Harpoon IPA - Harpoon Brewery & Beer Hall

superspak

Michigan

3.58/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12 ounce bottle into pint glass, best by 4/15/2012. Pours slightly hazy golden amber color with a nice 2 finger dense off white head with great retention that reduces to a cap that lingers. Some spotty lacing on the glass. Aromas of pine, herbal, floral, citrus, grass, caramel, and a bit of honey sweetness. Decent aromas that are on the weak side. Taste of big pine, citrus, herbal, floral, caramel, biscuit, grass, and graininess. Fair amount of bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of biscuit, pine, herbal, citrus, and grass on the finish for a bit. Some good malt and flavor balance with bitterness. Medium carbontion and body; with a crisp and clean mouthfeel. Some prickly carbonation present as well, but it still drinks very smoothly. No alcohol presence in the taste or finish. Overall this is a solid and pretty enjoyable IPA.

Serving type: bottle

02-27-2012 04:43:48 | More by superspak

Labeerfinder

3.6/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Orange color with a white head that fades, and a moderate to good amount of carbonation. The nose on this beer is fragrant with some nice flowery and citric hop aromas, paired with some fruity estery aromas of apple jelly, and just a touch of sweet caramel aroma. The palate is soft with some good pale and caramel malt flavors, with a back drop of estery fruit. Harpoon IPA finishes with more fruit and malt up front, then ends with a mildly bitter, citric hop bite that slightly lingers.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2012 04:58:28 | More by Labeerfinder

maxk

Maryland

3.3/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured chilled into a tulip.

A crystal clear copper with steady bubble streams making their way up to a foamy eggshell colored head. As the head settles, it leaves thick trails of lacing down the glass.

Pine, citrus and some caramel malt jump out at first. The lightly roasted grains sit in the background and slightly remind me of toasted marshmallows.

Grapefruit upfront, quickly followed by the caramelized sugars of the malt. All of that gives way to pine and grass. Properly carbonated and the body that an IPA should have.

Balanced and mild, no flavors are overly extreme. It's a decent IPA, especially for the price, however I'd say it's more of a starter IPA. It is palatable to those sensitive to much more invasive hop flavors.

Serving type: bottle

02-22-2012 02:33:39 | More by maxk

JoeAmerican77

Colorado

3.43/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Clear bronze, white head, stringent lacing...Weak biscuits and sweet grassy notes round out the nose. A light amount of honey, sweet but not cloying, followed by mild hop bitterness. It reminds me of a better version of Saranac IPA. Weak in IBU's but balanced well with malty hermit cookies.

I would probably call this just a pale ale, but hey, I didn't brew it. For a pale it it is pretty darn tasty, for an IPA it is still tasty but missing out on the strong hop points.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2012 01:22:58 | More by JoeAmerican77

CowsCanBark

Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev +19.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 12 oz. bottle into standard pint glass.

Appearance: Pours a clear dark gold/orange hue with a one-finger pinkish-white head. Moderate lacing left on glass.

Smell: Very floral and fruity, almost detect a peach-like odor. Hop dominant.

Taste: What a lovely brew! Moderate floral and citrus hop flavors mold together, forming a beautiful taste. The end note is especially flowery, and there is a slight bitterness throughout. Not overly hoppy, but extremely well-balanced and delicious!

Mouthfeel: Light/moderate body with moderate to high carbonation, it's crisp and refreshing and an easy drinker. Would be great on a hot summer day.

Overall: An awesome IPA, one that I'm definitely going to be grabbing way more often. Very floral, which I love.

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2012 23:31:28 | More by CowsCanBark

Tschnab

New York

3.78/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A- pours a rich copper with a good sized head, only it leaves little lace.

S- the hops on this are very floral, with hints of orange and tobacco, and a little bit of pine.

t- I'm getting a lot more malt on this than I remembered there being, and it is working to make this a very balanced, somewhat mild ipa. Floral hops, citrus, and an earthiness make up the flavor.

o- a very good ipa that gets overlooked because of its availability. I still like to revisit this beer as it was my first ipa. Even though I've had many more that i would deem better, this is a great gateway beer.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2012 15:40:30 | More by Tschnab

ckollias

Maryland

4.22/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Enjoyed this 12oz bottle out of a pub glass.

A: Pours a clear golden hue with a white 2-finger head that quickly dissipates into a wispy lace.

S: Nice hoppy aroma that is crisp and clean.

T: Crisp hoppy flavor that is slightly bitter and tart. Finishes in the dry side of sweet.

M: Medium body and medium carbonation.

O: Solid ale – very balanced and well hopped!

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2011 23:27:40 | More by ckollias

Treyliff

West Virginia

3.13/5  rDev -13.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A- Golden straw color with small white head.

S- hoppy, but doesn't seem as hoppy as most ipa's. A little more malts than expected as well.

T- grassy and citrus hops with a bit of sweet grain.

M- average carbonation, very drinkable.

O- This is an good IPA, its very drinkable but seems to lack enough spicy hop kick in the smell and taste department. however, because of this, you could easily drink a few.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2011 00:32:54 | More by Treyliff

Gmann

New York

3.05/5  rDev -16%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a slightly hazy golden straw color with a short wispy white head that settles into a sparse cap.

The aroma is of a floral hop with some orange and apricot scents. The malt is bready with a honey sweetness. Smells more malty than hoppy.

The taste is of a sweet honey malt with some cereal grains. The hops are grassy with some citrus. A slight hint of asprin towards the end.

The feel is moderate with tingly carbonation. Pretty balanced between the sweet and the bitter; finishes slightly dry.

Definition of an average IPA. Its quite drinkable but the flavor is just ho hum.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2011 22:59:05 | More by Gmann

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This beer poured out with a nice looking golden color with a thick looking white head on top. The head leave some scattered lacing on the glass with a decent retention. The smell of the beer was hoppy, with a nice amount of malt on the nose too. The taste of the beer is hoppy but not hard to handle, it's a subtle IPA. The mouthfeel is crisp and clean feeling. Overall it's a good social IPA, where you can drink this on a regular basis and not get too sick of it.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2011 19:42:04 | More by Knapp85

Ilovesuds

New Hampshire

4.13/5  rDev +13.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Pours a deep golden color with a fluffy, sticky head of foam. Pleasing citrus nose. Taste is grapefuit, pine combined with earthy notes. Terrific balance with this beer. Great sudsy mouthfeel. Always has been my "go to" beer of choice. It never disappoints.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2011 21:52:03 | More by Ilovesuds

MattSweatshirt

Texas

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

12 oz bottle into my Lil Wayne pint glass. The go to pint glass.

Gold color, most of the head dissipates, not much lacing left.

Floral hop smell, some sweet laffy taffy type smell. I might be too far gone to be reviewing this but that’s what I got from a cold bottle from the fridge. It goes away after warming for sure just leaving a hoppy smell.

Not much hop flavor popping in my mouth that I expect from an IPA. Good but not all too exciting. Fairly malty.

A good beer for sure but its lacking as far as IPA’s are concerned.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2011 06:51:35 | More by MattSweatshirt

ThisWangsChung

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to my good friend Jay for supplying this to me. Poured into a beer mug.

A: Typical IPA body. The body is a somewhat cloudy amber color, and it has a two-finger slightly off-white head with good retention and lacing.

S: It's weird...and not the pleasant kind of weird that I get with the Ranger IPA, either. A bit funky, but a nice scent of up-front, piny bitterness.

T: As the nose dictates, the hop bitterness is upfront and spicy, but the bready malts help keep in check. About what I expect from an east-coast IPA.

M: Shockingly silky overall, might be one of the smoothest IPAs I've ever had. Medium-bodied overall with somewhat high carbonation, and easy going down, too.

O: Not groundbreaking, but it's enjoyable and nicely balanced - qualities I look for in an IPA. Great introduction to the style.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2011 23:33:42 | More by ThisWangsChung

KarlosT

Massachusetts

4.05/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Good generic everyday IPA. The IPA's are definitely an acquired taste. This seems to be in the middle of the IPA's in term of hoppiness/bitterness. But this is probably a good starter IPA to get accusomed to this beer style.

I find there is no after taste, which makes this IPA particularly clean and fresh.

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2011 01:31:28 | More by KarlosT

Gtreid

Florida

3.6/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12 oz. bottle poured into a tulip.

A: Light orange color. The pour left a finger and a half of eggshell white head, that didn't leave much lace.

A: Decent hop aroma up front, some sweet citrus consiting of orage, pineapple, and tangerine. A bit of pine sap as well. Additional notes of caramel sweetness.

T: Pretty sweet at the begining. Nice hop and malty flavor in the middle, but does not finish well. Not as bitter as I would like.

M: Medium body and good levels of carbonation.

O: Pretty fair beer. There are much better ipa's out there, but this one's not bad. Would have again. Skal.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2011 22:43:56 | More by Gtreid

bushbeer75

Michigan

3.6/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 oz brown bottle

Harpoon IPA poured a clear copper color producing a 1-finger white head that formed “start and stop” lacing around the walls of my glass mug. The nose was dominated by citrus hops with flora hops taking a secondary role. The flavor of grapefruit citrus controlled the taste with a medium lingering bitter after taste. Mouth feel is medium, crisp and clean.

Overall, Harpoon IPA is a solid IPA that doesn’t overpower you with bitterness. The IPA is worth ago if you enjoy the style.

Serving type: bottle

11-29-2011 18:42:12 | More by bushbeer75

Dhgirl

Florida

3.23/5  rDev -11%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a tulip glass
Has a light golden hue with a frothy white head present. Provided an adequate amount of lacing.
The aroma is sweet and mildly hoppy.
This IPA has a light and refreshing taste.
Mouth feel is simple with a luminous carbonation.
Overall this is a great IPA to enjoy on a summer's day poolside.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2011 19:48:09 | More by Dhgirl

hdelavega

Florida

3.68/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured to a tulip glass.
Pours a light golden yellow, an aggressive pour yielded a fizzy 2 finger head that didn't last very long but left some pretty nice lacing.
The aroma is has a nice citrusy, grassy hop to it, there is a sweet honey like body to the aroma as well.
The flavor is pretty typical of a simple IPA. Hoppy with a bit of malt to support the bitterness. Pretty transparent. Mouth feel is nice and light with bright carbonation and a pretty clean finish.
Overall a nice clean simple IPA.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2011 02:47:07 | More by hdelavega

mattsdenney

Tennessee

2.93/5  rDev -19.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured from 12 oz. bottle. Best by date 12/15/11.

A: Clear, bubbly, light gold in color. Massive frothy head with good sticky lacing. I prefer my IPA's to be cloudier and slightly darker in color than this appears.

S: Floral, citrus, and grassy pine. Smells crisp.

T: Mild citrus hop flavor. Grassy flowery after taste. The taste isn't bad but it is very underwhelming. Tastes weak and watered down. No bite, hop presence more at a level of an average pale ale or golden ale. The lightness in color is always a dead giveaway!

M: Somewhat sticky and frothy. Smooth and slick. Nice consistency.

O: Well I thought for sure that this would better represent as it seems to have been around forever. I am however disappointed overall. The weakest IPA I've ever had in terms of hop presence. Can think of countless other IPA's that are <6% abv that provide a better experience related to this style. Shouldn't have bought a sixer. Oh well.

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2011 23:02:38 | More by mattsdenney

Samp01

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a nice clear golden hue with a small off white head with nice lacing. Earthy piney hops, some spicy grapefruit hit the senses followed by some nice malt and yeast. Taste of earthy piney hops, some nice citrusy grapefruit notes and some nice malt and yeast. Palate is a nice medium to full body, and good carbonation. Finishes with an earthy piney hoppiness, some spicy grapefruit tones balanced by some nice biscuit caramel malt, some yeast and a bit of a nutty flavor. Overall a nicely balanced and drinkable IPA.

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2011 21:30:12 | More by Samp01

Crossmd

Virginia

3.53/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured 39 degrees Fahrenheit into a shaker pint. Best by 10.15.11(yikes.)

Pours a hazy orangy-gold with a half finger white head that dissipates relatively quickly.

Smells of some sour candied orange, a hint of wheat grain maybe? Not well projected at all.

Tastes of a clean citrus hop attack that dries down almost immediately, leaving just a hint of wheat in the back of the palate. Almost acts initially like it might go the way of cloying, before amazingly almost cleaning up completely. Really pretty drinkable for this reason though, and one that means that I would imagine this would go really pretty well with food. Not especially memorable, and not something I'm going to jump at the next time I see it.

86.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2011 22:17:44 | More by Crossmd

MrTopher

California

2.15/5  rDev -40.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

A – Pours and almost clear yellow color, similar to an adjunct lager. There is a small white head that develops, but then disappears quickly and leaved no lacing as all.

S – I get a faint bready malt and mild hop character, but it’s hardly there on the boarder of non-existent.

T – Am I drinking an IPA or am I drinking a lager? This beer has hardly any hop character and hardly any malt character. It is like drinking some adjunct lager. It is a clean and crisp beer, but as for flavors I got some mild malt on the bready side and a very small hop character that has a mild citrus to it. Huge let down.

M – Good on this end, it was well carbonated maybe a little overly carbonated for my liking. The mouth feel was very thin.

O – This was a huge let down, then again I don’t know what more I was expecting, but they could have added more flavor to this than they did, it was just hanging there without anything giving it life.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2011 18:42:13 | More by MrTopher

troysoy2

Pennsylvania

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

Appears to be a nice IPA, but nothing special pops out in particular. It has a good copper color, the head, half a finger dies down quickly to a dusting on the surface of the beer. Not much lacing to speak of.

It smells of sweet hops, with a little malt presence to balance it out. Citrusy, a hint of grapefruit. The smell isn't terribly strong, but it is pleasant.

Grapefruit, lots of grapefruit. It's not really all that bitter though, so it almost captures more of the sweet side of the grapefruit taste. The mouthfeel is foamy, with a lively sense of carbonation. Not the slightest bit syrupy.

Overall, this is a pleasant brew. The sweeter taste than many IPAs means that this may be something to turn to if you're looking for a nice, easy-drinking, sessionable IPA. Sadly, with so many IPAs out there, Harpoon IPA may fall to the wayside. Good stuff, just nothing about it really screams "unique".

Serving type: bottle

11-13-2011 06:53:57 | More by troysoy2

jtierney89

New Jersey

1.5/5  rDev -58.7%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5

Pours a hazy orange with about 2a fingers of head that retains pretty well, lots of citric hops on the nose. Some critic and biscuits sweetness up front but it finishes with a citric bouquet of hops that rounds it out nicely. Decent carbonation and light to medium in body. Decent ipa but nothing really stands out about. Could make a good session ipa if the hop bitterness didn't build so quickly and in a bad way.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2011 17:48:14 | More by jtierney89

gabedivision

New York

3.25/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured from a 12oz bottle to a Brandy Snifter.
Best by 1-11-12(pretty fresh)

Pours a pretty crystal clear copper orange with a half inch finger head that thins to a slimy lace. Fruity hop characteristics on the nose met with sweet bready malts, nice peach or orange picked up in the hops, and light and subtle alcohol like sugar on the end. Bitter hops flood the tongue, but do not over take it, the mellow malt smooths it out on the end, leaves a slightly bitter finish. Light-Medium on the body creamy and smooth, very easy to drink. Overall; This beer is a nice and easy session IPA, it doesnt have a dominate hop presence and thats what does it in for me. I need more hop out of my IPA than what this gives me, considering that, back to the drawing board.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2011 03:55:37 | More by gabedivision