India Brown Ale
Fitger's Brewhouse

Originally reviewed September 8, 2005. On tap at the brewpub. On Cask. Barleywinesque aroma, rich floral hops and sweet fruit and malt; rich and flowering. Slightly hazed orange-brown, a tinge murky, with a cask creamy head, peach colored. Hoppy! Dominated on the front end. Finishes with a nutty brown run. Pretty good balance, but particularly hoppy for the style. Interesting for a brown with a heaviness on the hops, but still a decent showing of the nutty brown characteristics. Tangy, with a tinge of sour lemon. Palate is an interesting mingling of dry and sweet, with some flourishes of honey and oak. Alcohol is fairly well hidden.

I had to ask the bartender just what an IBA was. I was hoping for an Imperial Brown Ale but, turns out it was India. Just as well.

This beer came a crystal clear dark cherry with brown highlights. The head was a creamy off white film that left some nice lace.

Smells of a dry caramel and cocoa base with a huge nectarine and dry woody and earthy pine hop. Smells just like a hopped out brown ale. There’s some truth in advertising.

Tastes of a slick coffee and mossy woods with some mushroom, caramel and raisin. Then, there’s the big bitterng grapefruit hops that come across rather sweet. There also seems to be a touch of rye here as well.

The mouth feel is thick and creamy. Rather substantial, I would say.

A brown ale hop bomb at last! Very well done beer. For as heavy and aggressive as it was, it was surprisingly smooth and easy to drink.

Dark brown...aroma is softer than expected(it was dry hopped)....more of a floral hop expression and a roasty malt smell...some woody elements too

Brewed with 8 types of high alpha hops but this is not one-sided...they did a hell of a job balancing this out...yes you do get a strong blast of chinook like bitterness right away but after that this blends together very nicely.

On the high side of medium bodied (or low side of full bodied)...highly drinkable...abv is not noticable.

As I sit and sip on this one I am amazed at how balanced it turned out and at the same time slightly disappointed. I'd love to feel the hops a little more in the flavor...not that they are not there but this would have been even better if they were amped up a little more on the taste. As it is, it is still very enjoyable and a beer I would recommend trying. I prefer some of their other beers a little more but I wouldn't argue if someone insisted on drinking this all night long.