Blind Faith - Magic Hat Brewing Company

riversider76

New York

3.7/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a golden amber. Fluffy white head, with excellent retention and lacing. Aroma is subtle. Pine hops are most noticeable. Body is medium and carbonated. Taste is nicely hopped. Has a bit of a carmel apple thing in the finish. Did not knock my sox off, but worth a try.

Serving type: nitro-bottle

08-14-2006 00:06:50 | More by riversider76

mfnmbvp

Illinois

3.18/5  rDev -11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

12 oz. bottle, with no apparent bottled on date present, part of the Magic Hat summer sampler twelve-pack. Poured into a Firestone Walker pint glass. Bottlecap says "it is now clear; you drink good beer."

A - Semi-aggressive pour yields about a finger of soapy white head which dies out within seconds, upon a coppery orange colored body. The only beer of the package that appears unfiltered, with mad amounts of sediment motionless in the glass. Thin ring of wispy lacing.

S - Smell is of pale biscuit malts, and a light piney citrus hop presence. Dash of lemon, but a pretty underwhelming smell.

T - Taste follows the nose pretty accurately. Some slight citric hop bite, some bready biscuit malts, but basically pretty underwhelming with little action happening. Some sweet green apple skin sweetness lingering on the finish. More malt forward, with not a whole lot of genuine hop action happening.

M - Feel is sweet and tart, with some fruity hop presence lingering. Not what you would normally expect from a bitter hop assault of an IPA.

Overall, a decent enough IPA from Magic Hat. More malt forward, and more of a beginner's IPA in general, but I can definitely see where this beer would come in handy. A modest 6.20% abv, the highest of all the beers in this variety pack, I will definitely be drinking more of these this sumer.

Magic Hat Blind Faith ---3/5.

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2013 02:04:42 | More by mfnmbvp

MichaelNickerson

Michigan

3.76/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Appearance - cloudy amber with large head.

Smell - extremely malty with caramel notes and heavy hops - decently fruity

Taste - not as hoppy as anticipated for an IPA, but some fruit notes seem to be the reasoning.

Mouthfeel - weak, not as crisp as would like.

Overall - not the greatest IPA I've had, but does provide a more unique fruity experience, rather than a bitter overall complexion.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2013 16:10:56 | More by MichaelNickerson

JMScowcroft

Vermont

2.86/5  rDev -20.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75

Magic Hat Brewing Company - Blind Faith

I saw this was on limited release so I had to give it a shot and give it a review.

Look - Pours cloudy copperish amber with a full soapy head. Some lacing. Moderate carbonation. Not sure what they were going for here but this was one of the worst craft's visually I have ever seen.

Smell - Deep caramel malts, light fruity English hops. A bit bland here but at least not overly bready.

Taste - Bitter apricot (yuck) mixed with bready sweet malts here. The hops don't have enough of an attitude, the fruitiness ends up being off-putting. Tastes processed and like a grab bag of ingredients, no finesse. English hops tend to drive me insane so there's that as well.

Mouthfeel - Deeper and fruitier than #9, not as refreshing or crisp. Sub-par really for this style. Rests a slight bitter and sticky. Drinkability not great.

Overall - Overall a disappointment. I remember it much more fondly than it actually is. I have also had some amazing brews since having one of these so it has a lot to live up to. Magic Hat is owned by North American Breweries who owns several brands who don't care about craft beer, such as Genesee and Labatt USA, but I figured since it was a subsidiary it might not brew sub-par. I was wrong and I am not a big fan of this brew or the brewery in general.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2013 11:25:28 | More by JMScowcroft

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.68/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

12oz Bottle from Party Source Syracuse NY for 2.00$

Appearance - Slightly hazy copper colour with an average size fizzy beige coloured head. There is an average amount of carbonation showing and there is some decent lacing. The head lasted for around 4-5 minutes.

Smell - Hops, malts, caramel, grassy notes, grapefruit

Taste & Mouth - There is an above average amount of carbonation and I can taste caramel, malts, and hops. There is also some grapefruit, a grassiness, and a peach sweetness. It ends with a fairly bitter hop bitterness.

Overall – Better than I had expected based on reviews. It's kind of like a fusion of English and American styles. I'd drink it again.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2013 01:46:33 | More by spinrsx

Bitter_Echo

Michigan

3.55/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

My first English IPA. Pours and appears a dark orange, cloudy, low head tannic ale. Smells sweet really, and floral and some citrus, but not hop prominent like American IPA's. Taste is roasted malt and caramel and some citrus bitter, all modulated by a really busy, and creamy and effervescent mouth to the beer. Fun to try. Still, give me more hops!

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2012 00:24:26 | More by Bitter_Echo

GoldHorde

Minnesota

3.65/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

There are so many fantastic IPA's out there that it is a hard category to compete in even with a top beer. Thus beer easily places well above other styles but as an IPA I'll have to place it only above average. Nice clean amber, with a tight froth and the welcome hop aftertaste. It only lacks an aromatic nostril sting I've come to expect with IPA's - especially double IPA's. But I don't think that was their brewing intention - NICE BEER!

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2012 03:08:19 | More by GoldHorde

AmitC

Indiana

4/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12fl oz bottle into a beer mug.

Excellent head formation of white color that persists for a long long time, in fact throughout. Orangeish amber color. Hazy appearance. Top notch lacing.

Nose is a bit of hops that are earthy and slightly floral. Good malt smell as well. Comparatively low intensity of hops.

Taste: A good balanced taste with just a little tilt towards hops. Good semidry finish. Bitterness is felt but does not linger or is overpowering as malts shut those off a lot.

Mouth feel : Medium feel Moderate carbonation. No hop or carbonation derived astringency.

Style Rate : 4
Personal rate :4

Would i buy it next time. No, not because it ain't good. But there is a lot of excellent stuff available out there.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2012 15:33:02 | More by AmitC

jjanega08

Minnesota

3.93/5  rDev +8.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

No freshness dating

A= Pours a hazy brownish amber color with a half finger of head that holds great retention and lacing on the side of the glass.

S= The smell is ineresting. It has a sort of poopy hoppy grassy smell. A light sort of citrusy fruity smell.

T= The taste is again sort of a light grassy floral type of hop flavor. The poopyness is gone. I usually atribute the poop to wheat but I don't think there is wheat in here so I don't know what I was smelling. The finish is very sweet.

M= Nice and well carbonated.

O= This is a solid IPA. A little weird being the English style. A little bit of a step outside the box. Def worth trying though. Besides the sweet finish I liked it a lot.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2012 04:08:14 | More by jjanega08

CHickman

New York

3.3/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a cloudy copper orange color with a massive foamy 2 finger light tan head that faded extremely slowly, leaving OK spotty lacing; there were a ton of bubbles in the head and boy did if go down sloooow. A very impressive head to watch dissipate.

Smells of sweet malt, toasted grains, Ritz cracker, wheat, piney hops, herbs, and bready notes; even for an English IPA this is quite malty with very light caramel notes and a lot of grains.

Tastes very bready, with biscuit and/or cracker up front, light citrus hoppy notes, herbs, toasted grains, caramel, toast, nice sweet enough malts and then oddly some light funk; if this were any other brewer besides Magic Hat the funk would be alarming, but these guys seem to smoke weed as they brew and just chuck things in the mash – sometimes it works and sometimes it bombs. Surprisingly this beer has pretty nice balance even though the flavor is average and the hops were very mild (at best).

Mouthfeel is chewy and has a little too much cardboard, with a medium body, mild carbonation and an overall grainy feel. Overall it was OK; nice for the style and flavorful enough that I’d have it again. They got this one right up in VT.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2012 03:42:36 | More by CHickman

JamesMN

Minnesota

3.08/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: Ultra-hazy golden orange in color with a soapy off-white head. Good lacing.

Aroma: Slightly bready from the malt with a little hop sweetness (almost in a candy-like way).

Taste: Starts with a little bit of a citrus note from the hops and then the thick breadyness of the malt cuts through that. The bitterness really doesn't show up until the finish and aftertaste. There is just a hint of a spicy flavor from the hops used.

Mouthfeel: Good carbonation and medium bodied. Average drinkability.

Final Thoughts: This sort of tastes like an APA without any of the great hop flavor. I've never been a big fan of English IPAs (since the American version does a much better job with the hop selection) but this one is basically average for the style. I'd be interested to try the other Magic Hat IPAs but I wouldn't go for this again.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2012 01:25:25 | More by JamesMN

DavidS88

Massachusetts

3.6/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

So far this has been my least favorite offering from the folks at Magic Hat and probably one of my least favorite IPAs. That's not to say that Blind Faith is a bad beer overall, just not really my personal taste. I drank this straight from the bottle, so I can't say too much about the appearance of the beer other than it did not leave that much tracing on the sides of the bottle. The smell was actually pretty good, with strong floral and pine hop notes to it. This is a little bit of foreshadowing because Blind Faith is pretty damn hoppy in my opinion and you really can taste that right up front and throughout your consumption of the beer. It did have a crisp finish too it, but it also seemed as though there was a hint of alcohol in the aftertaste. For me, Blind Faith had almost too much floral and pine hop flavor; I couldn't really detect anything else in the flavor and it was fairly carbonated so it isn't really a beer that you can really savor the flavor of. Overall, Blind Faith kind of reminded of, say, a poor man's Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA. It was good, but still just didn't quite do it for me. If you're looking for an English IPA with a strong hop taste to it, check out Blind Faith. Otherwise, go elsewhere.

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2012 21:31:39 | More by DavidS88

mdfb79

New York

3.58/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

From 09/02/12 notes. Had in LBI, poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a pint glass.

a - Pours a hazy orange-amber color with one inch of white head and moderate carbonation evident.

s - Smells of fruity malts, caramel malts, some citrus hops, and light floral hops. Nice, though mroe on the malty side.

t - Tastes of of fruity malts, light citrus hops, floral hops, and caramel malts. Same as the nose but more citrus to it; a little bit of a step up.

m - Medium body and moderate carbonation. No bitterness, pretty easy to drink.

o - Overall a decent IPA, though more on the malty side. A little hoppier in the taste, but not too much. Easy to drink, would have it again if it was in the fridge.

Serving type: bottle

09-04-2012 20:06:16 | More by mdfb79

BlackBelt5112203

South Carolina

3.68/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a pint glass at fridge-cellar temperature.

L – Pale amber color with a 3-finger frothy cream-colored head. Really nice retention and lacing. Clear until I poured in the little bit of yeast/sediment at the bottom of the bottle accidentally. A good amount of carbonation bubbles.

S – Toasty malt with an equal amount of earthy, floral, and a little bit of grapefruit hop aromas. There’s a little bit of yeast here as well.

T – Starts off sweet with toasty malt and citrus flavors and transitions to a bitter grapefruit, earthy, and floral hop finish. There’s a little bit of spicy yeast here, too.

F – Medium-bodied with good carbonation, a sticky and creamy mouthfeel, and a steadily building bitter and dry finish. Floral and grapefruit bitterness lingers for a little bit.

O – This is a decent English IPA – that adjective in front of the “IPA” is an important one. Anyone who is expecting a hop presence similar to American IPAs doesn’t understand what English IPAs are and will be sorely disappointed. Sure, there’s a more subdued hop presence with more earthy and floral notes but that is to be expected with this style. There’s still not really anything special here, but it is not a bad beer at all.

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2012 02:56:31 | More by BlackBelt5112203

bigfnjoe

Pennsylvania

2.18/5  rDev -39.6%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass

A- pours an extremely cloudy shade of orangeish brown with a one finger offwhite head. Looks disgusting

S- very light aroma of pine. Weak.

T- very light grassy bitterness...malty sweetness as well. I know it's and English IPA and not American, but it's very bland

M- medium bodied, on the thick side. Odd for a single IPA

O- not a huge fan at all...but then again, Magic Hat. Not expecting much

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2012 02:00:49 | More by bigfnjoe

Tobe

2.53/5  rDev -29.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

The beer poured a nice looking amber with a full tan head. Head measured one finger width and held up awhile.

Aroma has a hint of soap, like childhood bubbles. There is also a showing of pine form the hops. The flavor is pine resin and there is some faint citrus to be found. Not the best IPA I have had. For being a part of the Summer variety case, this was the weakest offering.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2012 16:32:40 | More by Tobe

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

With the proliferation of American styles, it's nice to be able to get an English style that's done well. This fits that bill. There are those mature refined tones that you expect; well rounded hop characteristics, but not pushing it to the levels that define American IPAs. This is a real nice easy drinker. If I could try this on cask, I'd be all over it.

Serving type: bottle

08-17-2012 05:26:17 | More by RblWthACoz

kangarooAdam59

Connecticut

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

Into a pint glass:

A: bold brown colored body that leaves a one finger white head that lasts a good two minutes, no carbonation is rising

S: malty sweet citrus up front with just a bit of hops in the background.

T: pretty much the same, nothing different.

M: medium, pretty creamy, nothing harsh on the tongue.

O: this is decent, but nothing spectacular, I'm not sure if I would have this again.

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2012 00:20:19 | More by kangarooAdam59

RickS95

Indiana

3.15/5  rDev -12.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Certainly not the appearance of an IPA you'll find in the States, but more fitting of those across the pond. The color is anything but pale. More or less a deep, rich, orangey amber. Not quite hazy, but thick enough that light can't get through it. The head is very thick with good staying power. It first falls around the edges leaving a peak in the middle. Lots of thick lace.

Malty nose, somewhat vegetal...smells like the sauerkraut I had with dinner. Yeasty.

Doesn't have much character. Very bready, crackerlike taste. Again, slightly vegetal. Earthy hops in the swallow with more malt coming through.

The first half is kind of blah. There's not much happening. Eventually, the hops provide some bitter and the malt gives some sweetness, and like the smell, I'm getting sauerkraut again.

Very ordinary. Nothing to write home about. Just lacks character, like it doesn't know what kind of beer it wants to be. Goes down easy enough, but needs more bite for an IPA. The troops of lore wouldn't want much of this.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2012 03:15:56 | More by RickS95

TheBigLebrewski

Michigan

1.9/5  rDev -47.4%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Large to medium sized bubbles made up a 3/4inch, light brown head that dissipated a bit quicker than you'd hope. Beer is only a bit darker than mass market honey.

Smell is neutral, if not unappealingly acrid. Not far from the way a flemish sour can smell, though to a far lesser degree. Didn't hit until pretty deep in the nostril. Were I in a more childish mood I might give it a watermelon warhead read.

Here's where the subjective assessment of a beer's style clause is relevant. In terms of the brewing process, they probably didn't lie to us. But in realms such as flavor, this is not an IPA. The English aspects are present - some long lasting pale malt mellow-sweet flavor - and are actually pleasant if you're not expecting any real bitterness. Indeed, this isn't even on the better side of macro-produced IPAs. It is far too mild. Most Pale Ales from microbrewers are far hoppier in flavor. In mouthfeel, there is certainly evidence of hops, but you'll forget by the time the beer hits your belly.

Aftertaste, as do most imitation microbrews, certainly evidences astringent and metallic tints - as did many aspects of this beer.

All in all: A great beer to buy for the bottle if the spot next to #9 on the frat mantle is empty. Not worth money if you enjoy craft beer. And Anheuser Busch doesn't need it.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2012 03:15:48 | More by TheBigLebrewski

brewcore

South Carolina

3.48/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass.

A: Copper penny in color. A two finger slightly off-white head with good retention. Lots of carbonation up the sides of the glass. Exellent lacing.

S: Sweetness dominates the nose. Fruity with english hops. Faint metallic aroma.

T: An english IPA with a little more bitterness than usual for the style. Hops impart an orange peel citrus flavor with a slightly bitter and even more slight metallic finish. The malts are of biscuit.

M: The mouthfeel on this beer is thick considering the style and abv. Creamy and pleasant for a one beer session, but I don't think I could enjoy more than a couple on a warm day.

O: Interesting twist on the style and definitely worth trying. It's not often I find an English IPA on the shelves. Good, but not something I will seek out.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2012 21:52:46 | More by brewcore

matjack85

Illinois

3.1/5  rDev -14.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

I got this single 12oz brown bottle as part of a build-your-own six pack for $9.99 at the Binny's store in Bloomingdale, IL. That makes it $1.67 for one bottle. No freshness date.

The beer poured a hazy orange/copper color with a ½-finger of white head that lasted a little over a minute. Decent lacing.

Fruity and earthy smell, but lacking the big IPA hop aroma.

This is a pretty tame IPA. Slightly malty (caramel), and slightly fruity, with just a touch of mild earthy bitterness. It's decent, but there's no "wow" factor. Slightly bitter aftertaste.

Smooth, almost creamy mouthfeel, despite the high carbonation level.

Another so-so beer from a brewery that puts out a lot of ho hum beers despite the fact they often use unusual ingredients and have wild and crazy labels.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2012 08:53:20 | More by matjack85

Jadjunk

Georgia

3.55/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Returning as part of Magic Hat's I.P.A. on Tour Series, this is a Summer Seasonal beer, brewed in the English India Pale Ale style.

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle to a Magic Hat Pint Glass. Served at 43º Fahrenheit.

(Appearance) Pours a beige-cream foamy head on top of a medium haze copper-orange body. Head retains quite well, leaving soapy suds lacing behind as it recedes. Carbonation is relaxed but plentiful. Overall its a nice impressive appearance from this IPA. 4.5

(Smell) Aroma is mild., consisting of mild tart grains, some fruity yeast esters, a faint grassy and resin hop character with a low bitterness overall. Smell is not particularly impressive and quite faint, you really have to try hard to pull much more out of this glass. Aroma is certainly milder by comparison to the big American bold IPAs making it much more approachable, although not very exciting overall. 3

(Taste) Mild buttery tart grainy malt with a resiny hop bitterness and a touch of musty pine. In terms of intensity, it's striking in comparison to what the aroma had me predicting, a significantly more bold, but still drinkable outcome. Alcohol presence is somewhat evident, as the body is a touch thin. Balance is nice although a bit hoppier than malty. Despite not having a "striking" hop character, the bitterness is well preserved nonetheless, and the malt, although a bit perky in flavor and thin in spots, is a decent compliment. 3.5

(Mouthfeel) Texture is mild, slick with a pleasant level of fizzy carbonation throughout. Body is light, a bit too light on the malt character, which would help balance the beer a bit more. Alcohol presence is also medium, most likely a result of the thin body. It's a surprise to how much of an impact that a bigger body could make on this drink. 3.5

(Overall) I certainly consider this one of Magic Hat's better IPAs on Tour, and now that I have had the last of their four seasonal IPAs I consider this one of the best (and more unique) at the moment, meaning that it's likely worth picking up a six pack of this, or perhaps a mixed 12 pack variety while it's still around. 4

Magic Hat Brewing Company's
Blind Faith
3.55/5.00

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2012 16:03:47 | More by Jadjunk

Reaper16

Alabama

3.53/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz. bottle served into a nonic pint glass

Pours a nice, light, coppery orange color. Decent clarity to the body. The head sits at about 1.25 fingers of fluffy off-white foam.

Aromas of copper and garden dominate the nose. A sign of English hops, and a lot of them. A bit of a marmalade character and some baking spice. But the metallic, green notes overwhelm the aroma.

The flavor of this beer is situated in-between an East Coast American IPA and an English IPA. There's sharp hop flavors of orange peel, pear, and even some passionfruit. Of course, those fruits are balanced by green hop flavors, and some metallic hop flavor too. The malts are biscuity and dry. The malts sort of clash with the passionfruit character, but the flavor is pretty nice overall. A bit strong for an English IPA, but that's probably a good thing from an American market standpoint.

The beer's only real disappointing note is the mouthfeel. It is quite thick for the style, and not particularly conducive to drinking.

Overall, this is an impressive effort from a brewery that I tend to hate. It's strong for an English IPA, but tastes pretty darn good. Magic Hat's best beer?

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2012 20:30:45 | More by Reaper16

barczar

Kentucky

3.8/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a slightly hazy orange copper color with a fairly thick, one inch cream head that dissipates slowly, leaving substantial lacing.

Toasted caramel malt and citrus make up the aroma, with a bit of pine adding complexity. Notes of grapefruit and lemon are present.

Flavor reveals more citrus dominance, with grapefruit and an almost lemony tang underlying a fairly toasted malt backbone, finishing slightly bitter. There's a note of pine in the aftertaste. Tropical hints of pineapple and mango emerge as it warms.

Body is moderate, with moderately high carbonation, finishing fairly dry.

Overall, one of the better Magic Hat offerings I've had. Wouldn't consider it an English ipa. Hops were more American in style. Malt was a bit overly toasted, but the hop complexity was very nice.

Serving type: bottle

07-03-2012 00:21:02 | More by barczar