Hail Mary Belgian-Style IPA - Cathedral Square Brewery

birchstick

Missouri

3.85/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a yellow color with a huge head on it. Nose consists of fruity hops and yeast and a bit of caramel malts. Taste is similar. Opens up with citrus hops flavors that move on to bitter, sticky pine. The pine is overtaken by some nice fruity grapefruit flavors and a little bit of fruity flavors from the Belgian yeast. Ends bitter and fruit. OVerall, this is a nice Belgian IPA. Hops are crisp, juicy, and bitter and deliver a nice, refereshing beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-31-2012 00:21:54 | More by birchstick

peabody

Kentucky

3.6/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a light hazy amber color with lots of off-white suds. Nice lacing here.
Smell is light belgian yeast notes then sugar finishing with a sharp hop aroma.
Taste is mild belgian ale with all the spices barely showing up then the bitterness comes to light finishing with a piney bitter than sticks with the palate for a good while.
Mouthfeel is just a tad sticky but the bitterness at the end seems to clean all that up and what you are left with is just the hop stickyness.
Overall not a bad beer at all. I would drink this with a meal if I was at a restuarant that had this on the beer menu. Good price too.

Serving type: bottle

08-04-2012 13:48:47 | More by peabody

TSJ4000

Iowa

4.6/5  rDev +34.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

What an awesome beer. I totally taste the Belgian yeasty flavors but it has a lot of hops to this beer as well. Very complex and since I found it in Missouri it was cheap. I got a 6er of this for $8.99 and I think that was a great price for this beer. I will look for more of there stuff if available here. I had never really had this style before and i can't think of much like it. It was totally different but cool. PFA. Pretty Freakin' Awesome.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2012 19:33:49 | More by TSJ4000

shanblur

Indiana

3.55/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Purchased in St. Louis, MO. No bottle date. Poured from 22oz bomber into a tulip. A - A vibrant hazy amber color with a thick head which clings to the glass. S - Strong resinous hops aroma and an underlying Belgian yeast component. T - Very hop forward with a bitterness up front which lingers. Some biscuit malt flavors play a minor role. Some Belgian funk as well.
M - Medium bodied with a good amount of carbonation.
A good beer. Lovely appearance. Not as fruity and floral as some Belgian IPA's.

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2012 20:05:36 | More by shanblur

scarfield

Nebraska

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

App- Pours a cloudy amber with a ridiculous head on the top in excess of 1.5 inches. Lacing is excellent through the glass.

Smell- Spicy hops come through in the nose, as well as a bit of the yeast coming through. Hints of bubblegum and banana after the hops subside.

Taste- Overall the malt and yeast comes through before the hops. Spiciness in the beginning, and the hops are evident more in the aftertaste than in the taste itself. The hops are citrusy, predominantly grapefruit, but not quite assertive enough for me.

Mouthfeel- Thick, chewy, as mentioned before the beer has a dryness to it.

Overall- one of the best looking beers I've seen. Has everything I look for in a beer, color, head, lacing. There was no date on the bottle, but it seemed to me that maybe the freshness was gone from it, which probably ended up costing the beer points in taste and perhaps mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2012 00:58:58 | More by scarfield

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

3.63/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Review from BeerAdvocate Magazine Issue #54 (July 2011):

A Belgian style inspired by American brewing that’s becoming more popular. Killer suds stickin’ on our glass; hazed amber color. Dry-hopping drops a thick yet soft resin of mint, evergreen, grapefruit and peppercorn in the nose. Some ripe fruit and toasted malt in the aroma as well. A bit slick, with a full body and smooth carbonation. Very hoppy from start to finish—biscuity malt and some caramel sweetness provides a big enough foundation. A bit estery, fruity and spicy in the middle. Hops stick to the palate far into the drying aftertaste. Simply good drinking for hopheads and Belgo-fanatics.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2011 02:28:01 | More by BeerAdvocate

JuicesFlowing

Kansas

3.33/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a New Belgium globe glass. The beer is a deep, dark orange, with a beautiful frothy cream colored head. The head dissipates but leaves a nice layer of random bubbles and a centered group of foam in the center. Nice sticky lacing. when I first opened the bottle, I could have swore I smelled some skunk, but in the glass it's not apparent -- mostly just a faded hop citrus aroma. The taste is of a bitter hop presence, with a touch of pine. It seems musty, faded, or even dull. Mouthfeel is again, sort of faded, it's not tangy or sticky by any means. Overall, I think this beer could have been better, but it just seems pretty bland. It looks good, but otherwise seems average across the board.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2011 20:51:50 | More by JuicesFlowing

FanofHefe

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bomber poured into a Duvel tulip. Thick, creamy, light tan head that has great retention and leaves good lacing. Light orange/amber body that is a little hazy.

Light, earthy hop aroma with a strong, sweet malt aroma following. A little citrus and a little spice.

The spice flavor from the yeast is much stronger than I expected while the hop flavor is understated. Plenty of malt sweetness.

Medium mouthfeel with a crisp finish. Belgian style, for sure. A blend unlike any I can recall that is worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

09-15-2011 23:12:22 | More by FanofHefe

Tone

Missouri

3.4/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3.5

Pours a hazy, copper color. Two inch head of an off-white color. Great retention and great lacing. Smells of sweet malt, slight citrus, hops, hint of earthy malt, and hint of spice. Fits the style of a Belgian IPA. Mouth feel is sharp and crisp, with a high carbonation level. Tastes of sweet malt, slight earthy malt, hint of roasted malt, citrus hops, and hint of spice. The carbonation level is way too high.

Serving type: bottle

07-26-2011 16:39:37 | More by Tone

bnes09

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Brilliant hazy orange with some visible yeast. Mountainous unrelenting head with blanketing patches of lacing. Truly a beautiful brew.

Aroma is fresh with plenty of raw hops and underlying Belgian yeast.

Spicy, pungent hop flavor dominates the taste. Raw pine needles and soap are the predominant flavors. Some bready malt flavor but it is way overpowered. Not too much yeast flavor either.

Medium body. Solid level of carbonation adds to the spiciness. Bone dry finish.

This brew is descent. A little overdone on the hops and could use more malt character to balance. Still pretty drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2011 01:53:38 | More by bnes09

DCon

Missouri

2.85/5  rDev -16.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Received from Jerad Gardner of the Cathedral Square Brewery when asked which "bomber" I would like to try. I had this one, Iglesia, and their Belgian Style White Ale to chose from. Poured from the 1pt 6oz bottle into my iTap Pint Glass. Does not have a B.O.D. or any best before date on the bottle.

Appearance- A nice dark and hazy amber color body with huge 5 finger head that is extremely frothy. The retention is fantastic and has thick lace on the sides.

Smell- Has a earthy hop and malt scent but everything else is very dull... I was expecting more from this IPA.

Taste- Has more of a malt taste than hops. Once again, not feeling that this should be an IPA. More like a Pale Ale. There is a nice bitterness at the end but this was it.

Mouthfeel- Light-Medium Bodied, Light Viscosity, Leaves the average hop flavor on the palate but nothing crazy.

Overall- I was looking forward to this beer for quite some days now but it let me down a bit. The logo on the front is "turning sinners into saints" and I'm also wondering why this is called Hail Mary IPA? It didn't have as many hops as stated on the front ingredients but might have been due to the extreme amount of malts used. Either way, I wouldn't go out of my way to get this beer again but could be good for other people. When it comes to beer, I just one that I can enjoy every time I have it.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2011 01:10:53 | More by DCon

TheSarge

Illinois

4.05/5  rDev +18.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Given this brewery another chance, let's see if they piss this one away!

This actually looks quite decent. A nice fluffy three finger thick fluffy pillow of a head of an off white color, and has a murky copper colored body.

Aroma wise it's a bit on the orange rind side along with some floral notes.

Taste wise it's on the grapefruit side with some estery tones from the yeast. A little tart in the end too.

Feels a bit coarse and powdery... Leaves the palate dry in the end. This is the best beer I've had from these guys yet, which isn't saying a whole lot, but I'd buy this beer again.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2011 23:51:27 | More by TheSarge

GossageBrewery

Missouri

3.25/5  rDev -5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Served from a 22 oz bottle and poured into a pint glass. This beer poured a hazy orange color. It produced a nice head however retention was not great. An above average amount of stickage. The aroma was malty and yeasty. Average amount of floral hop aroma. This beer was very balanced, it was my first introduction to a Belgian IPA. There was an average amount of hop bite (average in terms of an IPA). There where very sight notes of fruit at the finish. This beer was not one of my favorite IPA's but it was balanced and very good.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2011 21:10:58 | More by GossageBrewery

AlCaponeJunior

Texas

3.55/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Well it looked pretty nice, an attractive light brown to orange color, a bit of haze, and a good head with nice lacing.

Smell wise it was very attractive. Easy going malty backbone with a crisp, earthy hoppiness. Very nice.

Taste wise it had a great grain/malt backbone with an ample and floral hops overture. Light sweetness and a touch of fruit rounded it out, and it was good.

Medium bodied and rich, this beer was lovely. Bitterness was mild and had the perfect degree of lingering smooth hops flavor.

Pretty drinkable. I'd love to have this one again anytime.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2011 01:59:08 | More by AlCaponeJunior

HOPPYKC

Kansas

3.05/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured into a pint glass. I didn't see a bottled on or bb date available on the bottle. I have yet to see a lot of this brew around anywhere. It must have been a resent delivery at the local store i goto.

A- Pours a nice dark amber color. Has a small amount of head that is tan in color and goes away quickly. Definitely not transparent. A very hazy appearance.

S- I get a fruity smell or orange and lemon right in the front of my nose. A nice roasted malt character, and hops that pack some punch.

T- I get a lot of malt from this IPA. I would like to see a nice and more complex hop flavor.

M&D- A nice and easy to drink brew.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2011 03:23:48 | More by HOPPYKC

emerge077

Illinois

3.1/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

My bottle still says brewed in Weston...

Attractive reddish copper orange with ascending trails of carbonation. Good clarity, slightly hazed with micro sediment in suspension. The initial pour yielded about a finger of off white foam, leaving a transparent skim across the top. Crown of lace is style appropriate.

Aroma is mildly vegetal, some sweet caramel hints, and a bit grainy. Too raw, muddled and indistinct. Doesn't really harmonize well, or showcase the Belgian yeast or hops.

Flavor is moderately bitter, a little bit of dried fruit and spice, bubblegum and aspirin. Bitterness seems to build more in the aftertaste, leaving a harsh aspirin and hop pellet taste stuck on the palate. Fairly full bodied, though not carbonated like a Belgian IPA or as dry as it could be. Hops seem a little jarring and ham-fisted, but generally it's still drinkable.

Probably not one i'd return to, but i'd try something from this new brewery again.

Serving type: bottle

02-04-2011 00:26:07 | More by emerge077

rrski198

Missouri

3.68/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Done from brief notes at a beer festival

A: dark amber colored with a nice big white head.

S: Toasted biscuit and malt with a subtle leafy earthy hop scent.

T: I am getting a nice toasted malt flavor and the subtle hops, but I am left wanting more of the traditional belgian yeast flavor. Bitterness is very subtle.

M: Light, fruity, and bitter. The bitterness sticks around but not overwhelming. The beer has a nice body, not to much, not to thin.

D: This beer will not blow you away, but it has some decent flavors that are nicely balanced. I would have again.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2011 15:13:00 | More by rrski198

meatmallet

Illinois

3/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Appearance: Pours an amber color with a thin off white bubbly head. A little hazy.

Smell: Piny hops and grapefruit dominate. Also some sweet caramel malts. Very light.

Taste: Bitter and sour at the same time. I thin kit is more sour than anything. Citrus, pine, grapefruit, and a little bit of yeast.

Mouthfeel/drinkability: Medium body with light carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2011 04:16:32 | More by meatmallet

zeff80

Missouri

3.55/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - Poured out a copper color with burgundy highlights. It had a one-finger, off-white head of foam, that left behind sheet of lace on the glass.

S - It smelled of yeast, grasses and some fruity notes. The is some caramel sweetness in the background.

T - A very grassy, spicy hop profile with some yeasty notes. It has some dried fruit flavors typical of Belgian yeasts but it is not very prominent.

M - It was crisp and sharp with a dry finish. A medium bodied ale.

D - This is a nice Belgian-style IPA. It doesn't quite have the fruity flavor I expect, but is still pretty good.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2011 22:24:32 | More by zeff80

Mebuzzard

Colorado

3.03/5  rDev -11.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Labeled as a Belgian IPA, this beer lacks a significant 'Belgian' kick from yeast.
Pours a hazy yellow-orange, clears up a bit later on. Small but dense head, some rockiness and nice lacing.

Aroma is stale pine with a hint of caramel and bready yeast. Somewhat nutty.

The flavors are just strong enough to discern them, but nothing takes a hold. Slight citrus makes the pine a bit stronger, the end flavors seem to beg for attention, which is when the semi-spice and breadiness come into play.
A tad dry on the end, ok drinking. If a bit more yeast was used, this could be a nice BIPA...as it is, it's average.

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2011 21:49:11 | More by Mebuzzard

Monkeyknife

Missouri

3.53/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from the bottle a cloudy, burnt orange color with a single finger of beige head.

Aroma of grapefruit, candy sugar and sweet caramel malts.

The taste is both lightly bitter and lightly sour. Grapefruit, lemon and Belgian yeast funk upfront while caramel malts and toffee follow on the palate. Finish is chocked full of heavy medicinal notes.

Medium bodied and dry with a moderate carbonation.

An interesting beer for sure but not really what I go for.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2010 22:05:47 | More by Monkeyknife

Bobbydigi

Kansas

3.28/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

22oz Bomber poured into my Goulden Draak tulip. It has a large lingering off white head, leaving behind some great lacing. The color when held up to the light is a great looking orange/red grapefruit looking color. Smelling this one you wouldn't know it was Belgian inspired but you do get some hops in the nose but nothing overpowering. After a few sips the flavor seems to follow the nose pretty well. Hops up front but also some sweet malts play just as big of role, also some bread from the yeast. This beer is silky smooth but for being a Belgian inspired beer it's a little under carbonated. This beer is good but I don't know if I would call it a Belgian IPA.

Serving type: bottle

11-04-2010 02:06:58 | More by Bobbydigi

bort11

Missouri

3.78/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

22 oz bottle poured into a St. Bernardus goblet. Due to the size and shape of the glass the head was not very tall, but it has a lot of body. Egg shell white in color, it leaves ropes of lacing around the glass. The body color is a lot darker than what I expected. Slightly hazy but still allows plenty of light through. When held to the light it glows a honey amber color. I really like the way this looks.

The mixture of hops and Belgian yeasts gives off a sharp and dry bitterness. The bottle says they use four different malts and three different hops. I would like to know which ones to help pinpoint what I'm smelling. To put into perspective it's like a very hoppy Triple. Taste is just like the smell. It has a dry, slightly aspirin flavor from the yeast, but the hops give it more texture than that.

The mouthfeel has a medium body with a soft texture from the carbonation. Very tight bubbles the smooth. Cathedral Square is still brewed and bottled at Weston. This is a very bold and challenging beer that was executed well

Serving type: bottle

10-23-2010 14:38:05 | More by bort11