Flower Power India Pale Ale - Ithaca Beer Company

tectactoe

Michigan

4.34/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Pours a pale, golden color, straw in some spots and light amber in others. Murky and translucent, then topped off with a white cap that settles to a quarter-inch and shows some decent staying power. Nice, drippy lacing is left near the top of the glass.

Flower Power, like the name might imply, is powerful and fruity - loaded with citrus, huge pineapples, apricots, and maybe some mango. Light hop resin sits in the background along with some light pine, but stays secondary to the citrus overload. I've heard people compare this beer to Zombie Dust, and I see where they're coming from. This citrus isn't quite as powerful here (and neither is the rest of the hop profile, for that matter), but it's drawing some slight resemblance.

Somewhat surprisingly, the first thing I notice on my palate are the hops, and they exhibit a mildly spicy, white-pepper flavor, something that I wasn't picking up on in the aroma at all. Some resinous flavors come through and the bitterness smacks your tongue quickly and all at once. Slightly oil and leafy. Lemon and orange zest play a big role in the flavor, as well as light apricot and pineapple. The palate isn't picking up the fruit as much as the nose, but it's definitely there, and certainly more noticeable in the latter half of the sip.

The bitterness is pretty powerful and probably helps tone down the fruit at first. Sweetness from the malt is there, giving off a light, sweet bread flavor. Other than being a backbone for the huge hop profile, it doesn't do much else. The aftertaste is full of a peppery bitterness, a little fruity pith, and some dry, bready malt. Maybe even a little ashy as the beer gets warmer. Medium bodied, a little stickier than expected, decent carbonation.

I can see why people might substitute this beer for Zombie Dust where it's more readily available. Similar in many ways - and although I prefer ZD much more, this beer is still pretty damn delicious. If it was available in my area, I'd probably drink it all the time. Goes down easy and gives you a nice fruit, bitter hop kick.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 21:26:58 | More by tectactoe

lpayette

Vermont

3.75/5  rDev -12%

05-25-2013 22:09:03 | More by lpayette

bubba6000

Massachusetts

5/5  rDev +17.4%

05-25-2013 20:21:57 | More by bubba6000

Jeremy_H

Illinois

4/5  rDev -6.1%

05-25-2013 20:15:27 | More by Jeremy_H

JaredM

New York

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%

05-25-2013 18:26:34 | More by JaredM

12mile

Massachusetts

3/5  rDev -29.6%

05-25-2013 14:12:27 | More by 12mile

RayUF07

Florida

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%

05-25-2013 06:03:19 | More by RayUF07

Jeremy6566

Arizona

4.75/5  rDev +11.5%

05-24-2013 16:41:10 | More by Jeremy6566

EricClayton

West Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%

05-24-2013 00:40:46 | More by EricClayton

AngusOg

Maryland

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%

05-24-2013 00:35:18 | More by AngusOg

jtdolla911

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +11.5%

05-23-2013 02:24:33 | More by jtdolla911

Callmecoon

California

4/5  rDev -6.1%

05-23-2013 02:22:17 | More by Callmecoon

mikeincharleston

South Carolina

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%

05-23-2013 02:14:38 | More by mikeincharleston

BRYeleJR

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev -12%

05-23-2013 01:45:30 | More by BRYeleJR

Wally

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%

05-23-2013 00:24:24 | More by Wally

ebarnesster

Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%

05-22-2013 20:16:09 | More by ebarnesster

mtomlins

Ontario (Canada)

4.29/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Poured from a 330 ml bottle into a tulip class.

A: Areally nice straw color beer and very clear. It poured to a nice white bubly head, albeit not very thick, and settled down to a thin collar. There was no appearent lacing though (wonder if my glass was dirty or something?).

S: A great nose on this beer! It smelled sweet and juicy, lots of piney notes and some citrus to back it up. Maybe a touch of spiciness in there.

T: Obviously a huge wack of hops, spicy and high floral notes, pine and some citus in the back. A nice malt character balances out the high level of bittering hops. I find Flower Power to be a bit dry. It finishes very clean though.

M: Smooth and round on the palate.

O: Delicious! A tasty brew. Would be one of my fav's except for the lack of lacing (minor concern) and a bit dry in the finish. Still, I am splitting hairs and this is a great beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2013 19:28:15 | More by mtomlins

davesway10

Iowa

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%

05-22-2013 18:28:50 | More by davesway10

SpdKilz

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%

05-22-2013 13:24:13 | More by SpdKilz

gamanley

Connecticut

4.75/5  rDev +11.5%

05-22-2013 02:59:01 | More by gamanley

scotv

New York

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%

05-21-2013 23:42:26 | More by scotv

scoot64

New Jersey

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%

05-21-2013 23:24:12 | More by scoot64

CosmoHopHead

Kansas

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%

05-21-2013 22:33:44 | More by CosmoHopHead

VirginiaJeff1

Virginia

4.75/5  rDev +11.5%

05-21-2013 19:32:30 | More by VirginiaJeff1

Busker

Connecticut

4/5  rDev -6.1%

05-21-2013 18:08:29 | More by Busker