Smitty's Surprise
Ninkasi Brewing Company

Draft at Hops & Bottles. Clear golden pour, small frothy white head. Aroma is tropical fruit, caramel malts with light floral notes. Taste features the hops prominently, fruity, earthy, sweet and oily.

despite the name, there is no surprise that this west coast ipa is fantastic, a collaboration between ninkasi, russian river, and bale breaker, some breweries that know their way around some hops! pretty golden honey color, relatively clear but not overly polished, average white head from the tap on this one. big punchy up front hop aroma with pine forward notes, subtle strawberry and herbs underneath, not as unique as maybe i anticipated, but really poppy and fresh and vibrant without being overdone, and with a pretty simple and light pale malt base in support, not a whole lot happening with the grain here, fine by me in this style. the hops start early in the flavor too, a little snappy bite right away to set the mood, definite pine, bitter lemon, lemongrass, dried herbs, and faint berry too, very dry most of the way, extended oily feeling finish where the hops swirl around beautifully, bold but not overdone, more stone fruit coming out as it warms, just a touch of the alcohol perceptible, great carbonation washing the palate nearly clean after each pull. i think i thought this might make my head explode, and its not at that level, but its exceptionally well executed, if a little less one of a kind than i was hoping for. really solid, even oddly refreshing for the style. i wish i knew what the hops were, the fruitiness is cool. great beer.