and slashes of lacing exhibit excellent retention along the walls of the glass. Nose express piny/citrusy hops on a toasted malt backbone Taste follows nose; however, less citrus and more earthy/piny/herbal hops with a bitterness that lingers between quaffs. Mouthfeel is light-medium with an assertive, almost prickly carbonation that lingers on the palate between sips and a slight acidity that lightly stimulates the salivary. All and all, a decent American IPA and I have to say, I prefer this version to the retried one. A solid offering and well worth your time if the opportunity presents.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2011 01:00:28 | More by Jwale73

rudzud

Massachusetts

3.45/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On cask at The Boynton in Worcester,MA.

A - Poured into a standard pint glass a crystal clear copper with a sudsy quarter inch head that fades slowly to leave a light halo and no sidelacing.

S - Average malt and hops. Light floral but fairly standard.

T - light citrus hops and floral notes with slight carmel malts.

M - Average cask mouthfeel. Nice ans creamy andlow carbonation.

O - A very unimpressive wachusett ipa. Huge disappointment.

Serving type: cask

07-24-2011 00:26:44 | More by rudzud

perrymarcus

Massachusetts

2.98/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12oz bottle served in a SA 'perfect pint' glass.

pours a clear, coppery amber tone while yielding a nice, foamy finger+ of off-white head. respectable head retention and lacing. fine looking beer.

nose is likewise nice, if not especially outstanding. fairly aromatic and obviously hop-forward, i get notes of pine, herbal, and citrus, and some malt character in the background.

flavor is a disappointment. wasn't expecting other-worldliness, but to me it definitely fails to impress. a bit overly bitter... the flavor profile, while mostly following the nose, is not working for me. sort of 'meh'... medium bodied mouthfeel with average carbonation.

what with the local brewery and red sox angle i really wanted to like this one, but, alas, IMO it's a mediocre at best IPA.

Serving type: bottle

07-17-2011 01:20:49 | More by perrymarcus

abgba121

Connecticut

3.35/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: pours a light golden color with a slight haze, very thin head and light lingering lace

S: lacking in the aroma, little hop or malty presence

T: Tastes like a typical IPA, a decent flavor, slight bitter finish that lingers momentarily

M: good carbonation and light to medium body

O: a decent IPA, nothing spectacular

Serving type: bottle

07-16-2011 04:16:33 | More by abgba121

EricCioe

Montana

3.4/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to thickfreakness for passing this one my way.

This beer pours a clear copper with a two finger white head that subsides to a ring and leaves a little lace. On the nose there is a nice aroma of hop resin, pretty powerful in fact, and riding atop a base of caramel malt. In the mouth the hops very much took a backseat to the sweeter caramel flavoring. This is unfortunate in my view because while the caramel is fine, the aroma the hops gave was probably a better dominant note. The body is medium but the finish is less than ideal for me because the beer just sort of degenerates into a mixture of caramel and general bitterness.

Overall, this is a decent beer, but in a world where all kinds of breweries are making good to great IPAs, this one doesn't quite cut it for me.

Serving type: bottle

07-14-2011 22:49:37 | More by EricCioe

Wasatch

Utah

3.85/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thanks goes out to TheManiacalOne for this brew.

Pours a nice hazy golden yellow color, nice carbonation, nice one-finger creamy/foamy off-white head, with some nice sticky lacing left behind. The nose is a very nice blend of hops/malts, a nice citrus note. The taste is hoppy, malty, sweet, with some citrus notes. Medium Body, nice dry/bitter finish. A tasty brew, glad I got a chance to try it.

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2011 23:46:38 | More by Wasatch

StLThrash

Missouri

3.9/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Nice to get this beer right after seeing it in BA magazine and the Bros. reviewing it too. Got this from my cousin (UHRHAN) who brokered a trade of some NE beers for 2 of my KBS...

12 ounce bottle with a drink by date of September 2011 notched on the label, poured into a pint glass.

A - Nice, hazy orangeish hue. Not a big head, maybe a finger, which dissipated fairly quickly. No lacing to speak of.

S - Lots of pine and some earthy / herbal notes. Definite hop kick in the face which I like. Some citrus notes and slight hint of sweet malts.

T & M - Very smooth and drinkable IPA. Again, big hop character with some sweet malt. Leaves the palate a little dry. Nicely carbonated and alcohol is nicely hidden. Drank it pretty cold and pretty fast so didn't let the alcohol come out too much.

Overall - Nice IPA. My favorite style and this was worthy. Glad I scored a couple bottles of this and looking forward to my next one. Is it a top notch? No. But worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

06-29-2011 04:30:18 | More by StLThrash

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Review from BeerAdvocate Magazine Issue #51 (April 2011):

New season of baseball, so a new version of Green Monsta is only fitting. Hops help out big time with the spectacular- looking head, and the brassy color underneath shows only a faint haze. Spicy, herbal and citric hop trio in the aroma; hint of ripe fruit and bread crust as well. Dry, more refined smoothness is quickly met by the semi-brash bitterness and sharp citric and oily herbal hop flavor. Suggestion of pears and mangoes in the middle from the alcohol. Maltiness is a little slim and certainly dry, with a light biscuity tone in the bitter dry finish. The American IPA style is a tough crowd—drinkable and hoppy are two things going for this beer.

Serving type: bottle

06-29-2011 01:29:37 | More by BeerAdvocate

PEIhop

Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours an amber-hued orange with a bubbly head that deflates quickly.

S - I don't get very much in the nose except for: fruity, citrusy hops

T - There is a blast of hops that reminds me more of an English IPA than an American IPA. The blast of hops is citrusy and herbaceous. There is very little malt to balanced out the quick, but short lasting, intensity of the hops.

M - Medium-bodied with a dry finish.

D - It is very drinkable. The lighter mouthfeel and hop presence makes it a nice choice for a summer barbeque. With that being said, I would prefer to pick up other IPAs first (Racer 5, Green Flash, or Titan).

Serving type: bottle

06-01-2011 21:34:07 | More by PEIhop

jbertsch

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +12%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The only time I have this beer is when I go to McCoy stadium to watch minor league baseball. This is the best (and one of only 2 craft) beers on tap at the stadium, so I always get it. It makes a great baseball beer. It has great flavor, unlike other "baseball beers" offered there. And I just associate it with relaxing with my dad at a ball game.

It's a dark golden brew, almost Abner....not exactly transparent. Head is fair and frothy, and sticks around for the entire time.

The nose is east-coast ipa all the way. Grassy, leafy hops with a touch of grapefruit and prominent caramel malts. The taste matches the aroma with a real nice balance between strong leafy hops and sweet caramel malts for balance. Touches of grapefruit are in the hop profile and the hops own the finish with a satisfying bitterness.

Above average in body weight with an almost frothy mouthfeel. mouthfeel. A little resiny feel to it.

I always find this to be a surprisingly good ipa that nobody talks about. There are better IPAs, but there's no reason most people wouldn't enjoy this enough. I enjoy it very much while spending a night at the ballpark watching minor-league ball.

Serving type: on-tap

05-27-2011 03:17:48 | More by jbertsch

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

4.38/5  rDev +22.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

On-tap 5/15/2011 at Doherty’s East Ave Irish Pub in Pawtucket, RI, served in a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a bright golden brown, with a large off-white head that fades slowly and leaves a spotty but thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains floral hops, caramelized malts and fruity citrus.

T: The taste starts with sweet flavors of citrus fruits and a little caramel. Then a strong but not over-powering hops presence comes in. The malt character is hearty but not too heavy and provides a very good balance. The after-taste is slightly hoppy and slightly sweet.

M: Smooth and very crisp, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is clean.

O: Very tasty, goes down very easily, not too filling, decent kick, very good representation of style, not sure what caused Wachusett to re-create the Green Monsta recipe, but this beer is a very nice choice to drink for a whole evening.

Serving type: on-tap

05-16-2011 18:28:49 | More by TheManiacalOne

pburland23

Pennsylvania

3.55/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Enjoyed on a Saturday evening at my sister-in-law's in Boston.

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a standard pint glass.

Beers pours a bronze amber with about a finger of fluffy off-white head. Moderate retention and lacing.

Smell is hoppy, but muted. Mostly centennial hops. It's not a hop bomb and it doesn't smell like one. An inviting aroma.

Taste was slightly underwhelming. It's hoppy, but not overly citrusy, piney or bitter. A touch of malty sweetness was present. All in all, the flavor was nice, but just not pronounced enough for my taste.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied, a touch oily but otherwise, it was a nice, middle of the road drinakble IPA. Pretty good if you're in the mood for a decent beer watching a ballgame, but not much more.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2011 19:05:55 | More by pburland23