Killa Vanilla Extraordinary IPA
Hoppin' Frog Brewery

 

 

16 oz can, born on 9/25/20, poured into a pint glass at 43 degrees F:
L - yellow/orange with a white head that lingered
S - lots of vanilla
T - hoppy and bitter with vanilla mixed in, a bit strange but pretty good
F - medium mouthfeel with moderate carbonbation
O - surprisingly good, vanilla is a bit overpowering on the nose, but hoppy bitterness comes in and it is a nice blend of flavors

 

 

 

 

 

Vanilla in an IPA? Who would have thought? It hits you at the end of the sip, changing the usual bitterness into slight sweetness. My favorite IPA.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

$ 12 (Including tax)/bomber ($ 0.545/oz) at Franklin Beer, Franklin, PA
Undated bottle at 42 degrees into a hand washed and dried JK snifter
Aroma – not much, definitely no vanilla; at least there are no unpleasant odors, just a hint of citrus.
Head large (Maximum 4.9 cm, aggressive pour), off white, frothy, low density and average retention, diminishing to an irregular three to seven mm frothy ring and a heaped frothy island.
Lacing – good. Irregular bands of tiny to small bubbles connecting with the next lower ring by narrow columns of bubbles
Body – golden, very slight haze. Several other bottles which I didn’t buy had large bits of potential flotsam and/or jetsam easily visible within. Apparently these are bottle conditioned and were stored on their sides. A second pour had some bits of detritus present.
Flavor – really unremarkable – a little citrus, a little pine, no vanilla, no malt, no alcohol, no diacetyl
Palate – medium, slightly oily, lively carbonation.

Not a bad IPA, just not exceptional. Since Hoppin’ Frog seems to do primarily stouts and variants of stouts, this isn’t bad. But for Dog’s sake, date the bottles! If this is a week-old IPA then it’s not very good. If it’s from last year then it’s remarkable!

Appearance 3.75, Aroma 3, Flavor 3.5, Palate 3.5, Overall 3.25

22 ounce bottle into tulip glass, no bottle dating. Pours lightly hazy golden orange color with a 1-2 finger dense off white head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice soapy lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of big vanilla, cream, grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, apricot, lemon zest, orange peel, pine, honey, light caramel, lightly toasted bread, and floral/grassy earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of bright citrus/pine hops, vanilla, and moderate pale malt notes; with great strength. Taste of big vanilla, cream, grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, apricot, lemon zest, orange peel, pine, honey, light caramel, lightly toasted bread, and floral/grassy earthiness. Moderate pine/citrus peel/rind bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of vanilla, cream, grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, apricot, lemon zest, orange peel, citrus rind, pine, honey, lightly toasted bread, and floral/grassy earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Great complexity, robustness, and balance of bright citrus/pine hops, vanilla, and moderate pale malt flavors; with a great malt/bitterness balance, and zero astringent hop flavors after the finish. Light-moderate dryness from bitterness, increasing through the glass. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, moderately sticky/resinous, and creamy/grainy balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol for 7.5%. Overall this is great IPA! All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of bright citrus/pine hops, vanilla, and moderate pale malt flavors; very smooth and easy to drink. Big but not overwhelming on vanilla, and fairly juicy on hop flavors. Well balanced and not overly aggressive on bitterness. A very enjoyable offering.