Savant - Elysian Brewing Company

jzeilinger

Pennsylvania

3.99/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a hazy dark ruby orange color with a dense, thick head, light carbonation, cotton candy-like lacing on the glass.

S - Pine, bitter citrus: (oranges and grapefruit), and passion fruit, the malt is very light.

T - Very light caramel malt sweetness up front before the hops kick and ride all the way to the end. Bitter orange peel, grapefruit, and passion fruit dominate before finishing with citrus/pine lingering bitterness.

M - Medium body with gentle carbonation and a very dry finish.

O - Elysian has done some pretty cool things with their IPA's using ingredients not used every day; in this case, the Nelson Sauvin hop makes for an interesting IPA. About half way through it becomes more balanced, the initial sip was tart and puckering until the palate adjusts.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2013 23:40:48 | More by jzeilinger

jtierney89

New Jersey

3.65/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Hazy orange glow with sticky off white head. Hoppy resin nose with sticky sweet nose.

Sweet malt character up front of toffee and caramelized sugar followed by a nice dosing of hops. Super grassy and floral notes with spicy black pepper notes on the back end. Bitterness is low but along with the spicy character the hops provide, it creates a nice balance to the sweet sticky malt. Slick mouthfeel with resinous hop character coating the tongue

Hops add apricot like sweetness upfront followed by spicy black pepper notes. Spicy foods bring out the apricot and black pepper notes even more while allowing the grassy notes to die down.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2013 20:09:20 | More by jtierney89

micromaniac129

Pennsylvania

4.41/5  rDev +14%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

A very good ipa is what we have here.
Pleasent colors with a orange amber murky body and a tall off white head. Excellent retention I must add also.
The nose has a very frangrant hop bouquet with citrus and pine notes. The most dominate characteristic would be grapefruit.
Taste is bold like a west coast ipa but is also somewhat restrained. Hops taste citrusy and fresh pehaps even some pine resin. Malts balance nicely, stay in the background and help to feature the hoppiness.
Taste is smooth and bitter at the end but really not too bitter.
The thing I liked about this beer is that everything works. Nice to look at, smells great and taste just as good as the nose which sometimes doesn't always happen.
What we have here is a winner.

Serving type: on-tap

04-20-2013 11:11:13 | More by micromaniac129

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.91/5  rDev +1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A tasty IPA, fresh from Premier Gourmet. Pours abundant head on an orange coloured body. Smooth mouthfeel relative for an IPA. Fruity, some bubble gum, light apple, orange, grape. Not as much as possible flavour derived from this hop, but still pretty good.

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2013 02:42:04 | More by northyorksammy

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

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

On tap @ Garrick's Head Pub in Victoria.

A - Cloudy yellow/orange with a thin layer of white head and great lacing

S - Citrus and pine. Not an overly robust nose but that might be a function of the glassware more than anything.

T - Bitter up front that immediately gives way to a caramel malt sweetness. Grapefruit, tangerine, mango and passion fuit flavours all come through. Remarkable balance. Fresh and juicy.

M - Medium body. Sticky and oily. Light to moderate carbonation.

Serving type: on-tap

03-15-2013 14:11:34 | More by TheSevenDuffs

dionito

Washington

3.94/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Serve into a tulip from a 22oz. bottle bought the previous day at the brewery.

A: Hazy pale copper with a thick head that dissipates rather quickly and with very nice lacing.
S: Aromatic, hoppy, citrusy with orange and mostly grapefruit tones.
T: Hoppy bitter, citrusy and very slightly salty (???).
M: Full body, medium carbonation and slightly astringent with a nice dry finish.

O: Very nice IPA. I will buy again when I have a chance.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2013 03:00:27 | More by dionito

Commodore69

Washington

4.48/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

The hops - the grapefruity hops... I can smell this one all day long. I might be treading on hallowed ground here, but I think this beer is a worthy substitution for Pliny the Elder, as RR's recent feet-beating from WA has left a bit of a hole in the citrus/hop stratosphere. Sniff it, sip it ---- ahhhh... love it. Will be heading over to Elysian on the hill this weekend to see if this bad monkey is on tap.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2013 04:58:31 | More by Commodore69

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

4.35/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

I am continuing to empty my house of pesky bottles that seem to hang around in favor of CANs. I recently met up with Dick Cantwell in PHL and he remains my hero.

From the bottle: "India Pale Ale The star of the show in this beer is the citrus and passion fruit aroma and flavor of New Zealand Nelson Sauvin hops."; "Our Manic IPA Series allows us to indulge in our hop obsession and share with you some of our favorite varietals."

I got a finger of tawny head from my initial pour that reduced to skim as I was typing. Nose was full-on grapefruit underlain with a light sweetness that I could not identify, perhaps the passion fruit of the label? Color was a deep-copper with NE-plus quality clarity, enabling me to see into the future. It looks like hops are in the offing for today. Mouthfeel was thin-to-medium and the hops were more tangy than bitter on the tongue. I really liked the interplay between the hops and the malt, which held up nicely despite the emphasis on hops. It took on a citrus/flowery flavor as it warmed, really becoming quite floral. Finish was semi-dry and the biscuit malt flavor seemed to linger after the swallow. This was quite good and an auspicious way to start the day.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2013 14:45:03 | More by woodychandler

Mora2000

Texas

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

Thanks to 5000 for sending me this bottle.

The beer pours an orange color with a white head. The aroma has a lot of pine and orange in it, as well as some sweetness from the biscuit malt. The flavor is more complex. I get a lot of mango and apricot notes at first, along with some biscuit malt. As I drink more I start to get some peach and other tropical fruit. The bitterness level is low but the hop flavor is very strong. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2012 22:11:39 | More by Mora2000

thekevlarkid

Maryland

3.65/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Off tap this beer was a clear bronze/orange color with a good amount of rising carbonation and a khaki head. The retention was excellent and the lacing in bands. The aroma was hoppy and a bit citrusy. The flavors were very musty with some notes of leather, citrus, roots and earth. Semi-sweet at first but it finished distinctly bitter and quite 'green' tasting overall. It left an oily slick on my tongue. The mouthfeel was creamy and semi-slick, the body medium and the carbonation delicate. I'd be curious to know what hops they used to produce such an oil-heavy and bitter IPA but mostly because I think it was a bit over-done and I'd make a note of those hops for my own homebrewing purposes.

Serving type: on-tap

07-28-2012 14:38:45 | More by thekevlarkid

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.98/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into my glass stein a coppery amber color with a three finger monster sudsy head that gradually deflated back to a solid half finger which remained for the duration of the glass. As expected, the aroma was rich and strong with white wine character just bursting out of the top of the glass. In fact, it almost completely covers up the very faint aroma of grassy herbal tones, light lemon peel, and a toffee malt. Flavor follows the nose in lockstep. Medium body and texture. Overall this one seems to fall squarely on the sweeter, kinder, gentler side of IPA bitterness balance...which I theorize was probably intended as such in order to allow the vinous qualities to stand out as much as they do.

Really worth checking out if you like white wine character appearing in your beer. Certainly I have had beers before with higher levels of white wine flavor/aroma than this, but every single one of them actually used grapes, and this one notably does not. Impressive.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2012 20:46:09 | More by WastingFreetime

diddly

New York

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

Poured from a bomber into a tulip glass.

Medium amber color, clear with good carbonation. Thick, foamy, white head which is in no rush to leave.

Aroma is complex at first, with some nice sweet dark fruit flavors, but slowly taken over by the hoppiness, specifically a strong grapefruit smell.

Taste is dominated by the hops, pretty consistent with what was expected for an IPA from the west coast. If I was tasting this blind, I would probably call this a double IPA. The hop flavor is very strong compared to any sweetness, although the malt definitely is there. There's also even more bitterness than there is hop flavor.

Medium bodied beer with a substantial amount of bitterness. For this style, I think there's actually a little too much bittering compared to the flavors. Elysian definitely didn't hold back on this one, although I feel like for all the hoppiness that's here, a little bit more variation wouldn't hurt the beer any.

Serving type: bottle

07-14-2012 03:58:54 | More by diddly

NWer

Washington

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

pours golden in my Deschutes tulip. Perfect glass for this beer.
Hoppy, citrus, above average West Coast IPA. Way above average for the IPA style. Close to a DIPA.
Way too drinkable. Goes down like a session beer.
I enjoyed this a lot and easily could down a bunch of these.

Serving type: bottle

06-25-2012 23:47:48 | More by NWer

hreb

Washington

3.9/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

22oz bottle from the "Manic IPA Series". Pours into pint glass a pleasing amber color with a massive white head capable of suspending giant bubbles. Sweet, floral aroma is really fantastic.

Flavor is initially floral and slightly sweet, like it is in the nose, but it builds with a hoppy burst of alpha acid, citrusy, but not quite grapefruit (maybe lemon? I don't get the tropical fruit though...), and finally crescendos into some intense bitterness. For a "single" IPA it's relatively heavy (though maybe not by recent American IPA standards....) and has some syrupy malt to it, but it finishes dry, with only moderate aftertaste. Really impressed by the complexity of the hops in this IPA, though after one bitterness burnout is inevitable.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2012 05:10:02 | More by hreb

iSip

Colorado

3.3/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Elysian Idiot Sauvin IPA, 22 oz bomber: This beer is a deep copper color, with the slightest of reddish tinge. Mostly clear, but chunks of sediment are swirling about. The hops come through in the aroma. Flavor-wise there is a good malt base with a nice hop finish and a bit of bitterness to the aftertaste – standard IPA performance. The hops are a bit one-note, and do not have the subtle complexity of some of the outstanding IPA’s out there. Good effort by Elysian, but not up to the upper tier of quality I expect from a bomber offering.

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2012 15:02:46 | More by iSip

Derek

British Columbia (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I've had this on cask and loved it, but was a little too tipsy to review. Finally found a bottle!

A: Copper-bronze with an off-white head, good retention, great lace.

S: Gooseberries and marmalade, dried mango, papaya, light grassyness.

T: West-coast hopping, but the flavour is a bit different. Very resiny, but not really piny. Tons of marmalade and grapefruit rind, dried mango and papaya, gooseberry (somewhat chardonnay-like). Solid bitterness, hints of grainy biscuit.

M: Well-attenuated moderate body has a somewhat assertive (though pleasant) hop acidity. Has a crisp, dry finish, as an IPA should!

O: All around it's a really great brew. Not your usual hop flavours, and it's a pleasant change.

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2012 03:58:33 | More by Derek

CookstLiquor

British Columbia (Canada)

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

Pours a slightly hazy rich coppery amber colour. Nice off-white head. The smell is something else, though--loads of bright lemony citrus notes backed by a bit of grainy malt. Similar domination of the lemony citrusy hops, but super well integrated with the sweet notes of the malt. Makes for a very refreshing IPA. Really spotlights the Nelson Sauvin hops nicely.

Serving type: bottle

06-13-2012 18:37:38 | More by CookstLiquor

CHickman

New York

4.03/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Review from 5/26/2012: pours hazy copper amber color with a 2 finger foamy light tan head that was full of bubbles and faded on the slow side, leaving OK spotty lacing and a creamy layer on top; the second pour from the bomber was cloudy with a bunch of sediment floating in it.

Smells of juicy citrus hops and grapefruit up front, followed by pineapple, orange, light lemon, biscuit, caramel, sweet malt, pine cones/piney hops, mild herbs, floral hops, brown sugar, wheat bread, spices like pepper and coriander, and faint toasted grains; starts with a nice blast of hops and citrus followed by a balanced nose that shows the malts and grains.

Tastes of biscuit, citrus hops, orange peel, grapefruit, lemon, caramel, pine cones/piney hops, tea leaf, herbs, floral hops, grass, toast, yeast, toasted grains, light candied sugar, Saltine cracker, peat moss, and spices like pepper, coriander and faint cinnamon; the hops give way to grains and spices as this brew trails off bitter and almost dry – the flavor was a lot more grainy and English IPA than the nose lead on, and while it was not a sizzling hop bomb it was still pretty tasty and good for an IPA.

Mouthfeel is smooth and creamy with mild carbonation, a medium body, and some texture to it that’s almost viscous.

High drinkability, this went down easy and hid the ABV very well; overall a good beer that I thought would be more hop dominant, but still turned out well with earthy notes adding some balance to the hops in play.

Serving type: bottle

06-06-2012 02:33:21 | More by CHickman

EgadBananas

Louisiana

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

A~Poured a nice copper hued color, with a tan-like head of about a finger and a half. Transparent, and laces nicely.

S~Notes of citrus, grapefruit, slight pine resins, caramel.

T~Plenty of grapefruit and sweet citrus notes, with an equally abundant caramel maltiness.

M~It's a full-bodied IPA, with a creaminess and almost velvety quality.

D/O~It's a rich, coating IPA, but it goes down smooth. In the end, it's not game-changing, but it's a good go-to IPA if it was available to me.

Serving type: bottle

06-05-2012 22:53:47 | More by EgadBananas

dbrauneis

New Jersey

4.05/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Pours a crystal clear copper in color. The beer has a 1/8 finger tall foamy off-white head that reduces to a thick patch and thin ring at the edges of the glass. Moderate lacing is observed.

S: This beer has a huge and wonderful hop aroma - grapefruit/citrus and passionfruit/tropical. I love the smell of this hop.

T: This beer has a very pleasant flavor with some bitterness though not the agressive bitternes the beer name might have lead me to expect. There is a light lingering bitterness in the finish. Wonderful flavors of grapefruit and passionfruit contributed by the nelson sauvin hop over a light malt body. This beer is pretty well balanced.

M: On the lighter side of medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation.

O: I was surprised the ABV on this beer was not higher, it has a big beer feeling to it but the lower ABV really improves the drinkability. Very enjoyable - great smell and taste. Definitely want to try this one again.

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2012 18:28:34 | More by dbrauneis

metter98

New York

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

A: The beer is clear copper-amber in color and has a very slight amount of visible carbonation. It poured with a quarter-finger off white head that died down but never completely faded away.
S: There is a very strong smell of Nelson Sauvin hops, which impart aromas of tropical fruits and citrus to the nose.
T: Similar to the smell, the taste has flavors of grapefruit and passion fruit. There is a light to moderate amount of bitterness.
M: It feels medium-bodied and crisp on the palate with a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is packed with a great hop aroma but is still quite easy to drink and isn’t that bitter compared to other IPAs.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2012 20:18:06 | More by metter98

GNWBC

Washington

3.9/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22oz Bomber

Pours a dark golden amber with a pure white head

Smells like hops and grapefruit with a hit of orange rind and toasted grains. Awesome

Taste: you get the hoppiness right away but its blended well with the sweetness of the malt and as it passes over your tongue the citrus takes over with lots of grapefruit and orange rind and a then a sweetness coats your throat. goes down super smooth.

MF: you get some hop resin stuck in your mouth but thats not a bad thing

OA: an awesome and well balanced IPA nice and hoppy but goes down smooth. Good job Elysian.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2012 21:26:29 | More by GNWBC

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

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

On Tap at The Boilermaker in a wine glass.

Idiot Sauvin pours out a golden color resembling a slight burnt copper hue in the glass. A skim of white stuff leaving some streaks on the glass. Smell is pretty bright with hops scent, I've been getting a lot of Nelson Sauvin added beers lately so I picked it right up. Some earthy tones with semi citrus peeking through. A bready malting is also scented up. Taste is well balanced between the hops/malts. The Sauvin wins a bit though, showcasing some citrus appeal with a earthy finish. I get some orange and mango with a nice non sweet finish of malt covering it's tracks pretty well. Feel is at about less than medium with a nice spray of carb on the tap. I would have no problem drinking more, especially at 6.3%

Serving type: on-tap

05-23-2012 01:26:30 | More by onix1agr

crossovert

Wisconsin

4.1/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

650ml bottle.

It pours a deep amber with a foamy off-white head.

The smell has a good bit of toasted grain, a nice change of pace in an IPA. It melds with some mangotomatomeloney scents.

The flavor is nicely hoppy. Tropical goodness. Some resiny pine and citrus rind on the back end. The malt isn't too sweet and provides some backbone.

This beer tastes freaking amazing, good one.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2012 03:36:03 | More by crossovert

russwbeck

Virginia

4.03/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: The beer pours out a clear red-brown color that hints towards yellow at the edges. A nice white head builds up a few fingers tall and laces very nicely. The retention is pretty good.

S: Amazing tropical aroma. Mango, citrus, berries, and light pine. The fruitiness is really impressive.

T: The taste keeps the same going. Huge mango and tropical fruit taste. Very citrusy with a pine finish. Just a beautiful combination of hops. I can't say I have much exposure to the Nelson Sauvin hop varietal, but if it creates beers like this I can get on board.

MF: Light to medium body with a good amount of carbonation. The fruitiness and bitterness makes it really drinkable.

O: This was a really pleasant surprise. If this is still available grab it up. Really a great introduction to New Zealand hops, Nelson Sauvin specifically.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2012 03:33:15 | More by russwbeck