Masala Mama India Pale Ale
Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery

Pours a clear amber/gold with a legitimate amount of off-white head. Leaves nice lacing. Aroma is a bold mix of caramel malt and piney hops. Flavor follows the nose, malty up front with lots of bitterness in the finish. Feel is medium bodied, a little light on the carbonation. Overall, a fine ale.

 

 

CO2 version is an annoying combination of pine, resin and caramel malt.

Cask version is creamy, warm, and mild.

Neither yanked my crank.

 

 

This is, no doubt, an old-fashioned IPA, strong on the malt/hoppiness side. This is much better than their Dortmunder beer, I thought. I bought a growler of each. Definitely a better than average IPA but not sure it is worth the extra trouble and cost.

L: Copper-auburn color with 1 finger of soapy foam that retains well, some lacing
S: pine, grapefruit, some biscuity/carmel malt aromas
T: resinous with a chewy malt backbone. Grapefruit, Candied oranges, cherry.
F: medium body, somewhat velvety, good carbonation
O: Crushed a 32 oz crowler of this easily and probably could have had more. Def my go-to West/Midwest IPA in the twin cities.

 

Cask pour at MTHB. Cloudy, medium amber with cap of thick creamy head. Aroma is light hops with some fruity overtones. Taste adds a layer of hops to the bready malt base, subtle. Cask brings a nice creaminess to the brew, but hard to believe this is a Top 50. Not impressed.

 

Cask at Town Hall Brewery, Minneapolis, MN

A: The beer is crystal clear amber yellow in color and lacks visible carbonation. It kind of looked like a beer on nitro when the waiter brought it to the table with the yellowish and amber colors settling down and mixing together. It poured with a finger high white head that this excellent properties and consistently left a quarter finger high head covering the surface.
S: Light to moderate aromas of citrusy hops are present in the nose along with notes of floral hops.
T: The taste follows the smell and has flavors of citrusy hops - orange and grapefruit stand out in particular - along with notes of floral hops and hints of herbs. There is a light amount of bitterness.
M: It feels very smooth and creamy on the mouthfeel and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: I;'m really glad that I had this beer from a cask as it was a pleasure to drink, especially with the smooth and creamy mouthfeel.

Serving type: cask

 

 

 

Had on tap. Copper brown with a finger of white foam. Smell stars the hops in a bitter and herbal way, with supporting caramel malt. Taste was pretty average, with the hops truly starring, but wasn't super memorable beyond the hops. Somewhat bready in feel with the hop textures interceding. Good ipa, but nothing outstanding

 

 

 

On tap at the brewery, pours a very clear copper. Lots of lacing. Older school American IPA but that’s not a criticism. Hops and malts in perfect balance, nice bitter finish. Glad to finally enjoy one of these.

Cask ale. Solid copper color. Big giant head tho but I dug the color. Nose is floral with some of the wood. Feel is silky. Thanks to the cask. Taste is good from the front end to the back going thru the rainbow of bitterness but well balanced with the malt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Growler from the source.

This one pours a completely clear dark reddish amber, with a small head, and lots of lacing.

This one smells like crusty and bready biscuity malt, resinous piney hops, orange peel, and grapefruit peel.

This is super old school- I can tell this was an absolute banger back in 2006 or so. It's still really great. The malt character is fascinating here- bready, crusty, and just the tiniest bit sweet. There's a great reasinous and very bitter backbone, with slight grapefruit and orange sweetness. It's not tropical or hazy or jooooosy, but it's still great.

This is medium bodied and incredibly drinkable- I was able to take down a 32 oz growler in about half an hour. It's really crisp.

I've been looking to try this beer forever, and I finally just pulled the trigger and traded for a few growlers. It's an exceptional example of how American IPAs used to be.

At the source. Tastes like 2009.

 

 

 

An absolutely lovely IPA in the style of Size 7 or Surly Furious, Town Hall's Masala Mama has inspired many imitators, but few can compare with the balance, delightful aroma and subtle bitter taste of the original.