Squatters Off Duty IPA
Utah Brewers Cooperative

Bottle at brewpub. Clear golden with a small creamy head. Aroma is malty with a slight hop character. Taste turns over to the hops, crisp and bracing. Clean.

Very interesting, not quite what I expected and actually named well - it’s a laid back, Off-Duty IPA. Good head on pour from bottle that lasts for awhile. Yes, an IPA with a bit of citrus/grass/honey mix but with a rather malty finish (as I said, interesting!) Good gold color, almost an amber. Just a real comfy, tasty, off-the-shelf beer. Won’t blow your mind, but I don’t think it’s supposed to, it’s just good beer. I would definitely buy a bottle again when traveling through SLC.

Poured from can into a pint glass
Appearance – The beer pours a deep amber color with a two finger head of foam. The head has a great level of retention slowly fading over time to leave a good level of foamy lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell – The aroma of the brew is strongest of a caramel malt mixed with some bread and a hint of tropical fruits of a mango, tangerine, and papaya nature. Along with these aromas comes some nice hop aromas of a pine and citrus nature as well.
Taste – The taste begins with a smooth bready taste with some tropical and caramel sweetness mixed within. There is a citrus hop upfront which is joined by some pine and some herbal flavors later on. The sweet dries out ever so slightly all while the hop increases, leaving one with a rather smooth taste to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel – The body of the brew was average to slightly crisper with a carbonation level that was normal. The feel was rather nice for the sweet, hop, and malt and made for a very easy drinker.
Overall – A pretty nice IPA with good flavor and drinkability overall and one to try if you get a chance.

 

 

Squatters best beer - by far. What's strange is their session version of this beer (Full Suspension) is very average. I know some users will probably shout out "What about Hop Rising?!?" Hop Rising is a great beer, but in a competitive market deep in IPAs, this is my go to, and I savour every sip.

 

Pours a clear, copper color. 2/3 inch head of an off-white color. Great retention and decent lacing. Smells of slight alcohol, slight sweet malt, pale malt, piney hops, resin, and slight citrus hops. Fits the style of an American IPA. Mouth feel is sharp and clean, with an average carbonation level. Tastes of slight alcohol, slight sweet malt, pale malt, piney hops, resin, and slight citrus hops. Overall, good appearance, aroma, feel, body, and blend.

From notes taken 01/08/17:

Semi-clear fruity orange appearance. Tight frothy head, uneven surface, decadent cream color, decent retention, ringlets of fine lace. Resin, mango, sweet orange, light piney spiciness, crackers to the nose. Even more fruit on the palate, tartness subdues bitterness somewhat, arguably not enough, but still not bad for an IPA that isn’t an Imperial. Crackers also more prominent with overt rind to spiciness. Almost metallic finish, some peppercorn with retro-olfaction. Medium-bodied, moderate levels of fine but tingly carbonation.

 

 

Pours an effervescent amber with 2+ fingers of fluffed up ivory colored head. Super lacing & head retention

S: Piney, bready, a little tropical

T: Follows the nose, much dryness as well, nice mango flavor up front. Dryness, breadyness & mango as this warms, a little tangerine as well. Finishes bready, piney with woody & tropical hops as well

MF: Medium body, pretty firm carbonation, nicely balanced

Easy drinking IPA, well worth a go

 

 

Off Duty IPA looks pretty relaxed indeed - its bubbles drift lazily and the head takes off early, leaving the surface entirely empty between the ends of the glass. Lacing can't be bothered to stick around either (no pun intended). Why can't they be more like that brightly shinning golden liquid? It's highlights are tireless and vivid.

Some styles are inherently open to interpretation; there's not always a right answer. Others, however, we can definitively say should taste a certain way, that proper representation of the style requires, without exception, specific features. IPA is one of those. There is a right and wrong way to do it...

Squatters does it right. It has the requisite pine and citrus flavours, with malt lending a little caramelly sweetness but staying by and large to the backdrop. It has a powerfully hoppy bouquet but muted and pleasant herbal bitterness on the palate. Overall it has confidence but is controlled; it has a bold yet balanced disposition.

In other words, it's probably not the IPA for those that like being smacked upside the head. At 6.5% this is by no means a "little" beer but certainly don't expect to notice any alcohol. And while it has the sappy resins and citrusy acidity, it won't make your gums blister. No sir. Squatters put drinkability first and did so, impressively, without sacrificing flavour or character.

Off Duty IPA would indeed make a good companion for a beach or poolside afternoon. The overall standard for American IPAs is now so consistently good from coast to coast that reviewing them can feel almost redundant at times. Is this the best example I've tried? No. But it is absolutely something I'd buy regularly... which is something I can't say for all IPAs.