Wipeout I.P.A.

Bottle into over-sized-sort-of-pilsner-style pint glass.

Sort of a pale amber in color. Wipeout had a small head that sticks around for a while. Aroma has some signature west coast components with some grapefruit and pine. Those smells aren't as present in the taste, which quite bitter for a regular IPA. This beer appears to have the appropriate amount of carbonation the its style.

All in all, it's pretty good, but probably not something I will seek out again in the bottle, since I don't like it enough to justify the $7+ bomber-only situation.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-15-2009 22:08:38 | id: 1038879

22oz bottle. Slightly hazy burnt orange with a creamy head. Grapefruit, some mango, pine, toffee fill the nose. The body is full and sweet with a smooth carbonation. Nice full maltiness, on the pale side. Hops are smooth and citric-tropical. Not overly bitter. Maybe a little on the malty side, which shouldn't make sense for a SD IPA, but ya, I live in southern Califirnia, kinda. I'm down with it, but not the most amazing rendition.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-12-2009 05:49:53 | id: 1036357

alright, so i'm finally going to start reviewing. spend too much time trading and drinking (who doesn't right, especially if you're in the biz) and want to capture it all in a place i can go back and remember/relive some of the best. so here goes...

big thanks to SkinnyElvis for including this one in the haul from snf lif week 6! poured from bomber into a bell's tulip.

A-pours a wonderfully hazy orange gold with a decent 1/2 inch head. lingers for quite a while and leaves a nice lacing behind. for me, this is classic unfiltered ipa appearance, pretty much as it should be.

S-pine and more pine. ample grassy notes and citrus hints, but for me pine is the predominant aroma. expected hop bomb smell that oozes out of the glass and fills the room.

T-this just screams san diego ipa. bold, biting hop bitterness. maybe a bit of malt attacks at the beginning, but it's very subdued. lingering bite in the back of the mouth and an aftertaste that backs it up. hides the mid-level alcohol content with the barrage of hops.

M-medium body and good amount of carbonation. coats your mouth with sticky hop resin, but has just enough creaminess to not be overwhelming.

D-very drinkable beer. the alcohol is not noticeable and the hops prevail all the way through. not quite enough malt backbone to make it into a sessionable ipa for me, the lingering hops just make me want to sit back, sip, contemplate, and appreciate the beauty of west coast hops.

overall, i'm impressed with this ipa. love that it hides the 7% beautifully while almost reaching dipa alcohol levels without the resounding sweetness that often comes with it. as said many times above, this is just a classic example of san diego ipas. if you love hops and can handle a beer that is a little out of balance on purpose, you'll love this one. i sure did. my first beer from port, certainly won't be my last. i'll be adding more from them to my wants very soon.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-04-2009 01:32:44 | id: 1030441

Found this at De Bierkoning in Amsterdam.

From a bomber into a snifter.

APPEARANCE: Pours a two finger thicker looking off-white head with great retention. Color is a Persian reddish brown, but more gamboge when held to the light. Very clear and no visible carbonation. Head slowly fades to a good film and leaves some immediate lacing. A wisp remains 'til the end and leaves some great lacing down the glass. Good looking head and lacing, though the color is not my favorite.

SMELL: Bold smell already. Toasted and pale malt, grapefruit, pine and citrus notes in the background. Some nice floral notes as well. Very hoppy with grapefruit and flowers. Bold and nice, exploded out of the glass.

TASTE: A pale and toasted malt beginning and then lots of hoppy grapefruit and pine notes, as well as flowery hops through the middle and end. A touch of spiciness from the alcohol too. A delayed and mild but good bitter hop punch at the end rides into a strong and long lasting aftertaste. Good, but not quite as bold as the nose. Strange; the finish is a little disappointing act, then the aftertaste shows up with a vengeance.

PALATE: Medium body and medium carbonation. Semi-creamy on the palate, goes down pretty smooth, no bite at all, and finishes somewhat mouth-coating on the palate. Could be a little creamier, but pretty good on the whole.

OVERALL: A good IPA with a bigger nose and taste profile than a lot of others in the style. A very drinkable brew I thoroughly enjoyed. Recommended.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-02-2009 17:41:05 | id: 1029494

Appearance: Pours with a nice big foamy white head, a golden honey coloured body, and a very slight carbonation.

Aroma: Pugent hops on the nose, oily and resinous but with a slight grassy aroma. There are grapefruits, and a sharp citric lemon, alongside a slightly softer perfumy orange.

Taste: The taste is hugely hoppy, lots of bitterness, and sharpness. Grapefruits, lemons, pine, it's just a massive hopfest.

Mouthfeel: Oily, like they just made the beer from the thick resinous juice from freshed pressed hops. There is a nice level of carbonation that keeps the flavours active, and a there is also a slight clingy, mouth coating feel to it.

Drinkability: If you are a hophead, you will love this, and probably find it incredibly easy drinking. It provides huge amounts of hops flavouring and bitterness, while managing to keep you from realising there isn't much of a malt base, very well crafted indeed.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-01-2009 19:32:56 | id: 1028715

Cloudy orange color with not much head...

Nice hop selection and they are put to good use...immediately I detect the "summit" hops garlic/grassy notes on the aroma...but that is just one component....resiny, weedy, a little bright citrus (oranges) but more of an overall grungy hoppiness which is nice change of pace.

Drinks as more of a hop flavored IPA than a hop bittered IPA...more of the weed/cannibus element and the grassy hop notes....bitterness is held in check nicely.

Body is not big but this certainly feels like an IPA....malt never really flashes but must contribute to the easy drinking hop flavor.

Another nice west coast IPA with character. A nice, somewhat unique take on an IPA that I found quite enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 10-30-2009 05:33:31 | id: 1026992

Pours a clear golden color with a rising, ragged white head. Some lacing left on the glass.

Smells of big piny hops and some citrus.

Tastes of the big pine hops and some citrus underlying. Not much in the way of malts, but this IPA is big and assertive. Not well balanced, but I'm not complaining.

Mouthfeel is a medium that leaves a bitter aftertaste.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 10-28-2009 03:11:27 | id: 1025788

Bomber into a Bell's tulip.

A: Very hazy, pale orange body topped by two fingers of ever-so-slightly off-white foam that slowly recedes, leaving a good amount of frothy lace. Great-looking beer.

S: A wave of pine emanates from the bottle as soon as the cap comes off, promising lots of hops to come. No surprises here when smelled in the glass - just lots more resinous, piney hops (maybe some hemp aroma in there as well), with next to no malt presence at all. The hops almost verge into wet-dog territory, but not enough to be unpleasant. Not complex, but gets the job done.

T: Hops, hops, and more hops (perhaps I should have repeated the word five times, as the label touts five varieties of hops contributing to the beer's bitterness: Amarillo, Cascade, Centennial, Simcoe, and Summit): pine up front, followed by some floral bitterness in the middle and a hint of citrus bite toward the supremely bitter, puckering finish. Simply a delicious example of what hops can do.

M: Medium-bodied and puckering from the hops, with a good amount of carbonation. Solid, but not remarkable.

D: No trace of alcohol here, but more hops than most DIPAs I've had. The bitterness, though, while omnipresent, is not off-putting in the least. It is a bit too potent to allow for much in the way of quick follow-up swigs, making this more of a sipper than I expected.

Notes: This is the first beer I've cracked from my Julio's haul yesterday, where I got a number of beers unavailable to me in CT, with a focus on California craft (plus Founders). I'm greatly looking forward to my journey through West Coast IPAs in particular, as I'll be following this one up this week with Green Flash DIPA and Moylan's Hopsickle. If this one's any indication, I'm in for an intense and awesome few days of drinking.

Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 10-26-2009 11:31:43 | id: 1024289

22oz bomber poured into a tulip.

Pours a slightly hazy golden orange with a big creamy white head that doesn't budge much and leaves very good lacing.

The aroma is big on light, juicy citrus with oranges and pineapples coming through with a hint of the toasted malt sweetness in the background.

The taste is hoppy but still balanced with the initial juicy hop bitterness coming in the form of lemons, oranges and pineapples. The backbone is a solid doughy bread sweetness and the finish is slightly bitter but not overly so.

The mouthfeel is medium bodied with good carbonation and not nearly as bitter as I was expecting.

The balance and lack of scathing bitterness with the nice light and juicy hops make this was exceptionally drinkable. It is lightly bitter, extremely smooth and goes down way too easy. An excellent IPA.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 10-23-2009 02:27:25 | id: 1022146

Pours a hazy gold with a good chunky head that lasted for half of the pint. Bunch of lacing. Real nice.

All kinds of hop aromas here, with citric and floral notes abound. Not much else, but what you smell you'll like.

This beer is all hops. Wonderful hop flavors, almost a juiciness to it, but the malt and rest of the beer is just not around. Good lingering hop finish. Sorry, a one trick pony, even if the trick is a dandy one.

Medium bodied, with some lip-smacking hop-induced tackiness.

This went down very easy. A very drinkable IPA. I liked it, but it is missing alot when it comes to complexity. Hop bomb lovers will gravitate toward this one. Worth a try for sure.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 10-17-2009 19:35:30 | id: 1018489