Sweetwater IPA - SweetWater Brewing Company

aracauna

Georgia

3/5  rDev -25.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

The draught version of this beer is bland and only mildy hoppy. The bottled version is one of my favorite beers. Since I can't see a logical reason to brew them on two different recipes I don't know what causes the difference in taste. The only difference I know of for sure is that the stuff out of the tap is clear while the bottle has plenty of yeast, but I am clueless as how the lack of yeast removes the juicy hop flavor and stips a bit of the malt as well. What is a juicy, well-balanced IPA in the bottle becomes a bland middling beer on tap.

Serving type: on-tap

01-29-2003 00:03:31 | More by aracauna

RBorsato

Virginia

4.2/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Unfiltered orange color with an ivory head. Beautiful fruity citrus orange hop aroma ! Citrusy bitter hop flavor but tastes a bit different than it smells. Light-medium bodied with a moderate bitter finish.

Enjoy by: 3rd Week, Dec ('02) Tasted: 12/27/02

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2002 07:20:47 | More by RBorsato

Gusler

Arizona

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This is one of the better IPA’s available anywhere on the face of God’s green earth. Slightly cloudy orange, with a generous head and oodles of fine lace, also lots of goodies coating the bottom of the bottle. The nose simply reeks of hops, citrus like in its crispness with a malt sweet backing, and yes even a tad bit of yeast, a damn nice sniff, with the start sweet and pleasantly malted, top is middling in its feel to the palate. Finish is pleasingly acidic, the hop bite Herculean in its spiciness, the aftertaste droughty.

Serving type: bottle

12-21-2002 07:34:17 | More by Gusler

StevieW

Florida

4.5/5  rDev +11.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Cloudy deep golden color. The color of a Georgia Tech football jersey left in the rain. Nice fluffy, hop full, bubbly rich beige head. Hop aroamas hit your nose at arms length. Some subtle sweet citrus smells mixed with florals. Taste is perfectly hop filled, not hot or resiny like others. Lacks the "stickiness" of a Hop Devil, but everybit as flavorful, just not as powerful. Nice sweet malty undertones. Crsip dry finish. Hop burps linger. Creamy, rich tasting IPA. Super easy to drink. I would have these as a staple in my fridge if possible. Really nothing wrong with this beer, very enjoyable.
Cheers to Jacob for the trade !

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2002 17:15:43 | More by StevieW

nathi

Colorado

3.65/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Very nice dense head and good golden color.

Aroma is rich and floral, almost fruity hop character, classic american. Nice malt sweetnes. Overall the aroma in not extreme, but nice a subtle and well balanced.

Nice bitterness in the flavor, not a huge hop flavor, more just bitter, but nice. Malt vanishes very fast and dosnt linger to balance the hop finish, but is nice and clean without any detracting suagry cloying ness. A very refreshing IPA in the british character, but with american hops. Works very well. Would like some more malt complexity and presence, but the way it is makes it very drinkable

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2002 18:54:52 | More by nathi

fattyre

Georgia

4.4/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Fitting this should be my first review since I drink so much of it. Pours a slightly dark orangy golden color with a descent size foamy clingy thick head. Lots of particulates suspended that I find attractive but might scare others.
. Grapefruit hoppy nose Firm mouthfeel with a sweetish malty start and stong bitter grapefruit finish. Very enjoyable. My favorite regional.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2002 00:38:50 | More by fattyre

tigerpaws

South Carolina

4.4/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Great beer if you are a hophead you gotta try this one, my wife is going to have to bring back a case for me from Atlanta. Great cloudy golden color, unfiltered scares alot of people lol. Heavy on the hops and a excelelnt hoppy aroma. This is a great compliment to spicy food such as the cajun jambalaya I had when partaking..................CHEERS

Serving type: bottle

06-27-2002 14:52:13 | More by tigerpaws

pbrian

Connecticut

4.03/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I loved the aroma of this beer. Nice fresh waft of apricots. I was expecting an onslaught of hops on the first sip, but it was a pretty mellow, balanced flavor with a lingering bitterness late in the swallow. Overall, a nice beer I wouldn't mind having in my area. Thanks to aracauna, I was able to sample it.

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2002 05:31:51 | More by pbrian

Jason

Massachusetts

3.63/5  rDev -10.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Very balanced, almost too balanced for the style. Good amount of dextrin sweetness with a softer yet bold hop bitterness. This one reminds me of some west coast pale ales, light in color with a big dose of pale malt and low - medium alpha hops. Clean finish with dextrins and floral hop.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2002 12:04:20 | More by Jason