Bridgeport IPA - BridgePort Brewing Co. / Brewpub

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

4.15/5  rDev +7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Slightly murky (first pour), significantly murky (last pour) rich golden amber. The eggshell white head is slightly tacky, deflates ever so slowly and leaves a respectable amount of lace. There's plenty of sweet tropical fruitiness in the nose; grapefruit, orange and pineapple, in roughly that order. It this beer tastes like it smells, I'll be in seventh heaven.

Malt provides a less than sturdy backbone--which is all that I require in my IPAs--but the hops don't seize the initiative as firmly as they might. Juicy, grapefruity hops dominate the flavor profile without running rampant. Just when I think that the flavor is going to explode and really saturate my taste buds, it drifts away on a too-light-for-the-style body.

Don't get me wrong, this is a delicious, drinkable version of my favorite style. It's just that for an IPA to really get into my good graces, it needs to have more malt and especially more hops. As a consequence, it's anything but a palate destroyer and could be drunk in volume if so desired.

BridgePort has made a well-crafted, clean, sessionable, bottle-conditioned IPA that novice hopheads should love. Even though it doesn't quite manage to give me my hop fix this evening, I did savor every drop. Well done.

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2004 22:55:57 | More by BuckeyeNation

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

2.28/5  rDev -41.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Appearance: Dark yellow body with a bubbly white-colored head.

Smell: Musty, pine-scented aroma.

Taste: Hmm. My main concern is the lack of malt to balance the hops. All that's left is an awful generic bitterness. Any decent taste is masked by it, as is any compulsion to have a second taste.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied, with a fizzy carbonation.

Drinkability: In short, my evening at Taco Mac consisted of many, many fine, fun, delicious beers, and one really bad one.

Serving type: on-tap

09-30-2006 18:00:48 | More by ChainGangGuy

brentk56

North Carolina

4.08/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours a very hazy honey color with a modest cap (despite a volcanic eruption when I opened the bottle) that leaves some lace

Smell: Orange/grapefruit and a hint of pine, but a bit understated compared to others of the genre

Taste: What I missed in the aroma is more than made up for in the taste as the beer is citrusy from the outset, with grapefruit and apricot jumping out and, after the swallow, becoming more pronounced; the malt is not really there to balance, but that is acceptable as that keeps the beer light and refreshing

Mouthfeel: Medium body but a bit over-carbonated

Drinkability: Because of the over-carbonation, the beer's drinkability suffers a tad, but this is still a nice, though mainstream IPA

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2009 23:14:03 | More by brentk56

BEERchitect

Kentucky

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

GABF Weekend '08
It's good to revisit this beer after about five years. Along with Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale, this beer defines the style for Pale Ales. A very crisp malt backbone shows low-lying sweetness but strong malt character that hinges toward well attenuated barley flavors and an accentuated hop bitterness. Hop flavor in almost undoubtedly Cascade with a spicy grapefruit-orange zest flavor. Finishes with a snappy malt dryness and a lingering fresh hop flavor.

Serving type: on-tap

10-31-2008 18:31:08 | More by BEERchitect

oberon

North Carolina

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

First off thanks to my buddy hoppedup for the heads up on this beer,pours a slightly hazy peach color with a nice tight one finger gead leaving a sheet of lace behind.This beer is from Portland and its shown in the aroma big pine and citrus-grapefruit with just enough nutty malt to let you know its there,flavors as well citrusy hop dominated but there is a big malty backbone to hold up to the citrus and pine hoppiness to make this if not balanced at least highly drinkable.A nice new find here in Greensboro,a hoppy IPA to get the hop fix.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2005 02:20:18 | More by oberon

TMoney2591

Illinois

3.98/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served in a tumbler.

Randomly found a single o' this at Binny's a little while ago and said, "Hey, why not?" It pours a hazy straw-amber topped by a finger of white foam. The nose comprises orange peel, lemon zest, light black pepper, light coriander, and a touch of light caramel. The taste holds plenty o' grapefruit, orange peel, and lemon zest, along with some coriander, caramel, and a small vein of rye bread. Nicely balanced, if I do say so myself. The body is a hefty light, with a light moderate carbonation and a pretty smooth feel. Overall, a solid, nicely balanced IPA. 'Nuff said.

Serving type: bottle

02-25-2011 21:59:51 | More by TMoney2591

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

3.83/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Big, white head, dark orange color. Aroma is strong and spiked with hoppiness, fresh and fruity, with notes of citrus, grapefruit, pine, some vegetal notes. Clean taste, with scarce bitterness on the palate. An easy-drinking ale, full of flavor, fruitiness keeps coming through. Not quite as hoppy as I like my IPAs, but I'm not complaining too much. I could put away a lot of these.

Serving type: bottle

02-27-2003 18:49:47 | More by feloniousmonk

WesWes

New York

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

The beer pours a hazy golden color with a thick frothy white head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has a very bitter scent that boasts of piney hops and pale malts. It also seems to contain some carapils malts. The taste is good. It has a pale malt flavor that is overpowered by bitter hops. It goes down smooth and finishes piney and dry. The mouthfeel is good. It is a medium/full bodied beer with adequate carbonation. This is a fine IPA. It has excellent balance and hop character; a good drinker.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2004 01:21:54 | More by WesWes

drabmuh

Maryland

4.05/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into a goblet. Beer is dark yellow / orange and hazy. Forms a thin broken head of white tiny bubbles that fail to cover the top of the beer. Carbonation is moderate to low.

Kind of a soft pine aroma to the whole thing. The malt definitely comes through.

Nice back bitterness, it gives way to an almost fruit like character in the midpalate. This is not a malt forward IPA. Second taste, some graininess that time. Bitterness is clean and the beer finishes nice with only a minimal aftertaste. Pretty good.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2010 01:48:07 | More by drabmuh

zeff80

Missouri

3.83/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A - Pours out an oragne/amber color. Highly carbonated and it still left some lacing.

S - Smelled of Cascade hops and yeast. Also, hints of pine.

T - Tasted very malty and fairly hoppy. There was also a pine-like kick.

M - It was crisp and smooth. Light to medium-bodied.

D - Nice IPA. I really liked the hint of pine flavor.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2006 02:43:31 | More by zeff80

Gueuzedude

Arizona

3.8/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours a lightly hazy gold with copper highlights. The head is initially quite thick, and it is creamy and a light tan color. Ah yes, the aroma is a hit of American hops, pine, citrus fruits, apricot, and some interesting undertones of tropical fruit (perhaps some papaya and guava) dominate the nose. The taste is lightly sweet up front, and quickly moves to a tangy hoppiness that dominates the flavor in the middle. The finish is nicely bitter with a solid hop-bite to it. This is a really nice pale ale, it is definitely dominated by the hops, and perhaps is a bit thin, and could certainly use a bit more malt complexity. But as a hop-characterful brew this is quite simply, a tasty beer.

Serving type: bottle

10-16-2004 19:55:21 | More by Gueuzedude

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

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

Acquired via trade from timbro81 so a big "Thank You" goes out to him. Poured from a 12oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a deep gold color, with a large white head that fades very slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is of pale hops, caramelized malts and citrus.

T: The taste is hits with a bitter burst of pale hops and that same flavor remains dominant. There are mildly sweet flavors of citrus and caramel in the background and a decently hearty malt character provides some balance. The after-taste is slightly bitter.

M: Smooth and very crisp, light-to-medium body, medium carbonation, the finish is clean and very dry.

D: Tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, decent kick, good representation of style, this might not be the first IPA I would choose, but it's still a good solid beer that is worth drinking for a while.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2008 20:16:53 | More by TheManiacalOne

russpowell

Oklahoma

4.25/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours golden and clear with 3 fingers+ deep white head. Fantastic head retention and lacing

Smell: Citrus hops and malty fruitiness

Taste: Piney hops and slight malt sweetness up front. Some grainyness, Dry citrusy finish

MF: Good balance but slight thiness. Slight overcarbonation

Pretty drinkable belies it's abv. Refreshing and crisp

Bottle conditioning gives it a little extra frutiness and & kick. Good value @$5.99 a sixer (reguluar price). Good Mainstream IPA

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2006 04:14:34 | More by russpowell

emerge077

Illinois

3.93/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle lasered 05288, May 28th, 2008?

Poured a golden orange with creamy peaks of foam. It's head is very stationary and long lasting. Little bits of lacing form as it works it's way down. Champagne-like streams of carbonation.

Odd variety of hops in the nose, it could be the ale yeast though giving it a funky aroma. Some pale malty aromas come through later, with a touch of apple.

Light bodied and citrusy, also tangy apples. Hop bitterness is low, and very easygoing and approachable for the casual IPA drinker. Carbonation is very fine, and lends itself to the lighter body.

Good stuff, this was a good selection from a beer-of-the-month club.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2008 01:42:47 | More by emerge077

Gavage

New Jersey

3.8/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: orange / yellow in color wih a 3" thick fluffy head that created some thick lacing.

Smell: very mild piney bitterness is all that is detected.

Taste: more of a bread-like maltiness, with some mild grapefruit and decent pine bitterness. This beer was plain and simple, but enjoyable.

Mouthfeel: crisp on the tongue, and the aftertaste lasts long on the bitterness. Medium bodied.

Drinkability: easy drinking and a solid IPA. Just needs a kick on the aroma front. Worth having.

Serving type: on-tap

07-26-2006 23:51:03 | More by Gavage

jwc215

New Jersey

3.8/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours hazy orange with a thin head that becomes a thin patch before vanishing from the scene.

The smell is of citrus, pine/resin, and lemon zest. Normally, this would be great, but had to really search for it - very soft/mild.

The taste is hoppy, though pretty restrained. What's there is good, though - orange/lemon and grapefruit citric fruitiness - plenty of hops. But, why they seem a bit restrained? Well...what's there is nice. A piney/resiny character comes through as it warms. Grainy malt gives this a nice balance while keeping hops at the front - appropriate for style. This one has potential for being great, but...almost as much as in the smell, one has to search. Nice, but not as forward as I would expect for a Pacific NW IPA.

With a beer this potentially "big", I would like a bit more body to it. But, it does reach, and hold on to, medium-bodied, and it does have a decent carbonation level and a smooth, if rather lackluster, texture.

Well - bottom line - it's fine - could be great, even. But, it's so mild/restrained compared to so many other IPA's, especially from the region that it comes from. It could use more heft/richness/assertiveness. Nice, but rather wimpy.

Thanks to jcwattsrugger for bringing this back for me from his trip!

Serving type: bottle

10-03-2007 00:15:09 | More by jwc215

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.88/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

My introduction to this beer was in a hotel room in Sandpoint, Idaho last summer. I had popped across the road to the Safeway for some munchies, and was floored by the entire aisle of beer that I 'discovered' between the frozen food and salty snacks aisles. We Canucks should be so lucky! Anyhow, trying to grab a few singles of something new to me for a nightcap (I was on vacation), I nabbed one of these. I enjoyed it out of the hotel room's plastic cups, so I picked up another bottle before coming back across the border.

This bottle, poured into a more appropriate Laughing Dog pint glass, produced a couple inches of fluffy white head, which fell away after a few minutes, with minimal lacing, and appeared to be a cloudy light copper colour. The smell was floral hops with a significant bread malt component. The taste was more of the same, with maybe a bit of pine hop bitterness that livened things up a bit. The mouthfeel was quite smooth, with light carbonation. As far as Pacific NW IPAs go, this one is pretty mild, but that said, nicely balanced and highly drinkable, for when you don't want to numb your taste buds (anymore than usual) during a session.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2008 08:42:36 | More by biboergosum

akorsak

Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A 12 oz bottle purchased at Liquid Solutions.

A: The IPA is a vibrant orange amber color, clearly more orange. The head was near one finger on pour and has laced sporadically in the glass.

S: The nose is a citrusy hop bomb with some resiny pine thickness mixed in.

T: The ale has a strong hop body that jumps out immediately on first sip. That hop body is citrusy with some orange and apricot sweetness. Supporting the hops is a grainy caramel malt body that is more sweet than dry.

M: The hops are pleasant but not strong enough to stand out. The hops mix well with the malts though, providing a decent drink.

D: The is a solid IPA, strong on hops without overdoing it. The malts are nicely roasted, providing a strong base to hold those hops together.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2007 01:37:21 | More by akorsak

WVbeergeek

Ohio

4.22/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: Glowing orange amber hue with a nice creamy textured off white cream head leaves behind thick collar of lacing very nice. Aroma: Citrus scented hop aroma very clean biscuit malt sweetness also present, nice. Taste: Biscuit malts bready tone added from the bottle conditioning along with a very nice hoppy bite in the finish consisting of a clean zesty dose of hops. Mouthfeel: Medium bodied but light and fluffy mouthfeel very nice beer here. Drinkability: Excellent hop to see this beer one day make it to the Pittsburgh area on tap, that would be nice very tasty a bit mild but overall very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2003 21:39:18 | More by WVbeergeek

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

4.45/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A bottle conditioned beer out of the U.S. Gotta love it.

Pours a clouded dark gold with very little head (due to a gentle pour). Nose is heavily hopped. Tangerine scents present. Very pungent. Flavor is very hoppy, but not overly powerful. It definitely leaves an impression on your mouth. Feel is good, though I seem to remember it being nice on the mouth off tap. Extremely drinkable. I can see this one being one to give to macro lovers and it might open their minds and mouths to a world of possibility.

Verdict: even better than it was on tap I think.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2007 08:51:49 | More by RblWthACoz

barleywinefiend

Washington

3.13/5  rDev -19.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured a cloudy, golden orange color with a small white head. Nose is light on the hops but did have traces of lemon, floral. Taste is not that big and pretty let down on this one. Simple taste with a small lemony hint, thin, off if you ask me. Mouthfeel is thin, the 5% ABV does not help. Average IPA.

Serving type: bottle

08-24-2009 01:40:27 | More by barleywinefiend

smcolw

Massachusetts

3.95/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pale amber color with plenty of haze. Sculpted, domed head which leaves some stringy lace.

The aroma is pretty typical of an American IPA. There's a light, moderately caramel malt that gets dominated by a stronger floral hop presence.

The flavor is similar to the smell, good malt start but mid-sip, the hop takes over with a hot pepper spiciness. I had this beer with spicy sushi (plenty of wasabi) and it held its own. Full bodied. Good balance

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2011 17:39:35 | More by smcolw

Wasatch

Utah

3.38/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours a cloudy golden yellow, nice carbonation, tiny head which disipates quickly, some lacing.

S - Scents of hops, and citrus.

T - The taste is hoppy, but not that much, there's a nice little bite at the dry finish.

M - Medium body.

D - Drinkable. This is a nice little brew from Bridgeport, not that hoppy though, so if your looking for a real hoppy IPA, this would not be your first choice. Would make a nice session brew though.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2006 00:12:02 | More by Wasatch

Jason

Massachusetts

4.2/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Presentation: 12 oz slender brown bottle, “Bridgeport … Oregon’s Oldest Craft Brewery” in raised glass around the neck. Undecipherable freshness code on the back label.

Appearance: Sizeable frothy off white head leaves a web like trail down the glass, weathered and mildly hazed golden hue.

Smell: Hints of alcoholic esters, fruitiness from both the yeast and hops with a some biscuity grain thrown in there for extra measure.

Taste: Smooth and creamy mouth feel from the bottle conditioning showing a complex texture. Bitterness from the hops, fruitiness and a well rounded maltiness seem melded together in an almost seamless way. Hops are earthy in flavour, yeast drops a nuttiness on the tongue, esters are even with fruity undertones and malt is stable with a biscuity flavour throughout. Bitter finish as the brew dries on the palate.

Notes: Not as big compared to the many American IPAs but certainly just as flavourful. The best attribute about this brew is that it is bottle conditioned and by far adds more complexity than the usual American IPA. A nice spicy curry dish would go great or even a plate of buffalo wings.

Here are some notes of when we had this beer on tap at the brewery back in 08-14-1998:

Amber in colour with a fine white lace. Very slight chill haze is evident A complex mix of bread, hop leaf, grain and pale malt aromas with a hint of yeast. An up-front bitterness and a full semi citrusy hop oil flavour sit atop a fruity, dry malt, bready and caramel palate that is just as complex as the aroma. This brew is somewhat balanced but between the complexities and making the hops shine though bring it to be a fine IPA. 5.5% abv and 2 lbs of hops per barrel.

Serving type: bottle

06-19-2002 08:43:50 | More by Jason

Zorro

California

4/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a darker shade of clear gold with a tall puffy white head.

Smell is a big nose full of hops with citrus, pine, pineapple, menthol and a bit of eucalyptus in the scent. Tart acid scents from the hops are in here too. Malt scents are masked by the hop's intensity here and the only thing that gets past them is a bit of fruity scent from the yeast’s used. I could almost take some points away for lack of complexity but the hop scent is VERY complex here.

Taste is light malts and strong citrus hops at the beginning with a restrained bitterness. Good amount of tropical flavors from the hops here mostly pineapple and mango. Lots of layer of hop flavors here, pretty much what you can smell is what you can taste. Good lingering bitterness in the after taste, this is an IPA that is indeed all about the hops. I could almost give this a 4.5 for taste but no there are better.

Mouthfeel is good.

Nice tasty IPA here with a low alcohol content, too bad it is a bit strong for a session brew. Nice and tasty IPA but very quickly this will fatigue your tongue. This is best reserved for session brew duty for Hopheads that think, "Stone Ruination needs more hops."

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2005 03:31:09 | More by Zorro