Muskoka Mad Tom IPA - Muskoka Brewery

slitherySOB

Ontario (Canada)

3.11/5  rDev -19.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

A relatively decent IPA, this beer pours an amber colour with about a little over one fingers worth of head that slowly dissipates. Smells floral, citrusy, and grassy. Big lemon and grapefruits. Tastes a little bit paler than the aroma. Lemon, grapefruit, orange zest, floral flavour and a touch grassy. Mouthfeel is medium bodied. I did notice a slight metallic taste as the beer warmed, leaving an odd flavour in my mouth.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 20:37:57 | More by slitherySOB

mattsander

Alberta (Canada)

3.79/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

A: Excellent clarity, light copper in color with a long lasting loose white head.

S: "Face in a hop bag" leafy freshness, grapefruit and orange zest, some sticky pale malts. A slight metallic vibe in the finish retracts from it, but this is a nice smelling IPA.

T: Very hop-forward, with citrusy bubblegum leading and just enough malt to back it up. Finishes quite dry and with a lingering bitterness.

M: I love the dryness of this, highly quaffable.

Solid IPA from Muskoka.

Serving type: can

04-17-2013 01:23:05 | More by mattsander

woosterbill

Connecticut

4.14/5  rDev +7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25

On-tap at Beerbistro in Toronto.

A: Crystal clear pale amber body under a finger of fine off-white head that recedes slowly and leaves solid lace behind. Stunning.

S: Predominantly hoppy, and fairly complex: spice, citrus (both lemon and grapefruit), floral, and very slightly malty - in an almost gingerbread kind of way. Fascinating and enticing.

T: Perhaps a bit less fascinating here, but quite tasty in a straightforward way. The citrus hops absolutely dominate, with grapefruit standing out in a big way. The malt is almost entirely absent, and the finish is dry and very bitter. Slightly spicy aftertaste, with a touch of alcohol (surprisingly enough). Quite tasty, but not as memorable as the aroma.

M: Frothy medium body. A bit too diffuse, but not bad.

O: Really enjoyable IPA, and worth the price of admission for the aroma alone.

Cheers!

Serving type: on-tap

03-28-2013 23:40:32 | More by woosterbill

Converge

Alberta (Canada)

4.19/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

12oz bottle into a Yankee pint.

A - Handsome lookin' IPA. Crisp and clean amber body, with absolutely 0 haze detectable. Lots of lively carbonation flowing up the glass, effervescent and bubbly. Dense head of foam, slightly off-white, and a tad light in color for an IPA. Head retention is well above average, as the dense creamy foam doesn't let up all glass! Though the lacing is still quite little.

S - I could smell the hoppy goodness the moment the cap popped. Citric and piney notes upfront, with some pronounced tropical fruit nuances and a sweet bready caramel malt backbone. Very reminiscent of a West Coast style IPA. Maybe some subtle grapefruit in there as well, but overall the hop profile feels more sweet than bitter in the aroma.

T - Just a solid, straight forward IPA. A nice malty base of crystal malt, with notes of toffee and buttery biscuits. Hop profile is crisp upfront, with citric fruits and pine leading the way, and fading into a lasting finish of earthy and mildly herbal notes. There's a subtle English character to the malt profile, likely coming from the pronounced sweetness. Bitterness is assertive but more than manageable. Well balanced and very drinkable.

M - Carbonation is very nice here; lively and crisp, but not overdone at all, just right. Body is about medium, with a subtle dryness that keeps it from becoming at all oily form the hops. Smooth for an IPA, but crisp enough for the style.

D - Exceptionally drinkable ale. Not the most hopped up IPA, but a delicious and well balanced one at that. Probably won't be my first choice next time I'm looking for a hoppy Canadian brew, but this won't be my last Mad Tom; one to revisit and enjoy again for sure.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2013 22:57:30 | More by Converge

HATS4BATS

Ontario (Canada)

4.21/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Fresh, thoughtful and bold. Shows clear candy orange with restrained well-laced carbonation. Unusually powerful citrus-hop nose with notes of caramel. Sharp, biting hop taste followed by deep, satisfying toffee; both held in pleasant balance. Finishes a dry lingering resin finish with hint of lemon.

Serving type: can

01-23-2013 03:47:25 | More by HATS4BATS

andrenaline

Ontario (Canada)

4.1/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Not my first Mad Tom, but hadn't prepared a formal review.

A - Pours a clear golden colour, finger of head with solid retention and some sporadic lacing.

S - Sweet citrus and caramel, buttery sugar notes, and peppered grapefruit on the finish.

T - More bitter than implied by the nose, sour citrus, grapefruit, lemon rind, lemon drops, buttery caramel, and bitter citrus lingers on the palette.

M - Medium bodied, smooth and a touch of dryness.

O - A quality IPA and one of the better ones to come out of the Ontario craft scene. Easily sessioned and well worth a try. Another go-to brew for the arsenal.

Serving type: bottle

01-18-2013 03:22:16 | More by andrenaline

rodlavers

Pennsylvania

3.69/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured into a little snifter. Really thin white head recedes pretty quickly, no lacing. Golden orange in color, translucent.

Smells of sweet citrus and floral notes.

Taste is similar, but drier and less sweet.

Mouthfeel is crisp and dry, with a citrus finish.

Overall not a bad Canadian IPA. It's refreshing and serves as a nice starter beer. Cheers.

Serving type: bottle

01-14-2013 00:00:50 | More by rodlavers

jaz58

Ontario (Canada)

4.4/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Served in a tall glass.

Foamy head which dissipated slowly leaving a Lacey trail on the glass.

Nice gold, orange colour with some carbonation. It then when cloudy.

Lemon and quince nose.

Taste starts with toffee and fresh hops. The bitters roll in creating a dry finish with hints of lemon.

A very decent IPA. Worth enjoying any time of the year

Serving type: can

12-21-2012 01:26:42 | More by jaz58

Noxious26

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

341ml brown bottle poured in a pint glass. Purchased at an LCBO in Kitchener-Waterloo Ontario.

Orange-Amber in colour and a little hazy. White bubbly head is 3/8 inch on the pour and recedes to a thin ring around the edge with a line or two of lacing here and there.

Big citrusy-fruity nose. Orange, grapefruit, apricot.

Hop bomb smash in the mouth. Big citrusy hops off the start and all the way through to a wet finish.

Moderate carbonation and medium bodied.

Pretty tasty, but a little heavy handed on the hops for my liking. I prefer some more balance in my IPA, but this is pretty decent.

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2012 03:21:04 | More by Noxious26

patdrive

Ontario (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

one of the best IPAs brewed in Ontario

copper brown colour
strong bitterness throughout the taste
well-balanced
pleasant carbonation - i.e. not overblown
enough carbonation to give a decent head, yet is an easy pour

would like to find out more about the twice as mad

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2012 00:22:48 | More by patdrive

blaje

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours golden yellow, nice foamy and creamy white head.
Looks like an ordinary beer but the smell...
Hum, the smell... For a Canadian IPA an perticularly outside of Québec,it's a pure delight. Finaly a real american style IPA above the 48th parallel. Very nice nose, let see what this beer reserve.
N: Like a good'ol AIPA. Citrus is bursting out of of the glass. Grapefruit, ripe tangerine on the sweet side
M: Dry, oily, bitternes is biting upfront. It leaves a long aftertaste.
A very nice discovery.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2012 23:27:09 | More by blaje

featthebeard79beerhead

4.35/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a thick 3 finger head. Very soapy and slightly off white and chunky.

Appeared golded and fairly clear for IPA

Smell of citrus and pine very appealing to hophead

Taste of citrus and pine lots of grapefruit at first has malty Carmel flavours then finishes bitter in a great way.Head is smooth and sweet.

Carbonation is low but suits the style.

I am a huge fan of this ipa. I am new to craft brew but this is my favorite so far. Bitter and citrus but well blended and easy to session. A great brew from Canada and so close to home makes me proud.

Serving type: bottle

10-12-2012 00:23:21 | More by featthebeard79beerhead

smakawhat

Maryland

4.05/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Poured from the bottle into a sam adams pint glass.

A classic amber colored body, with some small rising carbonation. Three finger off white head with lots of retention and clumping. Pretty solid and aggressive.

Some very soft hop and malt sweetness. Light orange and herbal tea like action on the nose.

Good mix of malt and hop sweetness, mild sugars and pine hop dryness balanced in the front. Citrus juicy orange comes out with a real good sweet front. Hop angle lingers nicely with a full malt body. Little carbonation fizzy character in feel, quite juicy and fruit punch like also.

Overall pretty solid and a quite fruit juicy palate. Tasty!

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2012 23:55:59 | More by smakawhat

EgadBananas

Louisiana

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

Pours a medium orange colour with an off-white head, some lace, good retention. The aroma is piny, with some sweet citrus and touches of mango. Light peach on the taste, citrus and tropical fruits, some pine and floral hops with a nice assertive bitterness. The feel is medium, slick and pleasant on the palate.

Overall, quite a nice IPA!

Serving type: can

09-26-2012 23:01:06 | More by EgadBananas

JamesMN

Minnesota

3.95/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Translucent pale golden hue with a soapy off-white head.

Aroma: Tropical fruit from the hops. Can definitely tell this one will be hop-forward in flavor.

Taste: Big hop presence and great flavors of pineapple, grapefruit, blood orange, and other tropical fruits. Very much a West Coast influenced IPA. Subtle crystal malt flavor to tie it all together without distracting from the hops. Not overly bitter, which is a feat considering all the hops that must have gone into this thing. At 6.4% abv you don't taste any of that alcohol. Interesting aftertaste of straight pineapple juice (this taste becomes more prevalent the more you drink). Slightly sweet and dry finish.

Mouthfeel: Exactly what it should be for the style, medium effervescence and just below medium bodied.

Final Thoughts: A West Coast IPA out of Ontario? Who knew it would be so good! Very impressed by this one. Sort of a sweeter and slightly heavier version of Stone IPA (one of my go-to's). Be prepared for tons of pineapple and moderate bitterness. This would make a fantastic appetizer before dinner as it really wakes up the taste buds. Nicely done Muskoka.

Serving type: can

09-19-2012 04:39:26 | More by JamesMN

Kremlock

Ontario (Canada)

3.23/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: 1/4 inch white head. Head is very bubbly and stays.

S: GRAPEFRUIT!, citrus, fruity.

T:, Grapefruit, bitter, a very softtoffee flavour with more grapfruit.

M: Carb is lighter in the mouth then it looks, smooth and has a bitterness that lingers for awhile.

O: Great beer and great IPA. Good balance of malt to bitterness but you've got to like grapefruit as this flavour does come through.

Serving type: bottle

09-17-2012 20:11:39 | More by Kremlock

leaddog

Alberta (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance- Pours and amber copper with a finger width of bubbly white head.

Smell- Piney hops, grapefruit, passion fruit, other tropical fruits, caramalts.

Taste- Piney hops are nicely present followed by citrus, tropical fruits and caramalts. The piney hops provide a nice bitterness in the taste and linger in the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel- Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Has a pleasant creaminess.

Overall- A great representation of an American IPA by Muskoka. This is up there with many of the other top offerings that I have had in this style. Definitely not a disappointment for those hop heads out there.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2012 03:18:54 | More by leaddog

NoLeafClover44

Delaware

3.78/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks goes out to Jeff for this extra. 473 mL can poured into DFH Signature glass.

A - Pours a muddy copper color with a half finger of frothy white head. Lacing is unimpressive.

S - Smells of caramel, honeydew, and floral hops. A little bit sweet for my liking, but pretty good.

T - Initially quite bitter with pine hops. As it warms a bit, caramel malt and tropical fruits emerge on the palate. A bit spicy with a lingering earthy pine finish.

M - A middle of the road medium body with good carbonation.

O - This was pretty good, but doesn't stand out from my go-to fridge filling IPAs. Good hop flavors with an underlying sweetness that develops as it warms. I do love the pounder can format, so an A for presentation. I won't go out of my way to score some more, but I won't avoid it either.

Serving type: can

09-12-2012 01:05:58 | More by NoLeafClover44

Jeffo

Netherlands

3.6/5  rDev -7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Got this one at the LCBO this past summer.

From a 16oz can into a snifter.

Note: Tested this one as part of the Great Ontarian IPA Showdown against Nickel Brook's Headstock IPA, Railway City's Dead Elephant, and Double Trouble's Hops & Robbers.

APPEARANCE: Pours a two finger, medium looking, fluffy, off-white head with good retention. Slightly hazy gamboge in color with no carbonation evident. Head fades to a foamy wisp leaving some chunks of lacing down the glass. A little too chunky for my tastes, but nothing wrong otherwise.

SMELL: Pale malt, caramel, honeydew melon, and some piney and grapefruit, citrus hops. The citrus aromas come forward a little more than the rest. Pretty nice.

TASTE: Caramel, butterscotch sweetness up front with some honeydew melon and floral hops at the swallow. Moves into a big, persistent aftertaste of caramel and toffee sweetness, as well as floral and piney bitterness. Not as much citrus as the nose had advertised, but plenty flavorful.

PALATE: Medium body and carbonation. A little lighter than hoped, but creamy on the palate, goes down smooth and finishes slightly dry on the palate.

OVERALL: This was certainly a solid IPA from Muskoka. While the Nickel Brook stole the show, this finished a solid second in the lineup. Worth checking out if you see it at the LCBO. Thanks guys.

Serving type: can

08-28-2012 19:39:35 | More by Jeffo

mick303

Ontario (Canada)

4.08/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

473 mL can from LCBO. Pours a nice couple fingers of head that recedes leaving a really nice film and curtain lacing. Colour is a medium honey gold, with active carbonation.

Smell has biscuity malts and a dry hoppiness. A slight citrus and sweetness, and a great underlying complexity. Hops are vibrant, the nose on this is really deep with plenty of dried fruit, slightly earthy, and spice notes.

Taste has an acidic hop bitterness, roast notes. Has a nice strong hop character, with an earthy slightly spiced maltiness. All in all, good flavour and complexity. Finish is hoppy but more on the creamy side (as opposed to expected dryness).

Mouthfeel is fairly medium-full bodied, a slightly acidic touch. Nice coating bitterness in keeping with a more West Coast style IPA. Texture is really full.

This is a good well-made, strongly hopped IPA. I was impressed by how much it has going on. Pleasure to drink. Solid, hoppy style IPA, quite drinkable, enjoyable.

Serving type: can

08-16-2012 03:37:21 | More by mick303

jzeilinger

Pennsylvania

3.88/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a medium orange gold color with a thick, creamy head, light carbonation.

S - Toasted bready caramel malt and light juicy citrus, and some spice. Nose is mild.

T - Bready malt base along with grapefruit peel, pine, and floral notes, there's a small touch of spice and some tangerine/orange in the middle which ends up lingering on the palette long after the sip. Overall flavor is crisp and bright.

M - Light medium body with lots of prickles from the carbonation.

O - This was a nice find, just happened to be in Canada and picked a few up at a local bottle shop.

Serving type: can

08-08-2012 04:13:55 | More by jzeilinger

Michaelf318is

Manitoba (Canada)

3.2/5  rDev -17.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Lovely copper color, sllightly cloudy with carbonation and next to no head lingering after the pour

Smell: citrus as expected very fresh and light. Quite inviting.

Taste: orange zest and lingering grapefruit. Kept waiting for some malt to chime in some balance but it was faint. Disappointing but did improve as things warmed. The hops backed off and so I'd drink this next time a bit warmer than the usual IPA.

Overall: Well worth drinking anytime but the overall major hops forward may get old (this even from an IPA lover). Locally I' d choose a Flying Monkeys Smash Bomb IPA over this for the same money. However, you won't go wrong on a night out by trying this one.

Serving type: bottle

07-14-2012 23:11:06 | More by Michaelf318is

TheHammer

Ontario (Canada)

3.28/5  rDev -15.2%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Half a finger of head that doesn't retain and barely produced any lace at all. The body however is that cloudy IPA orange/yellow with low carbonation.

Smell: Dry hops are the obvious culprit, as they have a almost wheaty smell to them. There some citrus notes and a light malt far in the background. As with most IPAs, warming was not needed.

Taste: Starts with a bit of an orange taste with a light malt that seems to step away as a completely separate dry hop kick comes into play. Lots of pine and dry grass here. It's strong but not overwhelmingly so.

Mouthfeel: This is one of the few IPA's I've had where the hop oil doesn't leave an oily texture, probably because of how dry it comes across as. It leaves you with that dry hop taste, but not the texture. Points however get deducted for the lack of head.

Drinkability: It's pretty dry, so I don't know if I'd really want it frequently. The bitterness of the beer is a bit too high for my liking, but it's an IPA so I got to cut it some slack. Light on the system though, so sure.

Final Thoughts: All in all Mad Tom kept things interesting and I didn't feel cheated by it. Warming really seems to help it's case as the hops seem to mellow out a bit more and more of the orange and malt takes over. That all being said though, it's not my cup of tea and I reviewed it because it is one of Canada's top beers right now.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2012 02:09:10 | More by TheHammer

pieman25

Ontario (Canada)

4.13/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle found in the LCBO, into my generic pint glass.

Appearance: Light copper/darker golden colour to it. A small 1/4 inch head came about when poured, it's staying at about 1/16" throughout the drinking period.

Smell: A bit of graininess, with resiny notes and citrusey notes being much more dominant. I like hops, so naturally I like what I'm smelling.

Taste: some nice sweetness to it, followed by a generous amount of citrus and pine flavours, occasionally I pick up an odd hint of black pepper flavour almost. The sweetness lingers a little bit. I think I like everything about the flavour of this beer.

Mouthfeel: moderate carbonation, with a nice big malty body to it, pretty good, but nothing spectacular about the body.

Overall: I am digging this beer, I'd actually say it's an amazing beer and would recommend it to anybody who would like a more hop-forward IPA from Ontario. It's not very well balanced with the malt being significantly less "forward" than the hops, but I'm liking it that way.

Serving type: bottle

06-26-2012 17:38:37 | More by pieman25

canucklehead

British Columbia (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I found this to be a little one sided on the hops dept vs the malt. I love hops but this was a too bitter at times and really hoped for more balance. Still not bad for an Ontario IPA but not on the same level as Smashbomb for complexity or balance...

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2012 00:26:45 | More by canucklehead