Lunch - Maine Beer Company

busterthecat

Massachusetts

4.2/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Date on bottle 05/18/11. Poured into the large allagash chalice.

A- Pours a semi-transparent light brass hue that sits a nice copper orange in the glass. A casual pour creates a huge milk white foamy head that stays around for a while. Lacing is an intense sea foam.

S- smell is mild, pineapple mostly. Some soft biscuity note but not much. Decent for an IPA.

T- A sharp zesty bitterness upfront with a unique woodsy dry pine flavor that leads into more of the zesty pineapple type of notes with some grapefruit spritz. The hops are a fresh and zesty blend. The mid is where the upfront bitter quality melds into more of a soft and mild toasted toasted malt and light oatmealish flavors in the end and finish. Quite complex.

M- A sharp dry initial champagne feel on the palate that really widens and becomes moist. The body rounds out and begins to dry very well after finishing a sip. The bitterness is mellow on the palate and the light fruity qualities of the hoppy pineapple notes do rest on tongue. Some abrasive feel on tip of tongue after drinking for a bit.

O- A great IPA. Lots of variety in the taste department during a sip. I strongly suggest picking this beer up.

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2011 12:37:21 | More by busterthecat

donkeyrunner

Massachusetts

4.9/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Bottle invites consumers to "just keep swimming." This is also a common ultrarunning mantra.

Translucent cowardly lion yellow color. Thick, shaving cream white head sticks all over like...well, shaving cream. I never thought I'd give a 5 to an IPA that didn't have crystal clear complexion but here it is.

Smells and tastes just like ruby red grapefruit and pineapple. Not hops that smell like grapefruit and pineapple but the actually fruits themselves all up in my face. Love it. Bubblegum and sweet malty backup round out the aroma.

Taste is the aforementioned grapefruit and pineapple with sweet honey malt. Perfect amount of bitterness that invites sip after sip and was gone before I knew it. If I ever see this on tap I'm in trouble. Ample hop resin but I'd like more.

Off the top of my head one of my top 10 all time IPAs.

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2011 00:09:43 | More by donkeyrunner

yourefragile

District of Columbia

4.03/5  rDev -8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottled 5/18/11, poured into a nonic, thanks Conor!

Appearance is halfway between clear and hazed, dark copper, almost brownish. Massive, airy bubbly off white head. Excellent retention and sparse lacing. Bready and piney aroma with an appreciable amount of tropical sweetness, but that's not the focus.
Medium thick, light carbonation, syrupy body with a slick, sweet finish that is only mildy bitter or dry. Flavor is dominated by biscuit and caramel malt with some resin and pulpy citrus in the finish with some dry pine hops. Very well balanced and drinkable, but a little too sweet for my taste.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 23:07:55 | More by yourefragile

sk8man121

Maine

4.53/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

16.9 oz. bottle poured into Allagash chalice at the Local Buzz in Cape Elizabeth, ME.

A: Pours a fairly dark apricot with straw highlights. Three finger rocky head lingers with excellent retention, leaving quite a bit of lacing on the glass as it settles.

S: Big grapefruit character in the nose. Piny hops dominate, with a touch of sweetness on the back end. Similar in smell to Central City's excellent Red Racer IPA.

T: Extremely clean right off the bat, with grapefruit continuing to prevail. Sweet, juicy-fruit malts in the middle. Semi-bitter finish makes this very well balanced and refreshing.

M: Thick and creamy, with moderate carbonation. Silky and perfect.

O: Maine Beer Co. continues to impress with another excellent offering. I'm sure it doesn't hurt that this was bottled only a week or so ago, but this is clearly a well-made west coast-style IPA. The price makes it difficult to drink regularly; otherwise, this would be a mainstay.

An extremely solid IPA, and the best Maine Beer Co. has to offer.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 22:08:34 | More by sk8man121

lordofthewiens

Maine

4.03/5  rDev -8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Lot 051811 on the label.
A slightly hazy amber color with a voluminous white head, even with a careful pour. Lots of sticky lace.
Citrus and tropical fruit aroma. Good sweet malt background.
Tropical fruit taste, very sweet. Grapefruit leading to a little bit of piney hops that I hadn't detected in the aroma. Bread.
This was a very well-balanced IPA. Will pick up more of these.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 21:36:00 | More by lordofthewiens

jlindros

Massachusetts

4.45/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Re-reviewed:

Even with a semi delicate pour it yields a 2+ finger head of thick rich foam, with nice lacing as it slowly fades, over semi hazy maple nectar orange slight reddish-brown color, great head retention.

Nose explodes as soon as I crack the cap, erupting citrus hops, tropical fruit, hints of pine, grapefruit, very light orange peel which separates it a bit from most IPAs in this category as the bitter orange rind is less so I think, a light chewy hop base as well with very slight spicy hops, also theres some nice sweet malty base aromas.

Second bottle re-review:
Taste brings earthy and fruity hops to start, a slight sweet malt base also comes out first, then comes more of the nice hops, citrus, tropical fruit, light candy like hop taste, touch of tangerine, bit juicy, and just a hint of slight booze, it gets pretty bitter as it goes, bringing some spicy hops as well, touch of pine leads to the finish, which dries a bit and gets slightly more bitter, plenty lingering hops and bit of malt feel lingering. As it goes, warming and more bombarding the mouth, I'm starting to get a slight earthy and very light herbal hop character as well. The fresh tropical fruit hops and hints of citrus really dominate on the more recent bottle I had, much better than the first.

Mouth is a bit thicker than medium bodied, with good carbonation and just the slightest hint of warming booze, and a bit oily.

Original overall:
Overall pretty good, great nose, good hop flavors, nice malty balance, just a touch of warming booze which is a bit more than I would expect for only 7%, and as I mentioned the aromas were great but the hops on the flavor are a little left short, with much less tropical fruits and citrus as I expected. Lot from 5/18/11 so it's very fresh (less than 2 weeks old) but slightly resembles a slight aged IPA in taste.

New bottle overall:
Much better than the first, tons more citrus and tropical fruit hops, fairly bitter, still got the earthy hops and quite bit of bitterness, but really tasty on this batch, still a bit more booze than I would expect for 7% too.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 02:26:56 | More by jlindros

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.08/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked this bottle up at the Warren Store last weekend. Shout out to my favorite glassware hound for getting a beer named after him. Glad Dr. Abmuh already got you one. Served in a Bruery tulip because I don't have any glassware from Maine. For shame.

Pours a somewhat-hazed copper color. Pretty bright, actually. The head sits at two-to-three fingers for awhile before falling down and leaving a cascade of thick lacing on the sides of the glass. Thin cap and collar throughout. Good looking beer. The nose brings a bit of citrus and a fair amount of tropical hops. Everything blends together quite well. Just a light bit of bread in the background.

The flavor starts off tropical with some mango, slight pineapple, and actually a bit of cantaloupe. Light orange there as well. Really smooth bitterness hits throughout. Medium body and only a slight hint of alcohol, which actually works its way in nicely with the bitterness. Average carbonation. Smooth going down again and again. Really nice beer. Cheers to the whale who inspired this brew.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 01:31:54 | More by Thorpe429

BeerMaverick

Massachusetts

4.08/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thanks to Stevenstofen for this awesome beer!

A - Golden to light brown in color with a plethora of frothy off-white head. Plenty of lacing surrounding the pint glass.

S - Thank goodness for the healthy head-retention to adequately preserve the strong hop esters! The aroma screams hops, hops, hops...very sweet with strong piney bitterness. Some alcohol is detectable here as well.

T - The hops are definitely dominant here as well, but the malt background is lacking...I was expecting a more syrupy/sugary backbone to support and play-up the hop bitterness. The alcohol is present...although the hops intend to hide it, the weak malt profile provides a gap for infiltration. I was expecting more here, but still very good.

M - A lighter-bodied IPA with a heavy hop aftertaste. No syrupy malt to comfort the tongue, just hops served to the palate.

O - This is a good IPA, but I was expecting better because I hold Maine Beer Company in very high regard with Zoe and Peeper in their arsenal. There are better IPAs out there, but this one definitely deserves respect. I believe that this beer is going for a "refreshing" IPA like all of Maine's other refreshing beers, and it definitely achieves this characteristic. Prosit!

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 00:41:23 | More by BeerMaverick

Cmack15

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev -8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: golden amber hue

Aroma: citrusy/piney hops with a hint of the malty backbone

Taste: hops smack you in the face but in a good way. Finishes nice and dry

Mouthfeel: medium body, good carbonation

Nice beer. well made. I like this breweries stance on giving back.
Good solid beer. Abv well hidden

Cheers

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 00:14:59 | More by Cmack15

beer4colin

Massachusetts

4.22/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - pours a hazy amber with a healthy 2 finger head that fades into seriouslyncling lace.
S - bright, fresh, clean floral hoppy!
T - Big hop start but very creamy as well. Hops mute in the middle as toast comes in. Good hop finish though.
MF - Very creamy, medium body.
O - you have got to love this beer simply because Maine exhibits such CSR.

Serving type: bottle

06-01-2011 00:53:13 | More by beer4colin

CliffBrake

New Hampshire

4.08/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Fairly bright medium amber color with a good head that lingers as a light cover and leaves medium lacing on the glass.

Light aroma of citrusy hops well integrated with a caramel maltiness. Apparently it is named for a whale (the mammal, not the beer kind), but it tastes like a good lunch to me. Juicy mouthfeel with a medium body. Sweetness is well balanced with a pleasant hop bitterness that is just assertive enough to dry out the palate and invite another taste.

Perhaps not distinctive or over the top in any particular way. Just a well-made beer, delicious and refreshing.

Serving type: bottle

05-31-2011 23:11:43 | More by CliffBrake

Kinsman

New Hampshire

4.25/5  rDev -3%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottled 11 days ago on 5/18/11

Hazy dark orange body with a massive fluffy, sticky, white head that leaves plenty of lace behind.

Wonderfully hoppy aromas, heavy on the grapefruit and lemon citrus notes and some piney resins to round this out. Little room is left for anything else to come through.

I'm finding the taste to have a lot of similarities to Peeper Ale but with less malt backbone and more bitterness. Similar citrus fruits provide a strong hop flavor but with the addition of some pine and grass notes that kick up the bitterness.

Mouthfeel is smooth with a creamy medium body feel that seems a bit heavier than many other IPAs. Overall, Lunch is another top notch offering from Maine Beer Co. These guys really know how to use hops.

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2011 23:34:46 | More by Kinsman

SFLpunk

Vermont

3.93/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

16.9 oz brown glass pry-top bottle bought at Beverage Warehouse.

Pours with a good haze, brownish amber with thick off-white sudsy head that has great retention (had head until the last sip). Nose is a bit muted and not super exciting, but the palate is crisp with hop bitterness - not over the top, but refreshingly bitter - with massive flavors of piney "bud" hops, citrus (fresh) and herbal notes out the wazoo.

This is exactly what I wanted after a long shift slingin' booze in a non-A/C warehouse. Delicious and more refreshing (but just as good as) than Zoe.

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2011 23:15:31 | More by SFLpunk

steve8robin

Massachusetts

4.35/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Suprised to see this one on a stop to a beer store in Maine. Didn't even know Maine Beer released an IPA! Pleasant surprise. Zoe and Peeper are great. Excited to try this one. PT bottle, 05/18/11...

A: A nice murky golden color with a humongous 3 finger tan head that fades at a decent pace. Very good.

S: A nice earthy hop upfront with a very pleasant bready backbone. Some citrus in the middle. Good.

T: A bitter hop wall quickly followed by a very nice bready balance. An almost bitter syrup flavor hidden in the back. Very good.

M: A heavy carbonation with a full body. A bitter clean finish. Good.

O: This is a great example of a hoppy bitter IPA. Maine Beer Company brews some fantastic beer. Definitely try if you like bitter IPA's.

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2011 01:01:59 | More by steve8robin

soze47

Massachusetts

4.33/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

What Flower Power does for floral characteristics in an IPA, Lunch does for grass. This beer is one of the best examples of late/dry hopping I've ever tasted.

Appearance: Warm copper that slights almost towards amber in color with a nice brown egg colored head. Lots of nice lacing.

Aroma: Sweet grass comes to mind with a nice big hop array. Grassy for sure, but also a candy like orange flesh and slight herbal tones come out too. Unlike others, I'm not getting any pine. Really nice nose on this one.

Taste: Beautiful example of the aroma and the taste blending together to give a really special affect to the taste. The beer's taste on its own isn't all that robust. Very grassy and not a lot other than some basic caramel/bready tones from the malt. But the sweet vibrance of the nose, the citrus flesh and sweet grass characteristics, imbibes this beer with a huge boost in the taste. One would be missing the major part of this beer if they were ever to drink it straight from the bottle.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability: Really drinkable and fun. Light body for a 7% IPA. Because the aromatics play such a large part of the flavor, there is really nothing abrasive about this beer.

Overall: If anyone ever wants to know what a super hoppy, yet not bitter IPA tastes like, go to this beer. If you don't understand what the terms hop aroma and hop character mean aside from IBUs, reach for a Lunch IPA. Really a great brew from what is fastly becoming one of my favorite breweries.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2011 23:27:44 | More by soze47

silentjay

Massachusetts

4.6/5  rDev +5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

a pretty standard, yet glowing amber/copper with a nicely sized off-white head that recedes rather quickly but leaves beautiful lacing on the glass.

damn. pine, pine, pine, and grapefruit. lots of fresh hop aromas in this one, and I can smell it from a mile away.

pine and grapefruit juice, sweetened, with some fresh cut grass, fresh squeezed orange juice, and almost a candy-like sweetness. not terribly bitter, but tons, and tons of hop flavor.

medium bodied with excellent soft carbonation. this is one of the juiciest and most refreshing finishes on a beer I have ever had.

terrific. Was the perfect beer after a day of hiking. well done, again, Maine Beer Co.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2011 03:41:47 | More by silentjay

kingcrowing

Vermont

4.4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

500ml bottle split with imagineiii poured into a Duvel tulip.

Pours a deep amber with a small white head. Nose pounds you with fresh cut grass, citrus and tropical fruit.

Taste is nice and fruity, a bit bitter, but well balanced, a bit chewy and very tasty, Mouthfeel is creamy and thick with a nice sharp finish. Super tasty & very drinkable. Another hit from Maine Beer Co.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2011 02:49:35 | More by kingcrowing

tehzachatak

Massachusetts

4.53/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - not particularly beautiful body. kind of cloudy amber. that being said, the enormous, gorgeous, head full of tiny bubbles makes up for it to some degree.

S - unbelievable nose. one of the best i have ever smelled in an IPA. resiny, piney hops everywhere.

T - great, not exceptional taste. quite enjoyable, but not the best i have ever had. not overwhelming bitterness is nicely counterpointed by malts that are not too sweet to match.

M - perfectly carbonated. feels soft and smooth in the mouth and goes down (relatively) easy. not sure i could drink this all night long, but i definitely could drink a few.

Serving type: bottle

05-27-2011 02:42:51 | More by tehzachatak

OldIronLungs

Massachusetts

4.05/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into a pint glass a foggy yellow honey color - tons of sticky white head leaves when it's damn well ready (which is well after lunch.)

Nose hit me as soon as I opened it - bright grapefruit and almost a mango spiciness - very tropical, very enticing.

A sip is...delicious. Smoothly bodied with medium to lower carbonation and a swell of sweet fruit goodness. A good balance - with a sweeter malt base that never overpowers, allowing a clean, lightly pine bitterness to follow through to the end - if anything I'd say that the finish is too balanced and could use a touch more hop bite. But with an almost non-existent alcohol presence, this is a very drinkable pint.

Serving type: bottle

05-27-2011 01:04:06 | More by OldIronLungs

Damian

Massachusetts

4.38/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Drank from a 1 pint .9 fl. oz. bottle
Lot051811
Served in a snifter

The week-old beer poured a hazy, copper amber color with a one-finger head of bubbly white froth. Outstanding retention. The cap slowly dissipated to a thick, lasting film. Large drippy blocks of lacing trickled down the sides of the glass.

The aroma was simply one of the best I have encountered in an IPA. Super sweet and fragrant with peach, apricot and nectarine notes leaping out of the glass. A decent amount of orange zest too. Tropical fruits were also apparent. Mango was quite prevalent.

While the nose was smooth and fruity, the flavor profile was definitely more crisp and bitter. Some crystal and caramel malts appeared up front before the hops took over. The hops were initially dry and pithy with strong grapefruit rind notes. As the beer moved along the palate, the hops became more dank and resiny. Pine sap dominated the crisp, dry and bitter finish. As much respect as I have for the flavor profile, I would be remiss to say that I was hoping for something more akin to the nose. As for drinkability, I found the 7% ABV to be remarkably well buried.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied for the style. If I had to nitpick, I would say that this beer is slightly thin. Creamy, supple and silky smooth. A fine, moderate carbonation helped the beer glide across my palate.

Add Lunch to the growing list of outstanding IPAs coming out of northern New England. With more and more beers of this quality being produced locally, I have fewer reasons to envy the folks on the West Coast.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2011 03:36:34 | More by Damian

VelvetExtract

Massachusetts

4.78/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Third Beer by Maine Beer Co. for me, have loved them all so far.

A-This brew pours a slightly hazed light yellow/amber color. From the pours grows a giant creamy off-white head. The head retains excellently. Globs of consistent lace streak the glass. This IPA looks awesome.

S-The smells is awesome as well! Huge whiffs of tropical fruity hops can be detected from a good distance from the glass. Citrus , grassiness, and a bit of pine also contribute to this great aroma. The hops are luscious and greatly aromatic. Behind the hops lies a light bread/biscuit malt. When focused upon, the malt is quite delectable as well. A great smelling beer.

T-The flavor is also quite excellent. The tropical fruit hop flavors are clearly the first thing that strikes my palate. A huge wave of fresh grass flavor envelopes my taste buds quickly after. The aftertaste displays how excellently the grassy taste lingers on the tongue. The brew is moderately bitter. It is also incredibly fresh tasting. The malt is a bit more noticeable on the tongue than in the nose. The beer is definitely hop-forward, but the malt does add some good balance and depth. The taste is just awesome.

M-The feel of the beer is slick, a bit stick, but also is crisp. The carbonation is moderate. The huge head leaves a mustache on my upper lip.

O/D-This is yet another great beer from this company. I do not know it this defeats Zoe, but this is one damn good IPA. The alcohol is masked effectively. The taste, nose and the feel are exceptional as well. Maine Beer Co. is quickly climbing up the ranks of my favorite breweries!

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2011 21:45:33 | More by VelvetExtract

jstilwell

Massachusetts

4.88/5  rDev +11.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

So far have loved everything from Maine beer. Lets pop this open. Golden/orangy pour with a sizable white head that settles down. First whiff, we have a winner! Is this another tropical IPA? I'm getting the grapefruit and piney hops in the nose, it is very aromatic, similar to Flower Power. Mild bitterness starts the tasting experience, nice bready malt in the background blends with tasty hops. Considering all of the strong flavors, this is light on the tongue and very drinkable with a quick dry finish. This is among the best IPA's that I have ever had. I'm not getting the real tropical flavor that the nose exudes, but it is damn near perfect. Maine Beer Company is 4:4 with me! Fantastic

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2011 00:12:31 | More by jstilwell

Satchboogie

New Hampshire

4.08/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

16.9oz bottle (dated 5/18/11 - 6 days ago) poured into a Duvel Tulip

A: Pours very hazy dark copper red. Nearly 3 fingers of really tight white head that slowly dissipates, leaving lots of lacing.

S: Grapefruit and tangerine among other tropical fruits. Pine, floral hops, sugar sweetness.

T: Light tropical fruits, a little pine, lots of floral hops, and a little bitterness first hit the palate. Nothing over the top, just a lot of really tasty flavors. Somewhat shortened middle of toasted pale malts with a good bit of crystal malt for a clean sugar sweetness. Very balanced body. Light finish, a little sweet, but the hop flavors do fade by the finish without leaving much pine bitterness around.

M: Light to medium body, moderate carbonation, very slightly sticky and resinous. Sweeter finish that is quite light, not crisp though.

O: This has been getting a lot of hype lately and while I did enjoy this, it's didn't really impress me all that much. Perhaps it's just from the fact I had Sculpin and Hellhound on tap just last night, but this didn't seem as hoppy as people have been saying. I thought the finish was rather weak. A solid IPA with really pleasant flavors, but certainly not on the level of the Sculpins.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2011 23:36:11 | More by Satchboogie

celticfutblclub

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

16.9 oz bottle poured into a pint glass.

A - gorgeous hazy body somewhere between orange and yellow (little closer to orange). huge foamy fluffy head that sticks exceptionally well and laces perfectly.

S - lemon and orange. graepfruit. pine and grassy hops in there as well. maybe a super light hint of vanilla in there as well. this thing is superb.

T - again lemon orange grapefruit grass and pine. it all comes together so well. the pine notes hit the hardest followed by the grapefruit and the rest but everything is quite noticeable mingles really well. this is definitely one of the best IPAs i've had to date.

M - its got a great light body on it and has lower levels of carbonation than i expected but i think its working in its favor it just goes down so smooth. great puckering taste thats clearly evident but not overpowering.

O - wow this is one amazing beer. maine beer company has done it again and i can't say that i'm at all surprised at this point. definitely pick this up if you can.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2011 21:55:13 | More by celticfutblclub

johnmichaelsen

Oregon

4.43/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Picked this up at RSVP the other day. Given all the reviews and chatter about it on BA, I just had to try a super fresh bottle (so I'm drinking it now in my hotel). Lunch pours an apricot orange amber color with good head retention and lacing. This beer has the look of a serious IPA. In case there's any doubt however, just take one whiff, and you're transported to IPA heaven. Yummy!!! I get a huge aroma of peach, orange citrus, apricot and pine. Incredibly, this beer does not smell at all sweet/malty or boozy, and I just can't wait to take my first sip. The flavor profile replicates the nose in this well crafted IPA, and I'm impressed by the amount of hoppy bitterness I get in the finish. There's actually quite a bit of tropical fruit in this beer, but there's more than enough hoppy bitterness to counter the sweetness, leading to a long, dry, hoppy finish. There's also a slight dank flavor aspect as well to this beer, which only enhances the flavor profile. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a long, dry, bitter finish. It's a bit light at the end, but that's splitting hairs.... this is just delicious. I get a slight sense of the 7% alcohol in this beer, but otherwise the alcohol is very well integrated into the flavor profile.

Yummm.... outside of Allagash's outstanding interlude, I'm not sure I can recall having another beer from Maine I've enjoyed as much as I've enjoyed lunch. Now I'm wishing I picked up more than the 3 bottles I purchased at RSVP.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2011 00:28:34 | More by johnmichaelsen