Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Deconstructed IPA - Simcoe - Boston Beer Company (Samuel Adams)

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Awesome. I knew I liked Simcoe for a reason. Good on all ends. Real oily characteristics on this one fragrance and flavor wise. Thick, consistent, and distinct. I'm kind of disappointed that I went to this as I doubt the last two I have left of this series will live up to this one. But what can you do. This is a solid beer. Especially considering that there is only one hop varietal in use. A pleasure to drink.

Serving type: bottle

08-25-2012 17:36:58 | More by RblWthACoz

ToddT

Pennsylvania

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

A- Clear amber topped with a thick off white head. Head falls slowly to a cap and leaves some nice rings of lace on the glass.

S- Floral hop notes with hints of citrus, mostly lemon zest and grapefruit.

T- Hints of lemon that build to a bitter grapefruit note. Grapefruit dominates the caramel malt until the finish when the malt finally shines through. The finish is dry and mostly clean with a final note of the grapefruit bitterness.

M- Medium in body and well carbonated. Clean on the palate, about halfway through the glass the hop oil does start to build up.

O- The most well known of the hops to me in this deconstructed IPA so far. As easy hop to note in other beer and a memorable flavor for me. The 6% ABV is hidden and not over the top for the style. Interesting experiment from Boston Beer to deconstruct an IPA into it's hop components and let us taste them separately and then together over these six beers. Mikkeller does something similar with their single hop series and I applaud the fact that Boston Beer has taken it a step further.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2012 09:10:11 | More by ToddT

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

4.08/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Let's pull up the initial Latitude 48 review:

"Appearance: Pours out a clear, dark amber body with an initially fluffy, though ultimately short-lived, whitish head.

Smell: Sweetish light-colored caramel sauce paired with oven toaster-toasted biscuit tops. Aromatic pops of hoppy spices, lemon juice, and dried, tea-like herbs fill the nose.

Taste: A maltiness tasting of toasted biscuits hit with a small-sized spoonful of caramel and toffee. There’s a short-lived sweetness that drops out in anticipation of the incoming hops, which bring about a mixture of grassy herbs, lightly earthy spice, and lemon peel (a bit of pith included). Well-integrated bitterness. A last hint of dry caramel and spiced tea on the finish.

Mouthfeel: Lat-48 comes up just shy of the medium body mark. Medium carbonation.

Drinkability: A tasty, nicely hoppy brew without hitting you over the head with scorching bitterness. "It’s an ale." --Matt Simpson. Too right, Matt, too right."

OK. Well, appearance and mouthfeel are the similar all across the board and in step with the original, as is the underlying malt character. Makes me think of it as Weyerbacher's Double Simcoe's kid brother, with it's pithy, citrusy character, the premier really accentuating the bitterness.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2012 18:12:46 | More by ChainGangGuy

neenerzig

Ohio

4.4/5  rDev +14%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured out of a 12 oz bottle into my pint glass, this beer is a clear, medium amber color with a nice creamy and fluffy looking off white, slightly tan colored head that is about an inch thick when poured. Settles to a very nice thick surface film layer about 5 minutes later with very nice lacing lining the inside of the glass. Best lacing I've seen in quite awhile. Has a nice floral, piney hop aroma upfront followed by a nice caramel maltiness. The taste pretty much follows suit, a nice floral, piney, citrus hop flavor upfront. Damn nice hop bitterness here! Gives way to a nice toasted caramel malt sweetness. Not a huge ass bitter hop monster of a beer where all you can taste are the hops, but the hop flavors certainly do tend to dominate here. Has a clean and sort of dry finish. Also has a crisp and smooth, frothy, medium to full bodied mouthfeel with moderate carbonation. Easy to drink in the way good beer should be. One of the best beers I've had from The Boston Beer Company in quite awhile!

Eric

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2012 05:08:33 | More by neenerzig

SmartyPints

Michigan

3.2/5  rDev -17.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured from 12oz bottle.

A- Poured a clear coppery color. One finger tan head shows gooed retention. Nice sheets of lace are left on the glass while I drink this one down.

S- I get some nice citrus notes with a hint of cat pee thrown in there. Lots of sweet caramel biscuity malts in the backing of the aroma for sure. This to me smells like a typical east coast style IPA.

T- Typical simcoe like grapefruit in the front although the malt bill which is a bready caramel bomb almost distracts from the hop that is trying to showcase itself. Light grapefruit notes and bitterness throughout the beer but the malt bill destroys what could be a great easy drinking IPA.

M- Medium mouthfeel. Carbonation is good for the style. Hints of bitter grapefruit and lots of caramel malts are left on the palate. Aftertaste is light alcohol with hints of hop bitterness covered in a boatload of caramel malts. Flavors were a little off with this showing more of the malts than the hops which made it seem like a weak IPA at times. No off flavors while drinking. Medium alcohol drying on the palate.

O- This was a interesting idea for Sam Adams. i think it could be better pulled off it another brewery were to attempt it. The malt bill like in others of the Deconstructed series was just a little too much and took away from showcasing what hop was being used.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2011 19:47:30 | More by SmartyPints

aggiearcher13

Texas

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

Hazy amber with a frothy white head. Leaves pretty good lacing. Aroma is piney, as expected, but a little more muted than I anticipated. Good flavor, very balanced, not a hop bomb but enjoyable. Pretty good body to it, really rounds the beer out nicely. Definitely would have it again.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2011 04:22:54 | More by aggiearcher13

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.13/5  rDev +7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

rich copper with a nice creamy colored head and significant lace. Looks great. Smell is richly hopped , with even a bit of a sugary presence. Taste was very nice, not overly upfront with the hops, but it will catch you on the back end. Nice dry finish. Again that almost caramel malty taste rounds this out very nicely. Very smooth as well. This is a good IPA that is not Crazy Hopped

Serving type: bottle

11-15-2011 02:31:22 | More by mikesgroove

TippySelenoid

Missouri

3.65/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a tulip.

It's a coppery color with a nice haze. It's got a white that quickly turns to lace.

This smells like wet hops? It's very earthy and the malts are highly prevalent.

It tastes like chives? It's also very piney. These unblended hops are weird. It's very earthy and spicy tasting.

It's medium bodied with moderate carbonation.

This is a bizarre beer. It's a notion that I'd like to revisit. This hop could be divisive. I could see people not liking it.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2011 23:00:35 | More by TippySelenoid

ikats

New Jersey

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

Pours deep amber in color, clear, slightly off-white head. Very sticky. Aroma is full of pine notes. I felt it the moment I opened the bottle and started pouring. Very inviting. There is some sweetness or stickiness in the aroma as well. Taste is pure grapefruit. Very pronounced (and a tasty grapefruit at that). Bitterness is up front and lingers a bit. Medium-light body. Fairly smooth and easy drinking (the bitterness is probably on the verge of overpowering, but is not there).

This is the third bottle of in the Latitude 48 series for me. Tasted on day two. Overall I find Simcoe hops not enough by themselves. They provide good components in the form of citrus and pine notes, but I am looking for added flavor from other varieties.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2011 23:56:15 | More by ikats

BeardedRiker

Texas

3.68/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A day after I try the Latitude 48 IPA Ahtanum I'm trying the Simcoe hops version. Let's see how they compare.

Appearance-wise this looks like the same Latitude 48 IPA that I poured yesterday. The head is lovely, frothy-creamy-looking, off-white, and tall with good retention. I got a PERFECT pour with this one. Head retention is pretty good and lacing is left as well. The beer is amber-copper.

I'd have to say I believe this smells better than the Ahtanum. This is much more floral and the fruitiness is much more like tropical fruits rather than lemon or orange citrus. There's a marked presence of pine as well. I pick up malt graininess too.

I do think this tastes better than the Ahtanum version as well but I'd not say it's exceptionally better. The tropical fruits and pine flavors are more present and there's not the phenol-like taste in there which is a plus. This could be a bit more bitter but I'm not certain. Pine resin and caramel sweetness counter the bitterness while the malt grain gives more of a body. Bitterness lingers past everything else.

Medium-bodied with medium carbonation. This is drier than the Ahtanum version which I like.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2011 02:01:54 | More by BeardedRiker

FanofHefe

Illinois

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

Bottle, best by Sep 2011 (getting close here) poured into a tulip. Clear amber body with a nice two-finger tan head. Good retention and lacing.

Light aroma overall, but a decent mix of the citrus hop and biscuity malt notes.

Tastes more like an East Coast IPA with a heavier malt bill than those from the left coast. Still, a decent amount hop bitterness from the Simcoe, tasting mostly like grapefruit and orange.

Fairly dense mouthfeel for an IPA. Excellent effort from SA in doing this deconstructed series.

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2011 00:50:47 | More by FanofHefe

JamesS

Indiana

4.13/5  rDev +7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a great copper color with great head and very nice lacing. Excellent deep sweet malty aroma with a great hop hit at the end. Interesting taste, with great malt sweetness, slight caramel flavors, and a wonderful decent earthy and piney hoppiness. Went down quite well indeed, with just a bit of roughness!

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2011 18:50:30 | More by JamesS

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

3.33/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

The beer is amber hued and transparent, with a finger of off white head that leaves some decent lacing on the pint glass.

The aroma is kinda weak, with some pine and earthy notes.

The flavor is a step up from the aroma, although the beer is far too malty for the style. What is the deal with all these East Coast IPAs being so malt heavy?!? Another disappointment. Sigh. The flavor is decent, and the beer is drinkable, but this could be so much more. Hops overshadowed by malt does not equal American IPA.

I enjoyed this more than the standard Latitude 48, but overall, still feel that this beer comes up way short. Mediocre for the style.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2011 00:33:32 | More by Huhzubendah

hustlesworth

Ohio

4.25/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- last of the series, here we go. i've run out of ways to say clear and coppery. huge rocky chunky ecru foam with tons of webbing.

S- big citrus blast, from grapefruit, lemon, orange, mango, passion fruit, pineapple, aaaand sweetly toasted malt.

T- mango dominates the flavor profile. absolutely and all the way mango. some grapefruit and pineapple and pine wood back it up. about tied with ahtanum for bitterness, but the simcoe just has a nicer flavor. that flavor, as it is, also is a better compliment to the caramel and pale malts. there's also a more woodsy earthy edge to this one that i recognized immediately from when my homeboy ben (soon to be opening his own brewery in cleveland!) gave me a handful of fresh cascades that he grew himself. bright and citrusy and green when fresh, but after i dried and cured them and smashed one around, i got that same earthy woodsy 'edge'. cheers to correlation. vinous notes and a degree of tartness. finishes herbal, woodsy, piney.

MF- medium medium medium. resinous. juicy. moderately dry.

D- may have saved the best for last here. classic american IPA flavor, simcoe has always been one of my favorites. i really enjoyed this deconstruction and it was cool to have (nearly) consecutive reviews of IPAs that exclusively used hops that wouldn't normally be used by themselves. namely hallertau and goldings. simcoe however, well, she's just simcoe. and when they ask me-- 'why does she do the things she does?' i say...i tell em-- 'well, that's just simcoe being simcoe.'

Serving type: bottle

09-04-2011 04:10:08 | More by hustlesworth

escapegoat

Georgia

4.03/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served from bottle into a Sam Adams Perfect Pint (gotta put its best foot forward)

A - Nice deep amber with medium-low carbonation
S - Nice citrus hops (ie, Simcoe)
T - The best of the SA Lat deconstructed series, typical Simco citrus;piney profile well balanced with malts. Could use a bit more complexity on the malt side given the single-hop profile.
M - Good, slightly sticky IPA profile

Overall - I'd drink this more readily than I would the original Latitude 48, but it's not fantastic given other single-hop IPAs out there (particularly the Centennial hop IPAs like 2-Hearted or Founders)

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2011 04:57:00 | More by escapegoat

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

3.88/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottle: Poured an amber color ale with a nice foamy head with good retention and light lacing. Aroma of bitter and citrus hops is quite interesting. Taste is a nice well balanced mix between some semi-sweet caramel malt and some citrus and bitter hops. Body is quite full with good carbonation. Well brewed though the floral or fruity notes did not come out as much as I had expected – I prefer the Mikkeller single hops version to this one.

Serving type: bottle

08-23-2011 20:15:49 | More by Phyl21ca

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

4.68/5  rDev +21.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I was visiting The Foodery (N. Liberties and I saw that they had singles and sixes of Lat. 48 in bottles and asked if I could purchase singles. "Why would you want to do that?" was the reply and I must have been dumbfounded because the counterman went on to explain that one sixer equaled the SA Lat. 48 Deconstructed series and I could have one of each of the bottles that construed the series by buying one sixer. Deconstructed IPA? Color me SOLD!

From the bottle: "Hop Variety: Simcoe; Growing Region Along the 48th Latitude: Yakima Valley, WA; Samuel Adams Latitude 48 Simcoe IPA is brewed with only Zeus hops from the Yakima Valley area of WA. The hops are added at three points during the brewing process - bittering, late kettle, and dry hopping. Simcoe hops contribute a profound bitterness and dramatic grapefruit peel and pine resin notes to this brew, with the slight sweetness and full malt body balancing the concentrated hop character."

I am a sucker for AIPAs and the very thought of this series set my mouth to watering and my Hop jones Monkey that lives on my back to chattering in a tone that I had not heard before. I am regressing to an earlier, uglier time, thanks to these bottles. The CANQuest (TM) weaned me off of the hop kick and now I am right back on that pony. Dang!

This was the fifth of the six.

Just as Radar O'Reilly was advised to nod and murmur, "Ah, Bach!" in an episode of "M*A*S*H", so should any hophead worth his/her salt murmur, "Ah, Simcoe!" This is the granddaddy of American IPAs and deserves our respect for its contributions. I had a dense finger of tawny head with great retention from my pour. Color was a deep copper with NE-quality clarity in a shade and tone that not even newly minted pennies achieve. Nose was ... Ah, Simcoe! It smelled like the pine resin bag from little league baseball and allow me to wish the PA team representing the Mid-Atlantic this year the best of luck the rest of the way. If this does not get your nostrils to sit up and pay attention, you may want to consult a physician as you may be dead. Its interaction with the caramel malt sweetness was breathtaking. Mouthfeel was prickly with the grapefruit citrus bitterness burning out those weak taste buds and paving the way for the pine hops to get a chance to shine. Ah, Simcoe! If the nose was breathtaking, the finish was stunning with me wishing that I were wearing a seatbelt so as not to fall over from the intensity. Jeez-O, man, ah, Simcoe, indeed! If they could make a Simcoe mouthwash, I would be gargling ten times a day. The finish just left me feeling as though I had been gargling with it. Minty fresh! The lacing in the glass was outrageously sticky. Beautiful.

Serving type: bottle

08-21-2011 23:53:13 | More by woodychandler

Billolick

New York

3.95/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 ounce bottle from the box set. Best before sept '11 the notches on the side of the label tell me.

Darker and clear almond amber, frothy oatmeal head, lasts and leaves a thick collar of low sheeting and slippery lace.

Grapefruit hop nose, with some underlying malt sweetness.

Grapefruit from the simcoe is the dominant feature here. Citric and grainy. Moderate malt under current with caramel and some light smokeyness.

Nice job here by S.A. Give em credit for the concept and the execution of the IPA in the box. Not amazing brews but very respectable efforts and educational to boot.

Serving type: bottle

08-21-2011 15:32:34 | More by Billolick

albertjr21

New York

3.95/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Review # 2 of 6 for the Deconstructed Series. Enjoyed on 7-28-11 in a Samuel Adam's Perfect Pint.

Brew pours a clear and deep burnt orange amber color under a rocky sudsy head. Aroma isn't so deep but does reflect a fine and cool pine and citrus blended note. An overall tone of pine hops seems to rule the blend on the palate though I do pick up on a significant dosage of grapefruit bitterness near the finish. Malt sweetness really makes this nice and smooth and provides the foundation for an honest display of Simcoe. A refreshing and relatively clean finish that lightly resonates with herbal and citrus peel bitterness.

Serving type: bottle

08-20-2011 18:30:39 | More by albertjr21

afdempse

Maryland

3.95/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours with a thick beige head, and a moderately dark copper color. Pine and citrus are prevalent in the aroma.

Flavor is intense pine/evergreen with grapefruit rind and faint white grape juice notes in the finish. Not quite dry, but not a sweet finish either. Malt plays a good supporting role, providing balance, but not getting in the way of the Simcoe showcase. The bitterness is substantial, and lingers long after the glass is empty.

Overall a fine showing for Sam Adams, but when placed next to other Simcoe heavyweights it lacks those special qualities and extra details that would make it stand out from the crowd.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2011 04:29:37 | More by afdempse

adam42381

Florida

3.8/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a New Belgium globe. Best before September 2011 notched on label.

Appearance: Pours a clear dark amber color with orange highlights and a 3 finger foamy light tan head. Excellent head retention and thick, glass-coating lacing.

Smell: Sweet citrus, pineapple and pine with a bit of caramel malt in the background.

Taste: Pine is very strong up front followed by just a hair of sweetness in the middle before ending with lemon peel and grapefruit at the finish. Aftertaste is quite bitter and long lasting.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied with a fairly high amount of carbonation.

Drinkability: High drinkability. You could knock back a few of these with no problem.

Overall: Good beer overall. While I wouldn't specifically seek this one out, I'm glad I bought the Deconstructed Latitude 48 mix pack so I got to try this one.

Serving type: bottle

08-17-2011 22:25:27 | More by adam42381

emerge077

Illinois

3.53/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

10-1-11 date printed on the bottle neck.

Poured into a tulip glass, it's a deep saturated orange with bright clarity. Solid layer of foam that maintains itself well, depositing concentric rings of intricate lacing on the glass.

Soft citrus grapefruit and malty toffee and caramel notes in the nose.

Malty taste with some dried citrus peel flavors. Seems like age has cut into the hop levels a bit, but there's still some candied orange there. Smooth mellow feel, could easily have a couple, but it's a bit faded now. Easy drinking IPA, not bad, just wish it was still fresh.

Serving type: bottle

08-16-2011 02:47:06 | More by emerge077

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.53/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Same color and foamy head, overall appearance is the same as the others in the series.

Nose is not quite as full of the telltale Simcoe signature as I had been expecting it. Nose is instead a floral bouquet tinged with lemon / onion essence and grassy melody. Taste is actually balanced quite well, I would say TOO well, because I would have preferred a more aggressive, brash, hopping to let the Simcoe truly shine. Texture is medium bodied, clean, and crisp.
Needs some more aggressiveness IMHO. Just about 10% more hopping and it would have been amazing for me.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2011 16:38:38 | More by WastingFreetime

mactrail

California

3.5/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Browned and biscuity flavors. Rather malty and medium bodied. Big mouthful of hoppy flavor. Plenty of bitterness. An interesting educational experience but really not very drinkable. Simcoe seems to have a lemony flavor rather than piney. Not as floral as some hops. Huge hoppiness generally overwhelms any other flavors after a while. Like most Sam Adams beer, however, it's clean and well made. Nice to look at, a bright orangey amber. Excellent head and lacing.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2011 05:14:18 | More by mactrail

ms11781

Massachusetts

3.38/5  rDev -12.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed on 05/05/2011. Best by September 2011 notched on label. 12oz bottle poured into a pint glass.

Pours a clear, orange/copper color with a 1/2 finger, off-white head. Excellent lacing left in the glass. Seems a bit lighter in color than the other beers in the series, which is odd since I assume the base beer is the same.

Strongest nose of the single hop series thus far. Nice grapefruit and citrusy aromas. There is a little bit of pine but not much. Very little in the way of malt, especially in contrast to the other beers. The hops stand out more here.

The taste is initially full of grapefruit and citrus as well. Not a huge, dominating presence but the hops make themselves known. The malt is more noticeable in the taste and has slight caramel-like sweetness. A touch of pine brings some bitterness with it at the finish as it dries out more than the others as well.

Medium body with medium carbonation. The mouthfeel does feel a bit fuller despite this. Nice, pleasant bitterness with a drier finish.

Overall, the Simcoe was the best of the series thus far (halfway through at this point). The Simcoe hops seem to have better characteristics for standing out on their own.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2011 03:27:35 | More by ms11781