New Holland Mad Hatter India Pale Ale - New Holland Brewing Company

GiantMidget

Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Had in cask in a pint glass at Pinocchio's in Media PA.

2 finger head with pretty solid lacing that remained throughout the drinking.
Caramel colored, a bit dark for a typical IPA but not too brown.

It smelled quite hoppy and floral.
It also had a very dry taste from the Centennial hops which were very evident on the back of the tongue.
Also quite floral but minimal citrus flavoring and I didn't catch any pine at all.

The mouthfeel was quite weak, almost flat to some degree, this I assume due to being served in cask. Despite this weakness I believe the flavor of the IPA was good enough to merit a 3.5 overall because it's saved by the dry hoppiness.

Try it if you get a chance.

Serving type: cask

01-06-2013 02:49:03 | More by GiantMidget

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.93/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Reviewed from notes.

Appears an orange-tinted amber with a fair amount of haziness to it. One finger of eggshell colored head dissipated to nothing in about a minute, not surprising considering it was served from a cask. Both the flavor and aroma are rather floral-hopping focused for an IPA, with lesser focus on the pine resin, citrus peel, and caramel malt. Body and carbonation are both medium. No real complaints, nor anything in particular exceptional about this one, a serviceable IPA.

Serving type: cask

05-06-2012 02:30:51 | More by WastingFreetime

LanceW

Michigan

2.42/5  rDev -36.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Appearance: Dark and hazy in the pint glass. Pour with a nice head to start. Carbonation ended pretty quick

Smell: Smell was ok. I was expecting more hops

Taste: unfortunately I was really disappointed. I will not order this on cask again.

Mouth fell: OK. I wish it had more body or a crisper IPA finish

Drinkability: Not for me.

Serving type: cask

12-21-2010 02:13:51 | More by LanceW

LordAdmNelson

Ohio

3.15/5  rDev -17.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Had this as a cask-conditioned ale at Fiddler's in South Bend. Looks great as an IPA--big white head that laces well, nice reddish-amber color. Great lacing. Smell is of citrus hops, with a bit of wood and grassiness coming in. Taste is watered down with some oak notes, a bit of citrus, and some pale malt. Taste likes any cask conditioning has killed the hops. Small body, not coating, not prickly, not really anything. Decent drinkability due to the watery-ness with hints of decent flavor. Just not really impressed with this one.

Serving type: cask

01-14-2010 06:01:00 | More by LordAdmNelson

atsprings

North Carolina

4.47/5  rDev +16.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

10oz pour at Raleigh Times served a slightly hazy orange with a thin diminishing head. Aroma is a decent amount of citrus hops with slight sweet malts. The taste is a wonderful balance of citrus hops and sweet malts with a nice smooth finish. The beer is very smooth and easy drinking. This one is a wonderful cask brew!

Serving type: cask

09-10-2009 22:46:01 | More by atsprings

ILikeGoodCider

California

4.25/5  rDev +11%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Enjoyed on 09.22.2008 at The Berkley Front in Berkley, MI. On the hand pump.

A: Half-inch of good head, decent retention as it sticks to the glass a bit. A little opague & orange in color.

S: I got a mild tobacco front-end. Toasted grains & hops. Maybe a bit of grapefruit of some other hard citrus too.

T: Hits you well at first. Medium-bodied. I liked the toasted notes. Finished semi-dry with longer lasting hops.

M: Moderate carbonation led to a med-light mouthfeel.

D: Good balance & I enjoyed it. But, then again, I didn't think twice about trying another selection afterward.

I had a turkey burger w/cheddar along with this IPA & it paired well.

Serving type: cask

09-23-2008 03:35:28 | More by ILikeGoodCider

blakesell

Ohio

4.18/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from the cask into a pint glass at Barley's smokehouse mini cask festival.

Appearance- Beer pours a hazed yellow orange with a light film of big bubbles forming a penninsula of white foam over the top. Lacing clings to the sides of the glass.

Smell- Citrus and noble hops forming an excellent combination of English and American IPA, big hops and a hint of Munich and two row malt.

Taste- Creamy with big signature cask flavors, hops and moss. Noble hops linger on the finish, slightly bitter, malts also on the finish. Little to no carbonation, very English styled on the mouthfeel.

Mouthfeel- Bitter, creamy, medium light bodied, buttery, lightly astringent, not carbonated.

Drinkability- Very nice and I will buy a sixer of this fine IPA soon.

Serving type: cask

05-11-2008 21:38:05 | More by blakesell

KC8LTL

Michigan

4.15/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Visited the brewery and saw Mad Hatter on Cask. I had to try it.

Appearance: Orange with about a half inch head when served. Head disappeared while drinking it, but I enjoyed it for a long time. No lacing.

Smell: Citrus Hop smell, but hardly that aggressive.

Taste: Citrus Hoppy IPA, but remarkably balanced.

Mouthfeel: Serving as a Cask Ale give a certain smoothness and almost creamyness. I enjoyed each sip.

Drinkablity: A sessionable IPA. I wish this were available in Traverse City like this.

Serving type: cask

04-24-2008 03:41:01 | More by KC8LTL

Roman5150

Michigan

3.73/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 4

bottle into pint glass

appearance: dark copper cloudy orange with half finger white head

smell: lemon, clementines, grapefruit, sweet malts, clove, herbal

taste: so smooth for an IPA, by the smell you would think it's a really bitter hop bomb, but the finish almost cuts off, there's hardly any bitterness in the aftertaste. You're left with a sort of watery, resinous, citrusy finish that is pretty satisfying. Remarkable balance; this is such a smooth beer.

mouthfeel: not much carbonation, rather thin feel

overall: a great IPA when fresh, but after a few weeks the hoppiness drops off very quick. a smooth IPA. Will buy again.

Serving type: bottle

06-05-2013 04:21:11 | More by Roman5150

arl851

District of Columbia

3.1/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

A drinkable beer, but not what I expected. Moderate grassy/earthy flavor that left only a slight bitterness. There was just a hint of the advertised floral aroma. I would not have guessed this beer was dry-hopped if the label hadn't told me so. I'll be on the look-out for this beer on tap, but out of the bottle this was a very average American IPA.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2013 00:11:39 | More by arl851

cindyjeffsmith

Georgia

3.54/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: hazy amber. Big foamy head on the pour that nearly comptely recedes. Thick, lingering lacing though.
Smell: fruity and citrus. Pleasant if not distinctive.
Taste: much like the nose but a little more prosaic.
Overall: nice but no standout.

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2013 23:26:31 | More by cindyjeffsmith

Connormick

Michigan

3.24/5  rDev -15.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25

New Holland brewing company is my hometown brewing company. So of course I'm always excited to give one of their beers a try.

It pored out fine from a bottle to a clean pint glass. It had a fine head, and a fine color, and a fine consistency. It was, well, fine.

as with the appearance, the smell was also average. It smelled like most IPAs do, not really that much to say about it. Clearish amber color with a white head.

The smell was a bit floral, but besides that, nothing to write home about.

The taste was pretty good. It was a nice mellow hoppy beer, not too overpowering, with a nice floral backround taste.

The mouthfeel of this IPA was the only thing that really stood out, and not necessarily in a universally good way. It's smooth, maybe even a little slick. It's a good beer to drink a lot of. But it isn't as refine as a great beer should in this category, yet it is pleasant to drink.

Overall, this is a fantastic drink to bring to a group gathering. Not a lot of people will have any protest to this beer, it goes down smooth and you can drink a lot of it. But as far as quality beer goes, it's a resounding "meh."

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2013 03:52:27 | More by Connormick

TheBrewo

Michigan

3.93/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

This brew was served on tap at Lockhart’s BBQ in Royal Oak, Michigan. It arrived in a generic pint glass, glowing a golden orange-brown coloring. It held a half finger tall head of creamy white bubbles, showing okay retention. Spots of lacing were left around the glass as it dissipated into a persistent crowning ring about the top of the liquid. No haze or sediment was noted, and carbonation appeared to be moderate. The aroma gave standard pale malts, sticky sweet honey, basement muskiness, nectary tangerine flesh, sweet grapefruity hops, light florals, and vinegar acidity. Our first impression was that the flavoring showed a nice balance between the malts and the hops, with nice freshness afforded by big citric hops, and with apricot through the finish. As we sipped, the taste opened with sweet orange freshness, those same standard pale malts, light caramel smack, and freshly floral hops to balance. Pulling to the peak are notes of puckered citric hops, grainy lemon ring, continued tangerine sugars, green grass bitterness, and that vinegar bite from the nose. Washing through the finish is more soured lemon rind, mustiness, cucumber water freshness, and medicinal phenolic spice. The aftertaste breathed of musk, citric hops, grapefruity, pale malt rumbles, light toast, mineral, muddy raw barley, tangerine flesh, and dried lemongrass. The body was light to medium, and the carbonation was medium. Each sip gave good slurp, nice pop, and okay smack. Cream and froth were soft, briefly coating the mouth. This dripped away, giving mild astringent dryness and general cleanliness. The abv was appropriate, and the beer drank quite nicely.

Overall, what we enjoyed most about this beer was the nice balance of dirty, musky maltiness with such fresh and floral hoppiness through the taste. This gave an interesting, well balanced concept, with nice drying finish to wrap things up into a neat little package. The nose was nicely sweet and sticky, but unfortunately the hops fell to the background, getting lost without their inherent bitterness. The taste, at times, showed the same issue. Things just remained a bit light, but in the end this in turn helped to keep things so fresh and ultimately drinkable.

Serving type: on-tap

05-04-2013 19:25:18 | More by TheBrewo

Thaddeus

Michigan

4.09/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Appearance: Clear amber ale, with an average head of white foam.

Aroma & Taste: Floral and herbaceous hop notes. Tastes different when poured into a cup then from a bottle. More molasses and soy sauce notes. Bitter and dry with a medium finish. Overall a great beer if you like hops.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2013 16:32:47 | More by Thaddeus

MichaelNickerson

Michigan

3.33/5  rDev -13.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

Appearance - bright, clear golden yellow with white head about one finger

Smell - Extremely floral, fruity, and some spice notes at the end

Taste - Very distinct taste. Extreme flavors dominate, which I don't like too much in a beer. There is an intense amount of fruitiness that ends with a short bitterness that dissipates quickly

Mouthfeel - dry, low carbonation

Serving type: bottle

04-25-2013 15:40:00 | More by MichaelNickerson

Kendo

New York

3.95/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Poured from the bottle into a Sam Smith's nonic-style pint glass. Body is coppery/orangey-amber with a small ivory head. Leaves some splotches of lace.

S: Not terribly strong in the nose; florally hops with a touch of caramel malt underneath.

T: Some underlying biscuity, caramel malt is followed up by the hops - think grapefruit and pine. Finishes quite dry, with a lingering almost lemony bitterness that creates a nice drying sensation mid-palate.

M: Call it medium-bodied; carbonation is active but not sharp.

O: By modern standards, this is almost APA rather than IPA territory, but it's real solid. Good hops over a nice malt foundation.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2013 01:25:14 | More by Kendo

KYGunner

Kentucky

3.76/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Golden/orange/amber color with a distinct radiance the head was bright white but wouldn't build.

Sweet floral hop aromas mix with a weaker malt body.

The taste has strong malt and barley characters. Hints of pine and burnt grass come towards the end. Perfumery and flowery tones hit the tongue at the aftertaste which are different but not necessarily bad.

Overall an interesting and pleasant IPA with good bones. A DIPA version could be quite stellar.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2013 21:25:16 | More by KYGunner

Stinkypuss

Pennsylvania

3.43/5  rDev -10.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

LOOK: Pours a light copper color with a chill haze. Soapy white froth leaves some lace on the glass. Retention is OK.

SMELL: Resinous hops, muted citrus, pale malt sweetness, and caramel.

TASTE: Piney, resinous hops upfront with some grapefruit and stale pineapple. Bitterness is mild with a touch of warming alcohol. Smooth malt and citrusy hop.

FEEL: Medium bodied and well carbonated.

OVERALL: Just above average. Pretty decent little American IPA.

Serving type: bottle

04-07-2013 00:30:40 | More by Stinkypuss

MCain04

Illinois

3.96/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

poured into a pilsner glass at a restaurant

a: opaque and orange, white head with moderate retention and lacing.

s: floral, pine, nice but nothing special

t: medium hops, pleasing bitterness, good balance, malt mackbone, solid.

m: a little high on carbonation and a tad thin. a little dry.

o: not a bad offering, happy to drink this, wouldn't buy it over other offerings though, doesn't separate much from the pack.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2013 00:10:23 | More by MCain04

patre_tim

China

4.5/5  rDev +17.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Amber, slight cloudiness, moderate carbonation 2 finger creamy white head. Nice jagged but thin lacing.

S: Spicy hops, malt and candy, red pepper, pine, a little tropical fruit like pineapple. Expecting a double ipa from the scent.

T: All of the above minus the candy and sweetness I was initially expecting. There is a slight sweet, but it is so sublte it almost goes unnoticed.

M: Medium body, somewhat resinous, medium high carbonation.

O: I like it better than I was expecting, as it has an almost savoury, woodsy kind of taste that would pair well with venison, bbq meats, etc. Exceeded my expectations. Perhaps my new favourite American IPA. It shows off the hops well without overdoing them as some do, and leaves your palate with a clean finnish.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2013 03:22:47 | More by patre_tim

tjsdomer2

Illinois

3.85/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Appearance: Amber orange in hue. Great foam and lacing. I drink this at the same time as Yellow Snow. Comparing it to that beer, it's very similar, just a bit darker. Equally as pretty.

Smell: Good balance with the smell. Cider or grape scent with a lemon and pine hop background. It could use a bit more assertiveness.

Taste/Mouthfeel: Nice fruity overtones to this, mostly apple and grape. Hops consist mostly of citrus flavors. Mouthfeel is a bit dull, not flat, just a a bit to light-bodied for my liking.

Overall Drinkability: Good balance for an IPA. I would define this as a good gateway IPA.

Serving type: on-tap

02-17-2013 18:57:28 | More by tjsdomer2

StonedTrippin

Colorado

3.75/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

yeasty and bitter, like a mikkeller warmup or something, i liked this ipa. pours cloudy and dull golden color, with an inch or two of lazy white head. the nose is funky yeast and bitter hops, high alpha varieties providing some solid pucker, and a relatively light malt profile. yeast and hops are an underappreciated fusion, and this beer joins them well. the summery style yeast meets dead of winter feeling hops, cold and dry and memorably bitter. finish is long and oily from the hops. good carbonation and a medium to full body for an ipa. i would have expected more alcohol from the nose and taste of this, maybe in the 7% range, and i was surprised to learn its as low as it is, because it does seem to lack a little punch. in any event, this is a fine ipa, in need of some gentle refinement, but its a standout in the too often generic ipa world.

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2013 21:16:41 | More by StonedTrippin

ubenumber2

Arkansas

3.9/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle in to one of the fancy pint glasses

Nice redish orange color , 1 finger head that lingered with spotty lacing that sticks to the glass through out the beer

Not a hoppy smell to me , almost a candy type smell , not to sweet but enough to make you want a drink of it , the small hop aroma comes in at the end

Nice mouth full with great carbonation

The taste is bitter , the hops nor the malt really comes straight through to me , it reminds me of a home brew I made using belgium candy sugar, I mean Im sure its not in this beer but it reminds me of that. I like it for what it is , not a typical IPA , but an enjoyable beer that I would purchase again

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 15:53:40 | More by ubenumber2

MikeD71

Michigan

4.05/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Overall a good tasting ale, my first experience with craft beer in many years. Adding the bottle to my new collection. A start on my journey and appreciation of beer, mass produced and craft. Took this a shot in the dark as a single in the grocery store.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2012 00:39:51 | More by MikeD71

DrinkinBoy

Georgia

3.95/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a bright amber. Head is white with good retention and great lacing.

S - Relatively faint, but typical American IPA. Slight caramel malt aroma with American hops leaning towards floral/pine than grapefruit.

T - Flavor is much brighter and more complex than aroma. Starts with malt sweetness with a nice mid palate transition to hop bitterness. Very long finish, but is not cloyingly bitter.

M - Medium body with nice compliment of carbonation.

O - Not that there is a shortage of American IPAs, but a good version that is wont disappoint. Only lacked real strong aroma.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2012 04:07:22 | More by DrinkinBoy